Pride in Luton is celebrating securing a £229,991.16 grant from The National Lottery Community Fund – a massive win for the town’s LGBTIQ+ community.
The funding brings exciting changes to Luton. The charity will hire its first full-time staff member to help develop the charity and expand its vital support services, with a 1-2-1 support worker for Trans and non-binary adults.
The fund is also helping to secure the future of their popular monthly meetups, already bringing together 80 local people to help build connections and reduce isolation.
These groups include:
1st Tuesday of each month –Trans+ Admin Support Group: For trans and non-binary adults (18+) to come together, build friendships and access support and guidance.
2nd Wednesday of each month –Proud Parents Network: For parents who have LGBTIQ+ children or are LGBTIQ+ themselves to meet others and share experiences and learning.
3rd Sunday of each month –Sunday Socials: An opportunity for everyone to come together, reduce isolation and catch up with others. Arts and crafts, games and regular activities take place. Everyone is welcome with the youngest attendee being 2 and the oldest 84.
4th Tuesday of each month –Queer and Crafty: For those who enjoy crafting to bring along a project they are working on and share skills with others in a friendly and welcoming setting.
The success means Pride in Luton can keep lighting up the town’s carnival each year. It also powers more activity at the Fabulous Hatter at the Hat Factory Arts Centre – a safe space that’s become a local treasure for the LGBTIQ+ and allies community.
“We are delighted that thanks to The National Lottery Community Fund we can continue to grow and support the LGBTIQ+ community in Luton and Bedfordshire. As one of the few providers of services in Bedfordshire we have found our groups and services to be a vital lifeline to the community and in some cases literally saving lives.”
Since launching Bedfordshire’s first Pride in Luton festival in 2022, the group has transformed local LGBTIQ+ support. Now, with nearly £230,000 secured for Luton, they’re ready for an even brighter future.
The funding was announced as part of the LGBTIQ+ History month launch that took place on Thursday 30 January.
Find out what’s on for LGBTIQ+ History month in Luton. And don’t forget to save the date for the Pride in Luton festival, returning 12-14 June 2025.
About The National Lottery Community Fund
The National Lottery Community Fund recently launched its strategy, ‘It starts with community’, which will underpin its efforts to distribute at least £4 billion of National Lottery funding by 2030.
As part of this, the funder has four key missions, which are to support communities to come together, be environmentally sustainable, help children and young people thrive and enable people to live healthier lives.
National Lottery players raise over £30 million a week for good causes across the UK. Thanks to them, last year (2023/24) The National Lottery Community Fund awarded over half a billion pounds (£686.3 million) of life-changing funding to communities across the UK, supporting over 13,700 projects to turn their great ideas into reality.
About the Author
Laura Redmond
Laura is a passionate supporter of the Step Forward Luton campaign and a Place Activation and Marketing Coordinator. Armed with a journalism degree and unwavering love for her university town, she believes there's more to Luton that meets the eye. From charity work to market management, Laura's professional journey has explored every corner of Luton. When she's not busy being a marketing maven, she's lacing up her walking shoes to explore the town's green spaces or unearthing Luton's hidden foodie gems.