We're making sure this year’s Northern Pride is more inclusive than ever before.
The two day event – on Newcastle’s Town Moor over the weekend of July 22-23 – will welcome tens of thousands of people from across the North East and beyond.
We're the official transport and accessibility partner for Northern Pride and are providing a range of infrastructure and assistance to help visitors with diverse accessibility needs to get there.
Measures include a wheelchair accessible raised platform and a high dependency unit which will include a hoist and changing facilities for anyone who needs it.
This year the organisers have introduced an app containing all the relevant and real-time information that will help festival goers to keep in touch with events and updates throughout the weekend. The app has been specially designed to make it easy to use by anyone who finds navigating online difficult.
“Support from Nexus means that we have been able to work with industry leading companies to ensure all Northern Pride online experiences are inclusive, making all of our digital channels usable for everyone,” said Ste Dunn, Director of Northern Pride.
“At the same time, we have recognised that a moor is not always the best landscape for wheelchairs, so we have laid track matting to make the site more accessible.
"For anyone who is noise sensitive or just requires some quiet time, ear defenders have also been made available to rent and live performances and speeches will be supported by BSL throughout the Pride weekend.
“Making sure Northern Pride is an inclusive event and a safe space for all is at the very heart of what the weekend is all about and we want to make sure that everyone who wants to attend Pride is able to do so and that there are no barriers in their way,” he said.
“Over the years we are proud of the fact that we have introduced more and more measures to meet this aim, from the introduction of the high dependency unit to the LGBT Northern Social Group Zone, which is there to support anyone attending Pride for the first time and feeling nervous.
“We are really looking forward to welcoming everyone across the weekend and being an event which everyone can take part in.”
Customer Services Director at Nexus, Huw Lewis, said: “It’s a huge honour for Nexus to be the transport and accessibility partner for this year’s Northern Pride Festival, and a perfect match with the Tyne and Wear Metro having such a strong accessibility legacy.
“Inclusivity is the cornerstone of our brand, right across the communities that we serve. We are looking forward to customers travelling with us for the Northern Pride festival. Metro is a great way to get to and from this brilliant event.
“Accessibility has always been a core value for us, and we are passionate about creating a transport system where customers can feel safe, comfortable and encouraged to be themselves, celebrating individuality and identity, free from discrimination.
“These values are echoed throughout our organisation, and we are proud to be an inclusive and accessible employer, with a commitment to diversity, inclusion and dignity in the workplace, and have policies in place to ensure our colleagues that identify as part of the LQBTQ+ community are supported and protected.”
If you require assistance when travelling on Metro, you can contact the Tyne and Wear Metro on 0191 203 3666 (lines open 6.30am to midnight) or email [email protected]. Please contact the Tyne and Wear Metro at least four hours in advance of travelling. Help Points are located at every station if you need to speak to a member of the Customer Service team at the station.