Calls for more 'sober' spaces for LGBT people in Birmingham
LGBT Birmingham said they are seing an increase in demand for counselling services
There are calls for more 'sober' LGBT support places in cities like Birmingham.
The call comes from LGBT Birmingham who were the first LGBTQ+ Health & Wellbeing Centre in the UK, when it opened in 2013.
"Issues with alcohol and substance misuse"
LGBT Birmingham are moving to a larger venue in the city's Gay Village. Director Steph Keeble told us they would be one of the only sober venues for LGBT people in the area:
"The Gay Village is often seen around a bar scene, but we know the LGBT community often has issues with alcohol and substance misuse.
"We also know that older members of the LGBT community are twice as likely to live alone, and less likely to have family support.
"They do not always want to go to a bar"
"They do not always want to go to a bar to mix with people like them, she said.
LGBT Birmingham have supported more than 4,000 people in the West Midlands with sexual health and counselling in the last 12 months.
Steph explained that there are not enough hours in the day to tackle the waiting list for their support services:
"Demand for counselling has only grown"
"Demand for counselling has only grown since Covid. LGBT people found it hard in the pandemic as our centre was shut. It has taken a toll on people's mental health," she said.
A new purpose-build LGBT Birmingham centre will open up on Hurst Street this summer.
"It will include more counselling rooms and clinical rooms, meaning we can get more people in the door to help the LGBT community in the West Midlands," she said.