At Westminster City Council we are extremely proud of being an official partner of Pride in London and for Westminster being its home since 1972. It is the UK’s biggest, most diverse Pride and a home for every part of London’s LGBT+ community. This year will be extra special since Pride will celebrate its 50-year Jubilee. It was 50 years ago, on 28th June 1969, when the Stonewall Uprising in New York City started a series of events which kicked off the modern Pride movement.
Pride Month
Celebrating Pride’s Jubilee started in June with Pride Month. Pride Month will see various events taking place in London up until the festival weekend, ranging from performance to big bike rides.
Highlights of Pride Month include:
- A summer picnic in Victoria Park on 30th June
- A 10K run to raise money for Pride in London
- UK Black Pride in Haggerston Park
- The Pride’s Got Talent final, which will crown new stars of music and cabaret
Please visit the Pride in London website for a full overview of events.
Pride in London – Saturday 6th July
The Pride Parade takes place on Saturday 6th July 2019 from 12:00-20:00 with festivities continuing in Soho until the early hours. Last year more than a million people were estimated to have attended the Pride Parade and that number is set to increase.
The Parade takes place from 12:00 starting at Portland Place near Oxford Circus and over 500 LGBT+ parade groups will move through central London to celebrate the diversity of our community. Westminster City Council, its staff as well as our partner Veolia are proud to be part of that Parade, supporting and celebrating with our LGBT+ community.
Festivities will focus on Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square and Soho (Old Compton Street, Dean Street, Wardour Street, Frith Street etc.) and there will be impact from road closures associated with the event from 00:01 on 7th July until 8th July. Extensive parking suspensions will also be in place along the parade route from midnight on Friday 6th July and suspension signs will be place at all affected locations.
For more information please visit this page. You can also follow the hashtags #pridemonth #prideinlondon #pridejubilee #PrideinWestminster and #streetpride on Twitter and Instagram for the most up to date information.
Commercial waste collections during Pride
During the weekend of 6 and 7th July large areas of the West End will be closed completely to all vehicles and traffic. This includes waste collection vehicles even though the City Council will be present in the secured areas to get litter and waste removed.
Pride is one of the bigger events where we clean up at and we need your help to ensure commercial waste does not jeopardise the event. In roads that are closed due to Pride, please do not place your waste/recycling bags or container(s) out for collection. Especially in streets with festivities taking place putting waste bags out will create obstructions to the highway and hinder spectator flow, putting public safety at risk. You need to be aware that in the event of injury to persons or damage to property it could lead to repercussions for your business or its Premises License. Information on road closures in the Pride event area is available here.
Will Pride affect your business’ waste collections?
Businesses who use the collection services of the City Council and Veolia will have all their waste collected during the event clean-up. If you use bags to have your waste collected, then please ensure you only present it in the official Westminster City Council red and blue bags. Please do not use ordinary black bags to present commercial waste for collection. If needed, we can assist affected businesses within the security zones and road closure areas with a bespoke service during the event. We can also assist with very early collections ahead of the road closures so your business is waste-free ahead of the event. Please contact us to discuss the options. Due to increased trading during Pride, also ensure you order extra bags or container collections to cope with the extra waste you might produce.
Customers of other waste contractors will need to make their own alternative collection arrangements directly with their contractor. There will be no access for these contractors for as long as roads are closed and security cordons are in operation. This is up to 05:00 on Sunday 7th July in most of Soho. Privately collected waste cannot be placed on the affected streets during this period under any circumstances.
The City Council can provide you with help, provided you have made prior arrangements with us around your collections. Please contact us as soon a possible to ensure you do not run into any issues during Pride weekend.
