LGBTQ+ Charities “Crucial” To Brighton Being A “Safe Haven”
October 17, 2022Brighton is well known as a “safe haven” and a “place to escape” for the LGBTQ+ community. In part, this is thanks to the work of charities and LGBTQ+-friendly services. While the city has long been known as the UK’s “gay capital,” a two-year study has explored the reasons behind this and what more can be done to welcome people to the area.
The study was conducted by MindOut, an LGBTQ+ mental health charity, along with researchers from the University of Brighton to explore trends of migration that lead to the Sussex city.
The University of Brighton’s Dr. Boden-Stuart who co-led the study with Dr. Nick McGlynn described the work as a “fantastic collaboration” with the charity. “Our research shows how, despite Brighton being well-known as an LGBTQ+ city, queer people facing mental health challenges can still struggle with isolation and loneliness.”
As MSN reports, this is in addition to the discrimination and social exclusion the study found to be the driving factor behind people’s migration. It is also why local LGBTQ+-friendly services like MindOut were praised as a “key” part of the city.
Dr. Boden-Stuart is a principal lecturer in the School of Humanities and Social Science Centre for Arts and Wellbeing at the university. She continued: “Participants told us that spaces like MindOut offer LGBTQ+ people ‘safe havens’ to talk about their mental health, and this can be crucial in helping everyone to feel at home in our city.”
The study explored themes of social isolation, loneliness, and mental health within the LGBTQ+ community, and found them both before and after participants moved to the area. It found that largely Brighton offered a sense of safety, acceptance, and community but that LGBTQ+-friendly services were essential to provide support.
The study also concluded that people found their previous homes “lonely and isolated.” They saw Brighton as a “place to escape.” Participants were said to have described a “liberating” effect when living in Brighton which led to feelings of safety and connection.
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