The LGBT+ Network at the Trust is celebrating Pride Month throughout June by sharing information, advice and details of Pride events.
Members of the LGBT+ Network will be joining some of the Pride parades and celebrations in Morecambe, Lancaster and Carlisle over the coming months.
Morecambe Pride will take place on Saturday 31 July from 11am at the Central Promenade and Lancaster Pride will take place on Sunday 22 August with the free parade starting at 11am in the city centre. Cumbria Pride will be on Saturday 25 September at Carlisle Castle and Furness Pride was held online earlier in 2021.
Andy Crundell, LGBT+ Network Lead and Emergency Preparedness, Resilience and Response (EPRR) Manager at the Trust, said Pride Month was created following the Stonewall Uprising in America in 1969. The protests were in response to persistent police brutality and led to the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement. A year later, on June 28 1970, the first ever Pride event took place in New York City and two years later the first Pride march took place in London.
UHMBT became a ‘Stonewall Diversity Champion’ in 2016, joining the UK’s leading programme for equality for LGBT+ staff and service users. The Trust is committed to supporting LGBT+ staff and communities, and is working to create an inclusive workplace for all.
The LGBT+ Network is led by staff who work in partnership with the Trust to ensure UHMBT is a great place to be cared for and a great place to work for LGBT+ colleagues, members of all of the Trust’s diversity networks, patients and service users.
Andy said: “Developing an inclusive working environment has many benefits to the LGBT+ community, not just within the workforce but also towards patient care, because some LGBT+ patients express apprehension about being ‘out’ to healthcare professionals. Being effortlessly inclusive should break down barriers and allow colleagues to deliver truly holistic care to LGBT+ patients here at UHMBT.”
Over the last few years the UHMBT LGBT+ Network has grown from small beginnings and now has a membership of around 25 staff, volunteers and students. The network’s membership has been opened up to all of the Bay Health and Care Partners (BHCP), recognising the support needed for colleagues in the wider health care sector. The LGBT+ Network feeds into the wider UHMBT Inclusion Strategy.
People can get involved in the strategic side of the network and there is also a group for LGBT+ colleagues which provides a safe space for people to talk and share their thoughts and experiences. There are also LGBT+ training courses for all colleagues on the Trust’s TMS system on the intranet.
Staff can contact the UHMBT LGBT+ Network via the Trust's internal email system.
Andy said Pride is about communities coming together in celebration, protest, unity and solidarity. He said the best employers understand why all of their employees should feel welcome, respected and represented at work. Colleagues must be able to bring their whole selves to work because when LGBTQ+ employees feel free to be themselves, everyone benefits.
Andy also said the COVID-19 pandemic and the health and economic effects of lockdowns are continuing to have a big impact on all people who already experience deep and systemic inequality.
Some LGBT+ people – including LGBT people of colour, trans people and people living in poverty - were already more likely to experience poor mental health, difficulties accessing healthcare, the risk of domestic violence, homelessness, discrimination and unemployment before the pandemic. The current health and economic crisis is making these problems worse for some LGBT+ people.
For help and support with issues relating to the pandemic such as isolation and financial concerns, please go this this Stonewall link:
Some further tips relating to the pandemic are available from Stonewall on this link:
Further details of the North Lancashire and Cumbria Pride events are on the links below:
Lancaster Pride: https://www.facebook.com/Pridelancaster/?ref=page_internal
Cumbria Pride: https://www.cumbriapride.org/