Active Lancashire has been awarded the Lancashire LGBT Quality Mark - the quality assurance certification measures how effectively organisations meet the needs of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community.
Lancashire’s LGBT community have indicated that accessing products and services can be problematic due to fears that they will encounter discriminatory or unfriendly behaviours. The Lancashire LGBT Quality Mark was introduced in 2015 so that local organisations can demonstrate that they put a high level of importance on meeting the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people and that all members of the public can expect equal experiences when accessing their services.
Active Lancashire is proud to have been awarded this important quality mark, which comes two years after they first set out to examine what attitudes the Lancashire LBGT community had to physical activity, and what needs they had that weren’t currently being met.
A survey produced by the organisation established that there was a strong interest in physical activity sessions, and so in cooperation with the Blackpool Council, Active Lancashire began by offering a trans swimming group, led by a trans instructor. This popular group is still running two years on.
Since then Active Lancashire has been working with a range of other LGBT+ groups across the County, which has led to the formation of new physical activity offerings. Out in the Bay are planning to offer cycling and gym access to their Trans Men and Trans Women groups, UR Potential will be offering their young people a varied menu of activities, and South Ribble based Power to be Out (POUT) have consulted their members and are aiming to develop other young person led physical activities that will be shaped around their needs.
