Making a difference: My job at Manchester Pride

This article was last updated on 23 August 2019.

Manchester Pride’s flagship event, the Manchester Pride Festival, is in full swing this weekend with events stretching across the heart of the city. From the Pride Parade to the Gay Village Party, there’s a jam-packed schedule with something for everyone. Ahead of the festival, we caught up with three young people who work for Manchester Pride to find out what goes into making the festival magic happen and the impact their roles allow them to make.

Farhana, engagement manager

I think it’s going to be a great experience to see the festival all come together and be able to celebrate LGBT+ life together.

What do you do as an engagement manager?

My role is really about getting the message out there about what we do as an organisation. I focus on our corporate and community engagement strategy, developing new projects and initiatives that will support the LGBT+ community.

For the Manchester Pride Festival, I’ve been working with the businesses and organisations who support us, talking to them about opportunities to get more involved across the year. During the festival, I’ll be event managing different parts of it, like our pre-parade brunch for our partners.

What do you love about your job and what inspired you to take this path?

Manchester Pride’s vision is to live in a world where all LGBT+ people are free to live and love without prejudice and for me that’s one of the greatest things about this job – being able to work for an organisation that’s fighting for LGBT+ equality.

I started volunteering at a charity that worked with refugees and asylum seekers and I met somebody during that time that had been through quite a lot in their life, fleeing persecution because of their LGBT+ status. That story really stayed with me and really changed my perception of what I wanted to do with my career – I wanted it to be meaningful.

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Phoebe, digital engagement apprentice

I love the fact that I’m part of something greater than myself.

What does your digital engagement apprenticeship involve?

I look after Manchester Pride’s social media channels. I do lots of website management as well as customer service and creating content for Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Across Pride weekend, I’ll be taking pictures and videos, gathering and creating content for our social media channels. I’ll be making Instagram stories and doing some Facebook Lives.

Having creative control over Manchester Pride’s social media accounts over Manchester Pride Festival is slightly scary but it’s still really fun, just making sure I’m reflecting as much of the festival as possible and capturing as many events and key moments as I can – that’s going to be really fun.

What is most rewarding about your role?

I’ve always been really passionate about equality and I’m so grateful to work for a charity that puts LGBT+ equality at the forefront of what they do. Every day I get to come into work and be creative and express my creativity through the work that I’m doing and I love that.

The content I make over the weekend will help get the word out about the festival internationally. It’s great to be part of the wider fight for LGBT+ equality not only in Greater Manchester but across the world as well.

Emma, events assistant

This could be the one event of the year that makes someone feel comfortable with who they are.

What do you do as the events assistant?

I assist a team of three. We’re responsible for putting on events throughout the year, including the Manchester Pride Festival. Each team member looks after different sections of the festival and I help them with administrative tasks like answering emails and calls about the event.

In the run-up to the festival, I’ve been helping to put together areas of the festival including the Family Zone, which is new this year. I put forward the proposal for the new zone and I'm really pleased that I’ve been able to run with my idea. I’ll be doing lots of different roles across the weekend of the festival, but mainly based in the Family Zone.

What is the most special part of your job?

I’ve grown up in a family where my three siblings are all LGBT+ so, for me, it really was important that I could give back to their community and support them.

When I come home after a busy day, I think about the people who are going to be really impacted by this event. I’m so excited to, in the midst of the festival, just take a second and look around and see how many people have been impacted by the work that we’ve done and that really motivates me to come to work every day and that’s why I love my job.

Find out more about Farhana, Phoebe and Emma's work at .