We are thrilled to announce that OUTSIDE’s Pride in the Moorlands project is being funded by Historic England’s History in the Making grant programme. This new grant programme has been launched to encourage young people to engage with and celebrate their local heritage. Pride in the Moorlands is a new collaborative, co-created project which will lead up to the first ever Pride event to take place in the Staffordshire Moorlands in June 2025.
A steering group of 13-25 year olds from across the Moorlands will help to co-produce Pride in the Moorlands. The group will meet monthly and undertake training, visits, research, invite guest speakers, and reach out to other groups, partners and collaborators. Facilitators and artists will work closely with the group to explore and interpret the stories of local people and places. The young people will then work with an artist to co-create a place maker celebrating the stories they want to commemorate. This public art piece be unveiled at the first Pride event in the area, co-produced by the young people.
OUTSIDE creative director Sarah Bird said: “LGBTQIA+ young people in the rural Staffordshire Moorlands are often very isolated. This project will bring them together to explore and celebrate local queer history and share stories with the wider community. It’s a great opportunity for young people to make new connections, build confidence, and gain new skills and expertise. We hope the project will shine a light on the hidden histories of LGBTQIA+ communities in the Moorlands and the Pride celebration becomes an annual event in the district’s calendar for many years to come.”
Interested in getting involved in Pride in the Moorlands? Get in touch at [email protected] and join the Facebook group here.
