No Pride march in city centre due to building work

Cumbria Pride usually includes a march through Carlisle city centre

People going to a Pride event will not parade through a city centre due to building work.

Cumbria Pride, now in its fifteenth year, will be held in the Caldew Riverside car park in Carlisle.

Organisers said they had taken the "difficult decision" not to hold the usual march through the city this year for safety reasons.

Cumberland Council said it still wished all participants a "fantastic celebration".

A number of projects are under way in Carlisle city centre, including work at Carlisle Station and the University of Cumbria, plus on central public spaces such as the Market Square and Greenmarket.

Trustee for Cumbria Pride Martin Reeves said there had been "too many restrictions, so we moved out".

Mr Reeves said this year's venue still had a number of accessible transport links for attendees to use.

The first pride event in Cumbria was held 15 years ago

A Safety Advisory Group meeting was held with organisers, police and other agencies ahead of the event, Cumberland Council said.

In a statement, the local authority said it was "wishing the organisers, performers, and all participants a fantastic celebration".

'Bring everyone together'

Mr Reeves said: "Our event is not just about the entertainment, although we’ve got some wonderful people coming along, it's also about the health and wellbeing, equality and diversity stalls."

He said there were more public health stalls than ever, including representatives from the NHS and mental health services.

"It’s something to bring everyone together, young and old, and in today’s world it’s still very, very important," he said.

Mr Reeves said it was his favourite day of the year.

"We’ve got such a good cross section of people coming and that's what makes it such a wonderful day."