History in the Making funding for Pride in the Moorlands

We are thrilled to announce that OUTSIDE’s Pride in the Moorlands project is being funded by Historic England’s History in the Making grant programme. This new grant programme has been launched to encourage young people to engage with and celebrate their local heritage. Pride in the Moorlands is a new collaborative, co-created project which will lead up to the first ever Pride event to take place in the Staffordshire Moorlands in June 2025.

A steering group of 13-25 year olds from across the Moorlands will help to co-produce Pride in the Moorlands. The group will meet monthly and undertake training, visits, research, invite guest speakers, and reach out to other groups, partners and collaborators. Facilitators and artists will work closely with the group to explore and interpret the stories of local people and places. The young people will then work with an artist to co-create a place maker celebrating the stories they want to commemorate. This public art piece be unveiled at the first Pride event in the area, co-produced by the young people.

OUTSIDE creative director Sarah Bird said: “LGBTQIA+ young people in the rural Staffordshire Moorlands are often very isolated. This project will bring them together to explore and celebrate local queer history and share stories with the wider community. It’s a great opportunity for young people to make new connections, build confidence, and gain new skills and expertise. We hope the project will shine a light on the hidden histories of LGBTQIA+ communities in the Moorlands and the Pride celebration becomes an annual event in the district’s calendar for many years to come.”

Interested in getting involved in Pride in the Moorlands? Get in touch at hello@outsidearts.org and join the Facebook group here.

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About Historic England 

We are Historic England: the public body that helps people care for, enjoy and celebrate England’s spectacular historic environment, from beaches and battlefields to parks and pie shops. We protect, champion and save the places that define who we are and where we’ve come from as a nation. We care passionately about the stories they tell, the ideas they represent and the people who live, work and play among them. Working with communities and specialists we share our passion, knowledge and skills to inspire interest, care and conservation, so everyone can keep enjoying and looking after the history that surrounds us all.

Find out more about how the historic environment can help our wellbeing.

About History in the Making grants

Historic England is working with young people (aged 13 to 25) and funding 11 youth-led projects that will create place markers across the North of England. They will mark and celebrate important local histories that have been overlooked and bring them to a broader audience. These co-produced projects put young people’s voices at the heart of the creative decision making to increase confidence and connection to their local heritage.

Find out more about place marking and this scheme here.