The great and the good attended the Rainbow Fund Awards ceremony at the Brighton Metropole Hilton last night. Rainbow Fund patron, comedienne Zoe Lyons and Lola Lasagne hosted the ceremony, which saw grants totalling over £50,000 awarded to twelve local LGBT/HIV organisations providing effective fro
Rainbow Fund patron, comedienne Zoe Lyons and Lola Lasagne hosted the ceremony, which saw grants totalling over £50,000 awarded to twelve local LGBT/HIV organisations providing effective front-line services to the LGBT community in Brighton and Hove, followed by the new Pride business awards acknowledging support from local businesses for Pride.
Guest presenters during the evening included Cllr Denise Cobb, Deputy Mayor of Brighton and Hove; Katy Bourne, the Police and Crime Commissioner; Cllr Bill Randall; Peter Kyle, the prospective Labour candidate for Hove and Portslade; Nicole Gibson, Pride Ambassador; David Raven, Miss Jason and Tammy Twinkle; Jamie Hakim, the owner of Brighton Lanes Apartments; Hizzie Fletcher, the organiser of Freedom to Live Pride Art Exhibition and a member of the Rainbow Fund grants committee; and Danny Dwyer from Bear Patrol and the Brighton Bear Weekenders.
Rainbow Fund chair Chris Gull explained the Fund’s new community interest company (CIC) structure and thanked former chair Paul Elgood for delivering the highest-ever total for a grants round during the previous twelve months. Paul remains the CIC director and a member of the grants panel.
Grants were made possible thanks to fundraising by Brighton Pride, the Brighton Bears Weekender and nearly twenty fundraising events and activities in aid of the Rainbow Fund this summer organised by venues such as Legends, the Queen’s Arms, the Marine Tavern, Dr Brighton’s, Subline and groups and individuals including the MCC, the Eurovision Party, Jamie Hakim and George Montague, the Oldest Gay in the Village.
Peer Action received £5,000 for activities and treatments for people with HIV.
Blueprint 22 received £5,000 for development of online social networking for young people.
Allsorts Youth Project received £5,000 for a Trans youth worker for the Trans*formers youth group.
Sussex Beacon received £5,000 for an alcohol-related health project for people with HIV.
Older & Out received £4,360 for activities for older LGBT people.
GEMS received £5,000 for activities for older gay men.
MindOut received £5,000 for a weekly peer support group.
LGBT Switchboard received £2,500 for domestic violence training for Switchboard counsellors.
FTMB received £4,313 for core running costs for 2 years.
Out in Brighton received £2,500 towards LGBT radio training and equipment costs.
LGBT Community Safety Forum received £5,000 towards hate crime advocacy and support including continued British Sign Language training for volunteers.
Lunch Positive received £5,000 towards food costs, venue, volunteers and a new Sunday lunch pilot.
