Proud Watford

04/10/2025

This looks really interesting - the storytellers sound like really interesting people and we're definitely hoping there'll be a Proud Watford contingent attending.

Plus toasting marshmallows whilst listening to stories sounds like a delightful way to spend an autumn afternoon .😍😜.

It's that time of year when we look forward to toasting marshmallows round the fire and listening to Campfire Heritage Stories. On 12 October we'll be gathering to hear about the trials, tribulations and triumphs our Storytellers have experienced as part of the LGBTQ+ community in the Chilterns

Find out more and meet our storytellers at https://www.coam.org.uk/events/campfire-heritage-oct2025

03/10/2025

Oooh, we love a bit of Popworld!

See you in the revolving dance floor 🤩💃🕺👯‍♀️

This Saturday at the fabulous Herts Pride ambassador, the tart with a heart will be performing come along for a fun night out

02/10/2025

Uniting Our Struggles: Highlighting Intersectionality in the Fight for Equality this Black History Month

The fight against racism and homophobia in the UK, whilst outwardly distinct, share powerful and often overlapping struggles. At Proud Watford, we recognise the vital importance of intersectionality: the understanding that a person's overlapping social identities—such as being both Black and LGBTQI+—can create unique experiences of discrimination.

When identities intersect, prejudice is amplified. A Black gay man, for instance, faces the sharp edge of both racism and homophobia, where each issue doesn't just add up but multiplies the discrimination they experience. This is not a competition of oppression, but a shared fight against all forms of hate that seek to divide and diminish us.

We can look to inspirational Black and minority ethnic LGBTQ+ figures who have long championed both causes. Thank activists like Phyll Opoku-Gyimah, founder of UK Black Pride and Marsha P. Johnson resisting arrest at the Stonewall Inn for their impact, and from a wider perspective, the influence of the Le****ns and G**s Support the Miners (LGSM) group, who demonstrated powerful cross-community solidarity in the face of discrimination. Their lives show us that our liberation is bound together.

To forge a stronger, united front, we must:

Listen and Learn: Actively seek out and amplify the voices of Black and minority ethnic LGBTQ+ people.

Solidarity in Action: Show up and support community events and campaigns for both racial justice and LGBTQ+ rights.

Challenge Internal Bias: Educate ourselves and our communities on the prejudices we may unintentionally hold against others.

By understanding and acting on our shared struggles, we can build towards a truly inclusive and equitable Watford and UK for everyone. A Place Without Prejudice, if you will.

28/09/2025

We're at the Unity in the Community event at the Grove today - come and say hello and if you haven't already - sign the Proud Pledge and follow us on emails so you hear about our events this autumn/winter.

22/09/2025

🚨 Proud Watford X d20 Board Game Cafe! 🚨

Join us on October 25th for our upcoming Fundraiser Bingo & Game Night on October 25th at D20 Board Game Cafe - Watford

Putting the FUN in fundraiser. For just £7 you can:
🔴Play 2 rounds of bingo hosted by the fabulous Michelle Davidson
🟡Have chances to win amazing prizes donated by Watford businesses
🟢Get involved with the community with ice breakers and fun party games
🔵Enjoy a night of fun, community spirit, and support local businesses
🟣Most importantly help us raise funds to foster a safe, inclusive community in Watford

Let’s come together to celebrate diversity, community, and fun! 💖
📖 https://bookings.letsbookfor.com/d20-board-game-cafe-watford/s/qd9FUM

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11/09/2025

What a friendly and welcoming place the newly opened Tina Lake's Coffee and Cakes is 🏳️‍⚧️❤️🏳️‍🌈

Named after and opened by the eponymous UKs oldest active drag queen, the cafe will be open to all, and serving delicious coffee and cakes on Tuesday evening and Friday and Saturday afternoons (check for exact opening times).

Grand opening of Tina Lake's Coffee and Cakes

Pump House Theatre & Arts Centre

See you there soon!

31/08/2025

The brilliant Fran Kershaw Fine Art was at the Proud Watford stall yesterday making free badges and taking special requests.

One lovely stall visitor asked for this cute design, but never came back to collect it.

If this is you, please DM us to we can get it to you.

If not, please share so we can find them and reunite them!.

27/08/2025

Only a few days until Hertfordshire's biggest and best LGBTQIA+ celebration - Herts Pride, this Saturday 30th August.

If you don't already have your tickets - get on with it!

Held every year in Cassiobury Park it's got to be the friendliest Pride around, and with everyone from the Cheeky Girls to a dog show, there is truly something for everyone.

We're partnering with the wonderful Mark Newton at Compass Residential to sponsor the inclusive loos again this year, which are gender neutral and fully accessible for those with mobility issues.

Pop over and say hello, and amongst the partying - do also remember that there are still people in many countries across the globe who are still unable to live and love openly.

The fight is not over for us, until it's over for all of us.

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Herts Pride
Mark Newton

Buy your tickets: https://www.hertspride.org/

21/08/2025

Herts Pride is a vibrant and inclusive celebration that unites people to make a meaningful impact in their community. Whether you’re eager to volunteer, showcase your business with a stall, or serve up mouth-watering food, there are countless ways to get involved.

21/08/2025

This Is How It Starts Again. But We Can Stop It.

Over 4,000 people have signed the open letter in just over two weeks. That tells you everything. People know what’s coming. They’ve seen the signs. They’ve lived through it before or heard the stories. We are heading back to the days of Section 28 unless we stop this now.

The new RSHE guidance is not just another policy. It is the start of something dangerous. It teaches that you can talk about protected identities like being trans but only to debate them. It’s like saying someone’s existence is a political argument. It’s like saying your identity is a theory. It is gaslighting in law. It tells children they are allowed to exist as long as they keep quiet about it.

We’ve seen how that ends. We saw it with Section 28. We know what it did to an entire generation. The shame. The silence. The su***des. The long-term damage to q***r people who had no words for what they were going through. Now they want to do it again but with a modern face. They claim they’re protecting children while throwing the most vulnerable ones under the bus.

If you are a teacher or parent or just a human being with a heart you should be terrified by this. The guidance pretends to be inclusive. It says all the right words then tears itself apart with the next sentence. It tells schools not to teach gender identity as fact. It warns teachers not to affirm. It implies that social transition is something suspicious. Something to be doubted. Something to be feared.

But do you know what actually saves lives? Affirmation. Respect. Recognition. Listening. Every study says the same thing. When trans and non-binary children are seen and supported their mental health improves. Their su***de risk drops. They thrive. This is not up for debate. The science is there. The lived experience is there. The evidence is overwhelming.

That is why this open letter matters so much. It’s not just a form or a signature. It’s a message to the government that we will not go quietly. We will not let them take this country back to fear and repression. We will not let them rewrite what inclusion means. This is our line in the sand.

This is what you can do now

Sign the letter. Share the link. Talk about it. Send your story if you have one. Flood the inbox of every MP. Make it impossible for them to ignore us. Make sure they know the harm they are doing.

This is about every young person who has ever sat in a classroom and wondered if they were allowed to be themselves. This is for every child who has been made to feel like a problem. This is about stopping the damage before it begins again.

We don’t have to wait for them to ruin another generation. We can stop this now. But only if we all speak.

Here is the letter. Read it. Sign it. Pass it on.

https://openletter.earth/the-urgent-need-to-revise-the-rshe-2026-guidance-and-centre-trans-non-binary-inters*x-as*xual-and-gender-non-conforming-voices-49ce0943?limit=0

If this guidance becomes law in 2026 it will hurt real people. This is not an abstract debate. It’s not about opinion. It’s about who gets to feel safe in school. Who gets to feel seen. Who gets to survive.

Don’t let them silence us again. Make noise. Make them listen.

17/08/2025

If you've thought about having a family, this could be a wonderful way to share the love you have, and also create a home for someone who desperately needs it.