Meet the Team

“Congleton Pride was founded in the autumn of 2018 after I attended Macc Pride. It was the same day Richard Walton was leafleting for his political party. He knocked on my door, and I asked how we could set up our own Pride event in Congleton town centre. On the other end of town, a trans person who had attended Macc pride went to a local public house in Congleton and was met with transphobic and homophobic abuse. It was then I saw that we needed more than just an event. I set up an online public group which had over 200 likes in the space of 24 hours, and from there we set up our own committee.

Since then it has grown to become one of Congleton’s anticipated annual events – each year the Pride event gets bigger and bigger. With people from all over Britain coming to celebrate Pride in our small town, adding a new meaning to the slogan ‘a little town with a big heart’. Pride is not just an annual main event, but a community in its own entity. We intend to grow further, and the key part of Pride’s future is celebrating the community and the individuality and uniqueness of the people within it.”

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“I am the Activity Lead for Congleton Pride Sponsorship. I am a highly experienced logistics and procurement Director in my own company LOGURU. I have a track record of significant cost, efficiency, and service improvements, with complex and demanding business and supply chains.

The world of business has long understood that equality is a key driver of success. I started my support of Congleton Pride as a Sponsor before the 2021 event. Through this period I continue to be involved and consulted by the Pride Committee with the responsibility for Sponsorship.The Congleton Pride team raise funds by holding events and by seeking support through sponsorship.”

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“I am pleased to say I was one of the founding members of Congleton Pride in 2018. I have been the group treasurer since we started, and have seen the group grow to such an extent, we have recently applied for full Charitable Status with the Charities Commission. My job in Pride is to make other people’s dreams a reality, a facilitator if you like, ensuring we are always acting in a safe and compliant manner. This draws on my experience as a retail store manager for the last 30+ years

I have now helped ensure the Congleton Pride event is firmly embedded in the Congleton calendar, and having recently been elected as a Congleton Town Councillor, I can now ensure that the LGBTQIA+ community has a louder voice in the decision making process in our Town. I love Congleton Pride! Since joining, I have met some wonderful people who have opened my eyes to a diverse and wonderful community, who I treat as my second family. My only regret is I didn’t get involved in the LGBTQIA+ community sooner.”

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“I moved to Congleton with my partner 12 years ago and knew then that there was a vibrancy and a positive community spirit in Congleton. But back then I could only have dreamed of having our own pride.

My passion is radio and I was involved from the start and setup of GAYDIO the UK’s 1st LGBTQ+ national radio station and presented the weekend breakfast show for a number of years. Fast forward to 2021 and I joined the Congleton Pride Team to offer some of my skill sets to give back to community and promote positivity and enlightenment on the LGBTQ+ community in Congleton. My main contribution is to present and produce Congleton Prides podcasts and I am also on the sponsorship team too.

Oh by the way I’m a collector of retro games consoles. Yup I’m a geek!”

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“I was early joining Congleton Pride – in its first few months – yet far too late in my life realising I was part of this community. I’m in this to help us work towards a world without the ignorance that made it impossible for me to know myself when I was growing up – unable even to think of the questions that I needed the answers to. I want everyone at every age to see positive role models for every kind of gender they might discover themselves to be. And all orientations and relationship configurations too. Free to explore the possibilities of how to live authentically as themselves, and safe doing so everywhere.

It’s been fun, educational and so satisfying working on graphic design, animation, website development and even building a video game, for Congleton Pride!”

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“I joined Pride because I consider myself to be an LGBTQIA+ ally and abhor discrimination of any kind. I believe people deserve their best lives in Congleton regardless of their personal characteristics, and it is my personal mission to make this possible. I have helped Pride become a hate crime reporting centre and enabled closer links with the Police and local churches. I’ve been responsible for the Pride survey and I am using that to highlight the work we need to do in Congleton.”

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“I have been a supporter and friend of Pride since I first became aware of it. I love that Pride celebrates diversity. It strives to support, care for and advocate on behalf of people throughout the LGBTQIA+ community. It is an organisation that aims to be truly inclusive. I am proud to be the current Pride Wellbeing Officer. As such I aim to be a confidential listening ear, a voice to raise any issues that are important to people and to build a team of people to develop the wellbeing of people across the LGBTQIA+ community.”

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