The organiser of the Salford Pride event, The Pink Picnic have released a statement regarding changes following recent criticism.
The Pink Picnic event, which is hosted at Peel Park, announced earlier this year that guests of the LGBTQ+ celebrations will be required to pay for a ticket to enter the festival.
Criticism has been made to the organisers, as in previous years the event was free to attend with the option of donating to the Salford Pride charity.
However, this year guests will a minimum of £5 and will include the donation – with under-16’s being allowed in for free.
Following the changes, Salford Pride’s Board of Trustees shared that the adjustments have been made to address recurring issues and protect our volunteers from abuse at their events.
This worry for volunteer has also led to the event organisers making the decision to ban attendees from bringing their own alcohol drinks into the park grounds unlike on previous occasions.
As the statement from the Board of Trustees said: “Salford Pride has had to gradually increase restrictions on alcohol in response to ongoing challenges.”
The organiser continued to mention that non-adherence to the event restrictions by some attendees, and unacceptable verbal abuse directed at our volunteers has led to some changes.
“Salford’s Pride’s primary concern at any of our events is the safety of both the public and our volunteers who deliver the event.
“Unfortunately, incidents of antisocial behaviour linked to excessive alcohol consumption have increased year on year, making it necessary for us to take further steps to combat this issue.”
Salford Pride also shared that will food and soft drinks can be brought in by attendees – and it will be on offer at the event, as they aim to continue the tradition of the picnic in the celebrations.
And as they aim to cherish tradition have been working with bar providers and vendors to improve the experience for guests of The Pink Picnic.
The statement continued: “As always, we welcome constructive feedback and have taken onboard feedback from last year to make improvements to our event moving forward.
“However, we will not tolerate abrupt or abusive comments on our social media that can have a negative impact on the mental health of our dedicated volunteers.
“We would like to remind everyone that PRIDE is not about alcohol. Our event is about celebration of diversity, inclusion and community.”
However, following the changes made to the rules and regulations for attendees, Salford residents have shared there upset.
One resident, Lee Butterly said: “Perhaps you could just limit the amount of booze people bring in rather than banning it outright. You are checking bags anyway.
While Chris J Gowrie said: “You advise that you want to combat alcohol related issues and abuse, so you stop the public from bringing in alcohol but then encourage them to buy affordable alcohol when the site.
“What’s the difference?”
Salford residents have been encouraged to leave constructive feedback, with the organisers welcoming it to improve the events.
However, they have stated that the response team will not engage in back-and-forth discussions in the comments.
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