Grant given to fund study into UK's first LGBT school

A Manchester charity has won a £63,000 grant to conduct a study into whether an LGBT centre in the city could be extended to become UK’s first LGBT school.

LGBT Youth North West will use the money to conduct a study into the feasibility of turning The Joyce Layland LGBT Centre into the country’s first LGBT-inclusive school, similar to the Harvey Milk school in New York City, which would be designed for – but not limited to – gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students.

The grant has been handed out by the Feasibility Funding from Social Investment Business, who are part of a national scheme to help local organisations take over a building which has previously been managed by local authorities.

LGBT Youth North West currently runs The Joyce Layland LGBT Centre on behalf of 15 community groups. As well as providing meeting space for a diverse range of groups, the centre currently also features rentable office space, an LGBT zine library and the Sidney Street vegetarian and vegan cafe.

Amelia Lee Strategic Director of LGBT Youth North West, said: “We’ve come a long way since 2005, when we had just £10 in the bank and were fully staffed by volunteers. Going into 2015 we’ve got big plans for The Joyce Layland LGBT Centre, and this money will help us with the first step,”

“It’s time to do some commonsense developments that will make us sound and stable as a social business, so that we can continue to serve and support young LGBT people and the wider community,” she added.

Grant given to fund study into UK’s first LGBT school

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