LGBTQ+ people deserve to feel safe in Lambeth. 

Lambeth has one of the largest LGBTQ+ populations in the UK. Almost one in ten residents identify as LGBTQ+ and centres like Vauxhall and Clapham are a hub for some of the oldest and most revered venues for the community.  The Lambeth Allies Programme is a free scheme offering training and visual materials to organisations in the borough to help them improve their knowledge of the issues LGBTQ+ people face and display their allyship to the world.

Our aims

In response to the My LGBTQ+ Lambeth survey report conducted in 2020, Lambeth Council and LGBT HERO identified several pressing community needs. The Lambeth Allies Programme aims to address: 

• LGBTQ+ people feeling unsafe in daily life in the borough
• The lack of messaging targeted at LGBTQ+ people
• Under-use of LGBTQ+ inclusive social, sports, and alcohol-free spaces

The Lambeth Allies Programme was constructed in direct response to these aims. By enlisting the cooperation of organisations from coffee shops to hotels to leisure centres, our programme will have an impact across large swathes of public space in the borough. The training, display materials, and Allies network the scheme offers equips organisations to better serve the queer community, while simultaneously providing explicit visual signifiers to LGBTQ+ people that their safety and wellbeing is important.

We strongly encourage participation for any organisations that offer pubic spaces for socialising or sports to take part. Engagement from these types of organisations will also increase accessibility and uptake for LGBTQ+ people in these kinds of activities.

Why do we need Allies?

In 2022 Lambeth Council and LGBT HERO conducted the My My LGBTQ+ Lambeth Survey, which asked detailed questions about the lives of LGBTQ+ people in the borough. 

The survey asked respondents about their health, safety, wellbeing and how they felt about local services. The results showed a clear need for intervention with regard to the safety of LGBTQ+ people in Lambeth.

Feedback from LGBTQ+ respondents who live, work, and socialise in Lambeth has shown that one in five don't feel safe in the borough. A further one in five have experienced a hate crime due to their sexuality or gender identity in the last year.

Throughout the survey respondents also repeatedly stressed that they don't seen enough messaging that speaks directly to them in public spaces. Many felt that public services, businesses and other organisations should make more effort to display LGBTQ+ inclusive materials.

Together this data evidenced a clear need for an intervention in public spaces for LGBTQ+ people within the borough with regard to safety and visibility.

The My LGBTQ+ Lambeth Survey also unearthed important insights about how LGBTQ+ people in the borough feel about the provision of existing social and activity spaces. 66 percent of respondents said that there aren't enough LGBTQ+ spaces in the borough, rising to higher figures for minority ethnic, trans, and disabled respondents. 

48 percent also said they want more alcohol-free spaces and 44 percent said that they want more spaces for LGBTQ+ people to practice sport. These types of environments are key to individual health and wellbeing and a lack of access is cause for concern.

You can read the My LGBTQ+ Lambeth report summary in its entirety here. For more a more detailed view of LGBTQ+ people of colour, trans people, young LGBTQ+ people and disabled LGBTQ+ people, click here.

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We're incredibly excited to be delivering this free-to-access programme across the borough. If you have any questions then you can email [email protected] for more information.