Tensions rising towards the LGBT+ community in Derbyshire, says support group
Derbyshire LGBT+ says they've seen a rise in hate crime
An LGBT+ support group in Derbyshire has told us they are facing rising tensions as well as an increase in hate crime.
Derbyshire LGBT+ runs drop-in sessions for people to seek advice regarding their sexual orientation, coming out or gender identity.
The figures...
Home Office figures show sexual orientation hate crimes roughly doubled from the mid-2010s to early 2020.
There were 11,592 incidents recorded by police in the year 2017/18 and 26,152 recorded in 2021/22.
Between 2020/21 and 2021/22 the number of incidents recorded rose by 41%, before falling in more recent years, according to the Home Office.
'Frightened'
Ryan Devereux's the manager of Derbyshire LGBT+. As a gay man, he told us he can sense tensions are rising: "I have gone back to being mindful of where I am with my partner.
"I no longer feel comfortable walking down the street holding my partners hand. In 2026, it feels more important than ever to have support systems like Derbyshire LGBT+.
"We are seeing a lot more divisiveness in our community and that has made a lot of us, myself included, quite frightened," he said.
'You are not alone'
He has this advice: "We are all just people and there is a lot of similarities between us. Instead, I think we are focussing too much on what divides us. We have stopped having conversations with each other and are too busy shouting at one another.
"There are not as many places to turn to for support. Especially on social media, posting on the internet will attract attention from people you were not intending. Our place has been vandalised too.
"I want the LGBT+ community to know that you are not alone. I know things may be frightening right now, but we have achieved awesome things in the past and we are capable of doing that again," he said.