LGBTQ+ people are not an ideology.
Various news outlets and social media have highlighted concerns over recent pronouncements by Staffordshire County Council – currently led by Reform UK councillors.
Staffordshire NEU response
Following recent guidance issued to libraries in Staffordshire, Staffordshire NEU stand with Lichfield Pride and their calls for clarity surrounding potential restrictions around activities and displays during Pride month.
The Libraries Strategy 2026-2028 for Staffordshire County Council focuses on transforming our libraries into Community Hubs that are at the heart of community life. Public libraries are exactly that, for the public. We agree fully with the statement from Staffordshire County Council that states libraries should be, “welcoming, useful and accessible to everyone” and are therefore deeply concerned that their instructions to remove displays that celebrate or recognise Pride, or potentially other minority groups during awareness or heritage months, sows seeds of division, rather than community.
This mirrors the stance of other local organisations – such as Rainbow Connections (in Tamworth)
We are deeply concerned by proposals that would prevent libraries and other public spaces from displaying materials that celebrate and recognise LGBTQ+ communities and other minority groups during awareness and heritage months.
Libraries exist to educate, inform, and reflect the communities they serve. A Pride display, LGBTQ+ History Month display, Black History Month display, or Disability History Month display is not indoctrination. It is visibility, inclusion, and representation.
For many LGBTQ+ people, especially young people, seeing themselves represented in public spaces can be life-changing. It sends a simple message: you belong here.
Many of us remember the damage caused by Section 28 and the silence it created around LGBTQ+ lives and experiences. While Section 28 was repealed many years ago, policies that discourage visibility and representation risk taking us backwards rather than forwards.
Staffordshire should be a county where everyone is welcome, everyone is respected, and everyone can see themselves reflected in the services that exist for them.
Rainbow Connections
Local MPs have written also in response..
How can you help?
Please complete this Change.org petition (set up by Rainbow Connections)
