About ParaPride

ParaPride is an empowerment charity (registration number 1186485) that advocates for the visibility, education and awareness of LGBTQ+ disabled people. We are a grassroots organisation entirely run by a group of volunteers and our lived experiences are at the core of our values.

ParaPride started on the basis of a need to address the lack of inclusion for disabled people within the LGBTQ+ community; a need for more accessible LGBTQ+ spaces; and a need to promote body positivity around different bodies and being able to celebrate that. Given the high percentage of LGBTQ+ people that identify as having a disability, long term illness, and/or caring responsibilities, there is a stark lack of visibility and education that surrounds people who sit in the cross-section of these intersectional communities.

ParaPride also wants to challenge the misrepresentation of the disabled people often portrayed as the vulnerable community in need of special care. We are much more than that. We do not want to be defined by our disabilities. We are only disabled by the barriers presented by society.

At ParaPride, we believe that every LGBTQ+ disabled person has the right to feel safe, welcome and included.

More about ParaPride.

Our community has always existed. We are bold, creative and resilient.
Being LGBTQ+ and disabled can also feel isolating: as well as prejudice and discrimination, we face access barriers which can prevent us from participating fully in life. We can feel unwelcome in LGBTQ+ spaces because of our disability, or different from other disabled people because of our sexual orientation or gender identity.

In the UK, there are still no accessible spaces for LGBTQ+ disabled people to engage with their identity and safely socialise with other members of the community. This needs to change: especially given that as many as 40% of LGBTQ+ people are disabled.

Through events, research and workshops, ParaPride advocates for LGBTQ+ disabled people and encourages their allies on how best to support them. Our talks, web resources and online community provide a safe space and platform for LGBTQ+ disabled people to connect and be heard. We also seek to educate wider society on how to make venues and public spaces more inclusive and accessible.

We celebrate everyone but recognise that no two LGBTQ+ disabled people are the same. Whether you’re lesbian, gay, bi, trans, queer, questioning, intersex or ace. Whether you have a physical or sensory impairment, chronic illness, learning disability, mental health condition or are Deaf or neurodivergent. Whether you identify withan ethnicity, faith, or cultural or socioeconomic background. Whether you’re an ally. Whether you’re set on your labels or still figuring things out.

We want every LGBTQ+ disabled person to feel pride in who they are.