Vital support for LGBTQIA+ communities in Leeds

Podcast Description

Following on from Pride Month, in this episode we’ll be looking at the landscape in Leeds for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and asexual (LGBTQIA+) people and will discuss the important work delivered by Community Organisations in supporting these communities across Leeds. 

In a recent report by the Leeds LGBT+ Mapping Project, which captures the landscape of the LGBTQIA+ Community within Leeds, 82% of respondents said Leeds was an LGBTQIA+ friendly city. 

The work that goes on within Leeds for their community also allows people to feel part of something larger with a diverse range of activities, support and platforms to raise their voice available, with there being a wide range of steering groups, sports groups, support and social groups also available across the city.

We're joined by Cllr Hannah Bithell (@hanbithell on Twitter), Leeds City Council’s LGBT+ Champion, Maggie Dawkins from  Leeds LGBT+ Forum  and Susan Phillips from Leeds LGBT+ Consortium two Community Organisations we’ve had the privilege of supporting. 

As part of our ongoing work to support LGBTQIA+ communities, we recently launched the Connecting Older LGBT+ People - Micro Fund, in partnership with Leeds Older Peoples Forum, to support older LGBT+ people in Leeds and confront loneliness and social isolation.

Learn more about the fund here.

A full transcript of the podcast can be found here

Leeds Community Foundation is an organisation that supports thousands of charities across Leeds and surrounding areas, addressing inequalities.  We invest in these groups by distributing grants and sharing advice - acting as a catalyst for positive change.

Learn more about Leeds Community Foundation in this short film which captures what we do, who we are, and how we're making an impact.

Subscribe to our newsletter. 

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram @LeedsCommFound.

Reach out below for LGBTQIA+ Support:

https://www.mesmac.co.uk/our-services/leeds/support-social-groups 

https://www.meetup.com/cities/gb/45/leeds/lgbtq/ 

Contact Leeds Community Foundation

• Call us on 0113 242 2426
• Email us at info@leedscf.org.uk
• Tweet us at @LeedsCommFound
• Sign up to our newsletter here

Transcript

Michael Sellers, Communications Officer, Leeds Community Foundation

Hello and welcome to our GiveLoveLeeds Podcast, where we'll be delving into conversations being held across the city and learning more about how we can come together to create positive change for the communities that need it most. Leeds Community Foundation is an organisation that supports thousands of charities and voluntary groups across Leeds, addressing inequalities. We invest in these groups by distributing grants and sharing advice acting as a catalyst for positive change. 

Following on from Pride Month, a time dedicated to celebrating LGBTQ plus communities, we want to talk about the numerous organisations working within Leeds supporting these communities. We'll also be looking at the issues they face and how as a funder we are working to provide more opportunities to address these challenges. Today's hosts are Kate Hainsworth,  CEO at Leeds Community Foundation and Councillor Hannh Bithell, Leeds City Council LGBT+ champion. 

Kate Hainsworth, CEO Leeds Community Foundation

Hello, my name is Kate Hainsworth. I'm Chief Executive of Leeds Community Foundation. Welcome. This is our third GiveLoveLeeds podcast, and we're going to be discussing the work of the community and charitable sectors in supporting LGBTQIA+ communities across Leeds and surrounding areas. I'm delighted you're joining us because I'm going to be co-hosting with Councillor Hannah Bithell, who is Leeds City Council LGBT plus champion. Welcome. 

Cllr Hannah Bithell, Leeds City Council LGBT+ Champion

Hello. Hi, thanks very much for having me. 

Kate Hainsworth, CEO Leeds Community Foundation

We're also going to be joined by Susan Phillips from Pride of Place/Leeds LGBT+ Consortium, and Maggie Dawkins from Leeds LGBT+ forum. These are two of the Community Organisations who've received funding from Leeds Community Foundation, who will talk about their work and the impacts they've been making in their communities. So to begin with, I'd like us just to share some key statistics. Stonewall estimates that five to seven percent of the UK population is gay or lesbian. The number of trans people is estimated at between 300-500,000. However LGBTQ+ individuals are only just being recognised as part of the census from 2021, so data is probably in its infancy in terms of being collected and understood. In terms of the Leeds landscape and the view of the LGBTQIA+ community, a recent report by the Leeds LGBT+ Mapping Project, which was run by Leeds Older Peoples forum with other partners including Leeds City Council, Volition, ourselves and some others, it captures the landscape within Leeds, where 82% of respondents say that Leeds is an LGBTQIA+ friendly city. 

It's valued by many within the community that reside here, and with many in this study stating that they feel visible within Leeds as a whole and it contains supportive networks, friendships and communities of care. It's brilliant to hear that positivity across the city and a lot of impactful and vital work happens day in and day out, with inclusivity being considered within a large segment of this work. On the flip side, however, even though almost eight in ten of the people responding say that being part of an LGBTQIA+ community is important to them, only three in ten said they felt part of it There’s a real need for capacity building, more community groups need to be more available and have really focused support services. Black and minoritised ethnicity and disabled groups are often underrepresented in these activities and lack of safe and welcoming space. The community as a whole faces multiple issues such as discrimination, social marginalisation, and poorer mental health outcomes. So the work that goes on within Leeds for their community also allows people to feel part of something larger, with a diverse range of activities, support and platforms to raise their voice with there being a wide range of steering groups, sports groups, support and social groups available across the city. 

Today, we'd really like to introduce properly, my co host Councillor Hannah Bithell, who is LGBT+ Champion at Leeds City Council. Hannah, welcome.

Cllr Hannah Bithell, Leeds City Council LGBT+ Champion

Thank you! 

Kate Hainsworth, CEO Leeds Community Foundation

Please, can you explain to us a little bit more about your role?

Cllr Hannah Bithell, Leeds City Council LGBT+ Champion

So I was elected in 2018 and took on fairly swiftly the role of LGBT+ champion. The basic purpose of it is to make sure that I'm advocating on behalf of LGBT+ people in all general council meetings, irrespective of what we're discussing. There's often a thread that runs through different parts of our community, making sure that LGBT+ people aren't forgotten. We also have a range of other champions acting in a similar way for other protected and non-protected characteristics. Over and above that, though, we do things like promoting action days. So today, while we're recording this, letting out the secret it's not live, it's actually Non-Binary Day in Leeds, and I'll be setting out on Twitter some comments about the importance of the validity of the non binary identity and how important it is that at some point, very soon, the government tides to actually validate it through being allowed to have non binary passports, for example- all the things that are being denied to this group at the moment.

We do a lot of speaking events, I engage with the economic groups in the Freedom Quarter, I engage with charitable organisations across community, and actually, I'm a trustee for Friends of Dorothy, which is an organisation that helps older LGBT+ people stay connected. We’re looking with the council to support development of a community centre, and I guess one of the bonuses of being a Politician in this role is I can also do that more political work. So over the last few years, it's been a really, really toxic environment, in the media and in the national political system for our trans siblings. A lot of my time has actually been spent working on advocacy, specifically, around the Gender Recognition Act, and around just what an awful situation the media is for these different parts of our community. I guess generally, just being a voice for the community, we get quite a lot of things where I'll get email sent through, and it will be people just wanting somebody to stand up to their rights. That is an opportunity for me to be able to really do something important and really something I enjoy doing, so I'm grateful for it. 

Kate Hainsworth, CEO Leeds Community Foundation

It's fantastic, and what a range of work and what a lot of responsibility on your shoulders. One final question before we move on to our guests, it's obviously been a really challenging time for everybody within our city recently, with a pandemic and the kind of challenges that we faced across a number of fronts. What do you see as one of the main challenges for the LGBTQ+ community in Leeds?

Cllr Hannah Bithell, Leeds City Council LGBT+ Champion

To identify the main challenge is such a hard question. I guess, the challenges that we had before have just been heightened by the pandemic. The pandemic has had a huge socio-economic impact on our LGBT+ community, especially our T [transgender] community. The council really wants to support the recovery of this community, so that we can have a bit more socio-economic strength moving forward. We also suffer in Leeds because of a lack of infrastructure, so we don't have a community building. I've mentioned previously that I hope at some point, we will be able to get a community centre as an organisation. We also have some community groups, but there's still plenty of space for a wider range of grassroots organisations, it's through having lots and lots and lots of different organisations that you get that strength. We need paid staff that are working on the agenda in Leeds, we have very, very few paid people that are doing stuff, and that's a real problem, because that is how you get capacity. A lot of our micro organisations, for example, Trans Leeds are all run by volunteers. We know the impact that COVID has had on people and volunteers, and everyone's run ragged and that personal impact of COVID and the issues with finances that we've already discussed around trans people being generally more likely to be on low incomes, means there's been this huge personal impact, which has had a huge impact, therefore, on the running of the charity, because it's run by volunteers. 

If we look at Non Binary Leeds, for example, they have a solidarity fund, and actually, it's completely overrun and run dry halfway through the pandemic. So I guess we're in a situation where there's a lot of people in the community who are struggling, there's also a lot of people in the community and the greater community outside of the LGBT+ community who have had the opportunity with COVID to actually get savings and to develop more money in their bank accounts. Its how we can find a way to convince the general populace that these micro organisations that are making the world of difference I cannot overstate the difference they are making to people and how we can get that funding into these solidarity pots and make sure that those the day to day basis are getting the help that they require. I think that's probably one of our key challenges. 

Kate Hainsworth, CEO Leeds Community Foundation

Well, that's pretty much a perfect segway there Hannah into talking to one of those grassroots organisations, well a couple of those grassroots organisations. I'd now like to welcome our guest Maggie Dawkins, who received funding from The Leeds Fund: Micro Grants to develop an allotment specially for LGBTQIA+ people in Leeds to participate in a lot more activities. Welcome. 

Maggie Dawkins, Leeds LGBT+ Forum

Thank you very much. Its lovely to meet you, Kate! I’m the founder and Secretary of Leeds LGBT Forum, which started end of June 2019. We're very kind of grass roots organisation, were basically a holistic health and well-being route founded, and community development and sort of psychologically underpinned organisation. So we're kind of a social experiment really, and it's about incorporating different ways of people coming together and being together. So we are queering the world in such as we're not pulling people in to a structure, but we are welcoming individuals to participate in a way that works for them and for as long as it works for them and for as often as it works for them. It's a very kind of open arms, sort of a flowing relationship, rather than a membership organisation or anything, where there's an expectation of responsibility or commitment or anything like that. That's a sort of a basic part of our work, it is actually very much sort of rooted in philosophy, actually, there is a little philosophy involved, because we are the holistic health and well being aspects of life. There are areas that we talk about the physical health and mental health or mental health issues, and actually, we're much more complex than that. We do respond to the sort of spiritual side and to the societal and social aspect of it, our financial health and well being and our to our intellectual health and well being. Having that balance in our lives is like, what makes us as individuals happy and contented and being able to kind of meander off the track and then get back onto the track again.

Kate Hainsworth, CEO Leeds Community Foundation

That sounds like a great way to share companionship, and doing things together around something that's of interest to all. So I'd be really interested to know a little bit more about the project, I think that you're going to talk about.

Maggie Dawkins, Leeds LGBT+ Forum

Yes, well, the allotment project, we were very fortunate getting the allotment, we started work there on the 20th of November, which was Trans Day of Remembrance, which was an opportunity to light candles and lanterns and put post it notes and, and make wishes and send respect to our trans ancestors, and brothers and sisters and family and so on. But it was lovely, it was really very cold and it was incredibly overgrown when we got it. It was beautiful soil but it's heavily overgrown. To start with it was Holly from Wharf Chambers who put out a call on social media, and brought a group of nine people and then some of their friends joined, and so on. So I've got about 15 people on the books and about 12 who've actually attended and so on in different sized groups. But yes, there were three different areas of it like gardening, and preparing the land, then there was there was structures and maintenance and then there's the development planning. Because we work to a social workplace model, it's the encouragement and expectation that everybody will do some of all of those things. Its learning different disciplines, not just sticking to what we're good at, or what we like to do, or whatever I do these kinds of jobs and you do those kinds of jobs and I don't clear up, I'm just doing the dirty work. We all do the clearing up, we all share ideas, we all start to kind of upskill in ways and you start using tools and starting working with each other more sort of in a social way. 

If you don't know which tool to use, ask someone who was taught to use and so on. But we do a sort of a training thing along the way, so there's a lot of health and safety involved as you can appreciate,  But it's an empowering and skills building and learning thing, because you can appreciate it makes things go more slowly. But the project itself, I mean, we've come enormous strides. And the money that we've got from Leeds Community Foundation is for our greenhouse, which was actually a fruit cage with three or four scruffy little raspberries in it, and we thought we can make this would be more useful as a greenhouse because it's huge. It's really quite large. We found that we applied and we got this funded, we're so grateful for it, we thought we're going to bang on with this. Then as we got on with it, we found that the structure was not as sound as it was and we had a joiner, who very kindly gave us some advice about how to do it, it's a lot of work. I think that's the one of the benefits of being involved in a project like this because you learn things about yourself is for individual learning.

Kate Hainsworth, CEO Leeds Community Foundation

I've got so many questions, but before I start grilling you can I just check in with Hannah, have you got any questions that you wanted to tease out before I get stuck in?

Cllr Hannah Bithell, Leeds City Council LGBT+ Champion

My question is, what are you most proud of that the LGBT Forums achieved? 

Maggie Dawkins, Leeds LGBT+ Forum

I mean, the allotment is the big out there “wow what a fantastic project”, but there's been lots of steps on the way so following June, we had a meeting every fortnight for about three months, some people came to several, a few or one or two, but people attended from right across the community. I was really proud and pleased with that, because that's individual input, it wasn't about a nice, tight little core group who's giving us their feedback- it was very broad ranging. There was a lot to listen to, but it's all been noted and this helps us develop the themes really. Short and quick and big answer is the allotment has been amazing, because it's really threaded together what our underpinning principles about which is about essentially, it's for LGBT people only and for self and mutual benefit. That's basically the two principles for the allotments. But it's very simple. It's not about rules, it's more about common sense, and being able to be comfortable in your own space and others, and find your own way because that's what society is like. It’s a safe space in this, we are our own lot of people 

Kate Hainsworth, CEO Leeds Community Foundation

So maybe just if you could share with us some examples of the individuals that have been involved, as you say they're all on their own journey in a different ways. Have you noticed any particular changes or differences that have happened for any of those individuals? 

Maggie Dawkins, Leeds LGBT+ Forum

One young woman, one young Lesbian said , and other people said that basically the same thing- “I've never used tools before, because my dad wouldn't let me in case I hurt myself.” So here she is, like in her mid to late 20s, handling a hammer and a saw for the first time. Further and handling power tools, and climbing ladders, and learning about footing a ladder for somebody else to climb up, etc. She's a really intelligent woman, she's got a good job and everything. But when you get that underpinning in, it's like “I can do this”, but actually not had the pleasure of doing practical stuff all her life. So that's one thing, it is the sort of just practical applications and learning about good screwdrivers, and using decent tools and using them well, and cleaning them afterwards. A well as looking after them, because mostly, they're my tools. So I'm very particular.

But some of the other benefits, of course, it's really about being outside in nature, the opportunity during lockdown to come together in small groups, and do hands on work. I mean, the majority would say, I'd say we're students, one's doing their PhD, but sort of that very highly academic kind of headspace and everything, and its just being in a completely different space. Being in touch with nature, which there's been a lot written about, it's a lovely space, you wouldn't believe in less than a mile from the city centre, which is just amazing. So being in nature and sort of seeing things change, when you finish a job, and you stand up, and you see what other people say, “wow look at that. So that kind of that kind of burst of joy in that recognition is a lovely thing to behold, but I think having that five minutes in the green space changes your cortisol levels. Having those hour and a halves, on a semi regular or occasional or, and most of them are sort of pretty regular to start with, you know, and throughout winter, in between Christmas, New Year and in the cold and in the snow, and just being in that space. I think as it does in the holistic health and well being sense, it balances things up and takes people into a different space. They're part of nature, and the nature becomes part of them, and it's all really simple. I think it brings results. 

Kate Hainsworth, CEO Leeds Community Foundation

Absolutely. So, what next? I mean, you know, the greenhouse sounds incredible. What kind of support or funding and activity? What are you looking at next?

Maggie Dawkins, Leeds LGBT+ Forum

We’ve got interest with older people's groups and it's now it's safer, because there aren't many trip hazards. We want to start now visits and activities to get older people to visit and start feeling familiar and comfortable with it, because it's everybody's space. We've got to build an accessible path, get more people on this, and really just let people decide. We're very non-hierarchical. So, what do we do next? We want to get a workshop because now people have been using tools and helping with the greenhouse, they're really interested in wood work. We've got a little shed and shelter but now we want a little workbench and place to kind of keep all our word and something that we can then stretch a sort of a tarpaulin over to make a shelter for bad weather on a wider scale so that we can do activities on less good days. Then start just getting out a combination of things because the group that we've got at the moment, they're really interested in doing activities with older people, we want to welcome older people in, but let's be aware that there might be need for us to get sorted so they can do this sitting down jobs. 

Kate Hainsworth, CEO Leeds Community Foundation

So Maggie can I just ask, what gaps in provision or funding do you feel are going to be important as we hopefully coming out of the pandemic?

Maggie Dawkins, Leeds LGBT+ Forum

I think what's vital is to capitalise on the fact that people's minds have been changed enormously, their lives have been changed, their metabolism has changed, and we're on this kind of cusp of this period now where we can move forward with our thinking and sort of change things in ways for all of our generations, but particularly, I'm thinking of the younger generations. They don't have to go through what we went through when we were 20. Young people now, and especially young queer people who have grown up different, and like knocked about by the world for being different-they have this experience and kind of understanding about humanism and about social justice and human justice and individual justice, and they've got a very strong thing. We're moving into kind of more global things now and I just think young LGBT people, have just a kindness and benevolence and understanding about them. 

They talk about their stuff in a very detailed way, the big identity issue, there just so on fire, and there’s a lot to utilise now. I think there needs to be more stuff like really good mindfulness. They're still worried about being called not queer enough, or not buy enough or not trans enough, or not gay enough, or whatever, and or not lesbian enough. I know that one. I'm like, why live with these pressures? Where people are pulling us in all different directions? Find our centres get rid of the clutter and let's just use common sense. 

Kate Hainsworth, CEO Leeds Community Foundation

So Maggie, in a few words, what support would you like to see in the future? 

Maggie Dawkins, Leeds LGBT+ Forum

We’d like more access to kind of business people and professional people and people who can give us hands on who can just give us advice on the questions we ask, just to get the advice we need to move our ideas or know whether we can or can't run with them, Things like anything that we can do where skills building and training from a grassroots level can happen. We want to be working with younger people and people who've got complex needs and learning difficulties that have been labelled by the world. We want to get our arms around their shoulder and say “you are unique, you're amazing and we know you can do this”. We know you can run your own business now how can we help you, let's all plug into it, and just make it happen. It's not rocket science, let's just utilise the benefit of the brains. The stuff that's progressed, and where we are, and just get be outside the box. Let's just like queer the world, things that encourage people and bring them on who wouldn't normally have the chance to and a lot of LGBT people have had deficits because of their loss of confidence, or lack of confidence because of how the world's treated them. We are a minority, we are one in 10. It's not always that easy going out into the world, knowing that anybody can push us down or make us feel or not make us feel oppressed or trodden on or a at the will of other people. We should be celebrating our amazingness. 

Kate Hainsworth, Leeds Community Foundation 

So that's incredible, Maggie, what a range of stuff you're already doing. What a lot of plans. I'm so excited to see what happens next. Thanks so much for your time. I thank you. 

So in terms of celebrating amazingness and focusing on what's really important, we've been doing our research on the back of the Leeds LGBT + mapping project and it's really clear that more than half of the activities, sessions and projects are done on a voluntary basis. Many of those services and providers can be overwhelmed and lack enough resources. And there's also a feeling that if you don't know the right people, the right organisations within the community, you can often be at a bit of a glass ceiling when it comes to support. 

So we've been doing our research, as I say, and some of the areas that we know would be really appreciated are around a greater availability of small grants, more accessible application processes, and a need to build stronger networks within community organisations that benefit the community. So over the summer, we're going to be launching Connecting Older LGBT+ people micro grants that’s specifically aimed at funding activities to support older LGBT+ people in Leeds, working together with the Leeds Older People's Forum as part of the Time to Shine programme. We want to confront loneliness and social isolation. As I say, our research tells us that older LGBT people are especially vulnerable to loneliness, they're more likely to be single, live alone, and have less contact with their relatives. They're also not as likely to engage with local services. The kind of grants that we're offering can be used to both kickstart completely new community activity and to develop further project activity within existing organisations. All for the benefit of older LGBT+ people.

We’ll will be welcoming applications from individuals and from both new and established community groups. Whilst planned activities must target and focus on older LGBT+ people. Applicant organisations don't have to be exclusively LGBT+ , and applications from older people's groups who are piloting or running new activity in this area are also welcomed. It's coming up soon, so watch this space. 

Now, I’m absolutely delighted to welcome our guest, Susan Phillips, from the Leeds LGBTQ+ Consortium.  Susan, hello. 

Susan Phillips, Leeds LGBTQ+ Consortium

Hi. 

Kate Hainsworth, Leeds Community Foundation 

Hi there. Can I ask you to introduce the consortium? What's it all of this? 

Susan Phillips, LGBTQ+ Community Consortium 

So Leeds LGBTQ+ Community Consortium was set up in response to lockdown and the COVID situation over a year ago, because the different organisations working largely with older LGBTQ+ people in the city, felt that there was a need for increased activity for people, older people at home, particularly people who are shielding, disabled people, people who have the least contact, perhaps.  Older LGBT+ people often don't have children of their own, so they don't have family around them, their own siblings sometimes disown them and so there is greater isolation amongst that community. Pride of Place Leeds initiated bringing together Friends of Dorothy, Sage, LGBTQ+ Women's Space and Pride of Place Leeds has acted as the organisation to administer the finances. So we applied for a grant which we were successful with to get started and we were able to engage a community coordinator, we call her the cool coordinator to set up a programme of activities. So Friends of Dorothy, Sage, and Women's Space have all been working with older LGBTQ+ people in the city for several years now. Sage was founded 6/7 years ago and all the organisation's wanted to come together. Pride of Place was slightly different because Pride of Place Leeds is actually a community organisation, working towards three large projects.  One of which is the hope for construction of LGBTQ+ accommodation in the city, multigenerational, and community led. The second project that we're working on, is the idea of an LGBTQ+ space in the city. Leeds has never had any sort of community centre or such for LGBT+ people. So that's something that we're working towards, it will be a sort of cultural and community space. And thirdly, we're looking at the possibility of Pride of Place Care, which would be to look at a possibility of setting up a care organisation that is LGBTQ+ friendly. So LGBTQ plus affirmative housing, a centre of some sort, and possibly the provision of care because we know that older LGBT people need extra care.  Disabled people really struggle with what's provided, and absolutely dread going into care home of any sort, really worried about the need to go back in the closet, people de-gay their homes when they know they're going to have carers coming in.  Older in particular, obviously have a history of fear around these issues, and a fear of being out or outed when it's not by their own choice. So we know older people in care homes, who are back in the closet, even people who are married to same sex partner, but who then hide it. So it's a big issue really, for our older communities. 

Kate Hainsworth, Leeds Community Foundation

Absolutely. 

Susan Phillips, LGBTQ+ Community Consortium 

So Pride of Place, Leeds when it was previously called Project Freedom, actually had a kickstart grant, which enabled us to set up a basic business plan for the affirmative commendation, and the basic pluses business plan for a centre. So that's enabled us to move forward. And we're in the process of seeking funding to progress further.

So it seemed reasonable for Pride of Place, Leeds to try to bring together the organisations in the city, but particularly work with older people, or disabled on isolated, LGBTQ+ people. So Leeds LGBTQ+ Community Consortium was conceived and born and we got some basic funding to get started and we were able to start a programme in January, this year 2021. So we've provided online activities such as yoga, music appreciation, cooking, and then some of the ones that have also been very successful, we're learning Japanese, with an emphasis on LGBT vocabulary. 

Kate Hainsworth, Leeds Community Foundation 

Where did that come from? 

Susan Phillips, LGBTQ+ Community Consortium 

Well it was just a mad idea, really, but it was very popular. And then we've done a very successful poetry club, a book club, and writing courses, more like a course of five week writing course, like writing in particular. Because in that course, for example, most of the examples of literary examples that are given are by LGBTQ authors.  And it's a very safe space for us to read what we wrote for our homework and to share our experiences through writing.

So the Community Consortium has now had other small pots of money contributed, and we're able to start meeting up outdoors and organising walks, and other activities. 

Kate Hainsworth, Leeds Community Foundation

No, that's great. Susan, thank you so much. Before I go on to my questions, Hannah, have you got some burning questions that you want to start us off with? 

Hannah Bithell, Leeds City Council

I was going to ask about what we should be looking out for that LCC are going to be doing in the future. Obviously, you've touched on there some of the walking stuff, I wondered whether you wanted to expand on it at all. 

Susan Phillips, LGBTQ+ Community Consortium 

Yeah, well, we're hoping to have regular meetups in future. Obviously, it's promoted, particularly through the organisations that are part of the consortium. But we need to reach wider than that as well, and try and market our offers a bit more towards those who aren't connected with, with the organization's already in place. Those three organisations have very limited resources, extremely limited resources. So the Consortium can provide a way of this all working together to share a resource rather than trying to do lots of different things. Some members of the community are very attached to one organisation or another, or particularly like the style of one organisation or another. And each organisation is completely different in its structure, and its legal entity, so the Consortium could bring that all together and enable common shared activities.  There are various ideas floating around nothing's concrete yet for the future, except that we're going to continue to exist. 

Hannah Bithell, Leeds City Council

Thank you. It's such a valuable things with meaning. 

Kate Hainsworth, Leeds Community Foundation 

That sounds great. Susan, in terms of gaps in provision, can you tell us a little bit about what you see as being vital, but as we hopefully move out of the global pandemic, which has affected everybody, what do you see in terms of gaps? 

Susan Phillips, Leeds LGBTQ+ Consortium

Well, I think the smaller organisations and particularly the trans organisations really need support, to continue to exist to be viable. One of the things that happens in our community in Leeds is that individuals get burnt out trying to carry organisations, and there's not enough structural support. Leeds has a history of different organisations kind of working in silos, I think, and not working very well together. And then of course, competing for funding is always an issue. But the funders can find ways to make it easier to apply to make it easier for organisations that don't have a legal structure to realise that it can still be done through other organisations, and to support that by being open and clear about it as an option.  Very small organisations is quite scared of the kind of hassle of trying to set up a bank account the banks to help a lot, too. They've been terrible during COVID. Very hard to open an account for community organisation. But it can be done, and it can happen and people need to feel encouraged by that. So it is about funders being open and clear. 

Obviously, one of the gaps we see is to do with communication, joint working. That's why we set up the Consortium to work together to try and rebalance some of the difference between a small organisation that's completely voluntary run, perhaps doesn't have any legal status, but it's still providing a vital resource. And bigger organisations that are well funded, well structured, and much more bureaucratic and therefore sometimes less accessible to people. 

Kate Hainsworth, Leeds Community Foundation 

Right. Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. There’s various aspects to the size question as much as to the experience question.  Just to help us share this with people listening to this podcast, what sort of personal examples, perhaps, that you've noticed, in terms of the work that you've been doing, particularly perhaps over the pandemic, or maybe before? Either way, which really exemplifies the work that you're doing and that you're leading, either a Pride of Place or as part of the Consortium, that actual impact on people and the beneficiaries that have been involved? 

Susan Phillips, Leeds LGBTQ+ Consortium

Well, I can think of an older lesbian, who has the contacts has a life,likes to go out and about walking and meeting up with another person that wanted to time when she can. But I think, from what she said that the activities of both Women's Space, and the Consortium have been lifesavers really. She’s been through some very tough times. But a lot of worry, living on your own, it's really hard not to worry, and not to, and you don't want to, you know, I know this, from my experience. I don't want to put my worries on other people. But because you're having far less social contact, you don't have those natural opportunities to share those worries. You feel like you're having to bring it as a big subject. So and then I can also think of people, well, individuals who are shielding, and how difficult it's been for them shielding because of a range of other disabilities and impairments that put them at additional risk. So for example, someone who couldn't have their usual parents coming in. So they were used to having, you know, human contact a couple of times a day with carers coming, and then suddenly had to stop all that stopped everything for themselves. And then things get in a mess in a muddle. And there's too much to clear up and there's too much to sort out which their physical impairments restrict them from being able to do and the garden gets overgrown and so on and so forth. So the activities have been really important

Kate Hainsworth, Leeds Community Foundation 

Important. Yeah. Thanks so much Susan for sharing your experiences and thoughts. I really appreciated your time today and really important to shine a spotlight on some of the absolutely key work that's happening. Thank you so much. Thank you. 

Thanks so much to our guests, they were able to share with us some of the passion and activity and range of activity that's going on at the moment in Leeds. What do you reckon, Hannah? 

Hannah Bithell, Leeds City Council

I think it's just been so inspirational to be able to listen to them speaking this morning and to be able to hear about specifically from grassroots organisations, all the incredible work they're doing. And I'm really glad that they have the opportunity to talk about the individual people that they're having an impact on, or their projects are having an impact on and it just shows that there is that development of community infrastructure going on all the time. And much as we need much more of it. It's still excellent to hear about what is going on at the moment. 

Kate Hainsworth, Leeds Community Foundation 

Absolutely. I couldn't agree more. I think the theme of today has been so much about coming together. It's great to hear of consortia here that are really joining together the work of individuals, you know, avoiding that sense of silo, but also coming together in the way that makes sense for the community. I think Maggie was really excited and articulate about the way that people share their journeys is as important as that sharing happening. And I think it's so good to see people finding their own ways of coming together rather than it being some kind of manufactured grouping. It's actually so much about the individuals and the groups themselves finding their own way, which is obviously so much to do with their experience as well, but how great that you guys at the Council and beyond are providing the structures that will allow those things to flourish. 

Hannah Bithell, Leeds City Council

I think it was really important as well, that was brought up about the importance of help from business. So we have an LGBT Business Forum, but actually, the assistance that businesses can give is so important to providing that infrastructure and that structure for people and organisations to get that assistance that Maggie mentioned. And so I'm really glad as well, that was brought up. 

Kate Hainsworth, Leeds Community Foundation 

Absolutely and I think there's some things for us to pick up there as well as we explore future plans in terms of funding, so it's not just about funding, it's also about networks, and making sure that people are put in touch with the skills and the sounding boards and the mentoring that might be useful at a particular moment in time. 

So lots of lots of think about.  Hannah thank you so much for co-hosting, what I think has been a fascinating morning, and really looking forward to seeing how things progress. 

Hannah Bithell, Leeds City Council

Yeah, thank you so much for having me. It's been a real delight, lovely way to spend my morning. Thank you.

Michael Sellers, Leeds Community Foundation (Outro)

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