Burnley Queer Pride

Our Award winning Project ‘Stand Out’ culminated with Burnley first ever Queer Pride Parade created by local young people for the whole community to enjoy and come together.

Burnley Pride brought colour, music and unapologetic joy to the town centre as young producers from Stand Out, supported by Blaze, created a full‑day celebration of Burnley’s LGBTQ+ past, present and future.

The day began with a vibrant parade through Burnley town centre, a chance for LGBTQ+ people and allies to walk proudly together, make themselves visible and celebrate diversity. Led by our special guest, Drag Race UK star Elektra Fence, and powered by upbeat tunes from the Boom Bike, the parade welcomed community groups, organisations and individuals of all ages. The parade was free to join, with under‑16s accompanied by a responsible adult.

After the parade, the celebration continued at Burnley Mechanics Theatre, where doors opened at 3pm for an afternoon packed with performances, activities and creativity. The event began with speeches from the Stand Out team, Holly Emmett, Mike Jackson (LGSM) and Paul Fairweather (LGBT Historian), sharing the importance and legacy of Pride in Burnley.

Our brilliant host Elektra Fence kept the energy high throughout the day, introducing performances from Adam Smikle, The Downtown Band, BB9.5 and more, before a DJ set filled with camp classics and dance‑floor favourites. Elektra closed the event with an electric headline performance.

Alongside the main stage, visitors explored information stalls, face painting, workshops and the Stand Out exhibition - creating a welcoming, family‑friendly space for everyone to enjoy.

All ticket income was reinvested directly into delivering the event, ensuring Burnley Pride remained accessible, community‑centred and youth‑led.

For this project Blaze and the young people leading the work were awarded the Young Arts Activism Award at the Northern Cultural Education Awards