ORGANISERS of a new LGBT+ Pride event are now working on getting charity status.

David Burton-Sampson, founder of Basildon Pride and chairman of the event organising committee, said he sees it as a natural next step following last weekend’s event.

Basildon Pride has been hailed a major success as hundreds of people joined together to celebrate the LGBT+ community. Mr Burton-Sampson, who is also Basildon mayor, said the charity status is in very early stages and it’s about creating a legacy for the popular event.

He said: “Basildon Pride and Mini Pride have both been great successes and demonstrated that there’s a need and support for these events in our community.

“It’s about making sure Basildon Pride isn’t just a one-day event but is on the agenda every day of the year.

“We are looking to set up Basildon Pride Everyday which will be series of events and support networks to make sure people of the LGBT+ and the Basildon community get the support they deserves throughout the year.

“It’s important to think about managing funds and the best way for us to do this is with a charity status. It is in the very early stages and we’ve got a lot of forms to fill in and got to make sure we’ve got our policies and strategic aims sorted and then we can register with the charity commissioner.”

Mr Burton-Sampson said the work is also about sharing the strong message of equality and acceptance throughout the year but tempered expectations, stating it can take about three to four months to get charity status and he hopes to have the charity set up by early next year.

The charity will then begin fundraising for next year.