Zack Polanski, Bambie Thug and Zoë Garbett back London Trans+ Pride as organisers announce first-ever Trafalgar Square finish

Green Party leader Zack Polanski, musician Bambie Thug and Hackney Mayor Zoë Garbett joined activists, performers and community leaders at the London Trans+ Pride press launch as organisers revealed this year's march will end in Trafalgar Square for the first time.

The announcement was made during the organisation's press launch at Joiners Heart in Hackney on Friday (18 July), ahead of the eighth annual London Trans+ Pride march on Saturday, 25 July. The event brought together activists, celebrities and community leaders, including Green Party leader Zack Polanski, musician Romy, Hackney Mayor Zoë Garbett, Bambie Thug, and stars from Tip Toe, Sex Education and What It Feels Like For A Girl.

The launch comes amid growing public support for this year's event, themed Our Future, Our Fight, with messages of solidarity from figures including Paul Mescal, Mel B, Michaela Coel, Jessie Ware, Jameela Jamil and Munroe Bergdorf.

In a landmark announcement, London Trans+ Pride co-founder Lewis G Burton revealed that the march will finish in Trafalgar Square for the first time in its history.

"Due to our growth, I am pleased to share some news with you all," Burton said. "For the first time, we are going to be ending our march at Trafalgar Square. One hundred thousand trans+ people and our allies will be descending on one of the most recognisable landmarks in the UK, and taking up that space audaciously."

Last year's event attracted more than 100,000 participants, making it the largest Trans Pride march ever recorded.

Speaking at the launch, Zack Polanski said solidarity across communities was more important than ever. "As a gay man, I understand when they come for one of us, they come for all of us, and ultimately we've got to stand together in solidarity," he told Scene Magazine.

"This is about clarity, it's about leadership, it's about standing with people who are asking for them to stand with us. I'm not interested in words, I've turned up today, I'm interested in action.

"Trans people are the canary in the coal mine, and as they roll back their rights, we know they'll be rolling back rights for disabled people, migrants, gay people and women too. We are all on the chopping block unless we all stand together."

The event came a day after London Trans+ Pride issued a statement criticising the updated Equality and Human Rights Commission Code of Practice, which is due to come into force on 5 August. The organisation argued that the code "interprets the law" rather than changes it and pledged to continue campaigning against what it described as efforts to exclude trans people from public life.

The press launch also featured a panel discussion chaired by Burton, with contributions from activist Rain Dove, Tip Toe actors Iz Hesketh and Shakeel Kimotho, Trans Unity Quilt co-creator Mars Callick, and London Trans+ Pride access team member EM Williams.

A key theme of the discussion was the impact of recent legal and policy developments on trans people and wider society.

Rain Dove described a social experiment in which members of the public were asked to determine which toilets different people should use. "No one got it right," Dove said. "It is wildly dangerous to see ourselves as ideas, not people."

Kimotho argued that the issue extends beyond the trans community. "It's so much bigger than us, this is an everybody problem," she said. "Our fathers with long hair, our mothers with short hair, we are being scapegoated.

"At London Trans+ Pride next week we must lean into everything we feel, be able to simultaneously hold joy and grief and revel in each other's incredibleness."

Williams highlighted the organisation's commitment to accessibility, describing an "access consciousness programme" designed to ensure disabled attendees can participate fully in the event.

Meanwhile, Callick spoke about the Trans Unity Quilt, a 96-metre patchwork project co-created with CN Lester and the Good Law Project. Made up of more than 300 individual panels created by trans people across the UK, the quilt will be carried through London during the march before being housed at Bishopsgate Archives and exhibited at pride events around the country.

"The quilt is about capturing the trans experience in fabric," Callick said. "There is a long history of textiles being used as resistance, to tell stories, to keep ourselves safe and to keep ourselves sane. We want it to inspire people to do more to fight for each other."

Looking ahead to the march, actor Iz Hesketh said she was most excited about celebrating community and visibility.

"What I am most excited about is being surrounded by trans joy," she said. "Seeing us happy and thriving just moving through London. I am excited to have a good time, because we deserve it."

London Trans+ Pride returns to central London on Saturday, 25 July. The march will begin at Langham Place at 1pm before making its way to Trafalgar Square, where organisers expect tens of thousands of trans people and allies to gather.