New appointments for Mancs Pride

MANCHESTER PRIDE ANNOUNCES PROMINENT CANAL STREET BUSINESS OWNERS AS IT’S NEWEST TRUSTEES

Manchester Pride, the city’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) charity, has made a raft of appointments to strengthen its existing board of trustees and directors.

Following a thorough recruitment process, Tracey Walsh and Nick Curtis have joined the charity as Trustees. 

Tracey is the owner of established village venue New York New York, located on Bloom Street. She is an active supporter of multiple charities, including Albert Kennedy Trust and George House Trust, and a longstanding fundraiser for Manchester Pride.

Owner of popular village venues The Eagle, The Lodge and Richmond Tea Rooms, Nick Curtis is an experienced entrepreneur and supporter of LGBT charities across Greater Manchester.

The duo have been appointed as Trustees to support the organisation and provide overall governance and strategic direction for the charity. Both Tracey and Nick are volunteers who will act as representatives of the Village Business Association, the organisation that works with the bars, restaurants and other businesses within the village to promote what is undoubtedly the country’s most well known LGBT community.

The pair are joined by Becki Scott, Michael Stephens and Peter Edwin who will join the organisation’s trading subsidiary, Manchester Pride Events Limited, as directors.

Becki, an experienced marketeer and manager, has a passion for strategic communications and brand awareness. She works as a Marketing Director for ‘The Lazy Camper’, which provides camping kits and accommodation at festivals across the UK. 

Senior Developer Michael Stephens works at award-winning, creative agency, Raw, and has managed the delivery of work for high profile clients, including Nandos, the BBC and the NHS. Michael co-founded Geek Pride - in honour of Alan Turing - which participated in the Manchester Pride parade and has been a Manchester Pride volunteer since 2011.

Peter Edwin MBE completes the new appointments. A retired prison manager and equality advisor, Peter is former National Chair of GALIPS - the LGBT Staff Support Network - and brings a wealth of experience to the organisation.

Vicken Couligian, Chair of Manchester Pride said: “We are delighted to announce the new appointments and to welcome such experienced individuals to the board each of whom come from very diverse parts of our community.

“We are confident that the volunteer trustees and directors’ wealth of experience will strengthen the existing board and their diverse skills will help to steer the organisation and ensure that we continue to meet our charitable aims.”

Also as part of Manchester Pride’s “Be Involved” campaign, the charity has invited a number of community representatives to take part in bi-monthly meetings that will discuss the future of the charity in the form of a “Community Collective”.

The Collective, which represents a wide range of organisations within the LGBT community, will meet every other month to discuss ideas and feedback on the charity. The panel will also act as facilitators to engage with the city’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) communities, before feeding back to the board of Trustees.

Lead by another prominent Canal Street businessman, Manchester Pride Community Patron; Anthony Cooper, the group will provide a vital insight into the local community and give them the opportunity to present new and exciting ideas to the board. They will also play a vital role in reporting back to the wider community groups with initiatives and ideas that both the Manchester Pride team and the board of trustees look to implement, before gathering feedback on the idea they have presented from within the LGBT community.

Anthony Cooper is manager of Via on Canal Street, he has a long history of working with Manchester Pride, community organisations, fundraising and the village. Cooper is also actively involved with the Sparkle Transgender festival and also spearheaded the Trans memorial, recently installed in Sackville Gardens. 

Individuals who represent LGBT groups can still apply to join the collective via the charity’s website

.You can follow the charity on Twitter @manchesterpride or visit the Manchester Pride website manchesterpride.com

Published: 2-May-2014: (2404)