Sheffield Pride
Sheffield Pride is an annual event celebrating the LGBT community with music, arts, community engagement, funfair rides, and a marketplace and, for the first time in Sheffield this year, a parade.
This year’s Pride event took place on Saturday 2nd June, with members of the University of Sheffield’s LGBT Staff Network and the Union of Students’ LGBT Committee in attendance.
With our stalls set up, we joined the crowds gathering for the parade. These included South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service, local venue Affinity and Out Aloud – Sheffield’s LGBT choir, amongst many others.
The parade boogied down Ecclesall Road past a multitude of spectators and venues helping us to celebrate, both vocally and aesthetically.
Once at Endcliffe Park, the party escalated with members of the public being invited to celebrate with us. Once again, the University’s presence allowed us to engage with the public as well as current and prospective students and with current and former staff who were keen to ‘check-in’ with us.
Tom Reaney (LGBT Staff Network Chair):
Since my first year involved in the University’s presence at Sheffield Pride in 2010, the experience has grown and developed into much more than I could have foreseen. From taking a few University of Sheffield bits and bobs (and some goodies) to engaging with the public about university life, the University of Sheffield’s history and reputation and what people can expect from us an institution – the scope of our involvement in this fantastic celebratory showcase event has widened so much and continues to do so.
It is important that that the University is involved in such events as we have a reputation of being an open, inclusive, world-class university, known for its diversity. We have a vocal and diverse LGBT community here at Sheffield – both staff and student orientated – with representatives from different faculties and departments. Supporting and being at Sheffield Pride is just one way in which we can reflect this. And have a good time to boot.
To find out more about the LGBT Staff Network at the University of Sheffield, and to get in touch see http://www.shef.ac.uk/hr/equality/involved/lgbtnetwork/index or email lgbtnetwork@sheffield.ac.uk.