New organising team for Newcastle Pride
Northern Pride has revealed that it will hand over the Newcastle Pride Festival to Curious Futures, the new trading subsidiary of the charity Curious Arts.
This move builds on years of partnership working between Northern Pride and Curious Arts and their co-delivery of the 2025 event.
After the successful 2025 festival, Northern Pride has closed all outstanding commitments and is donating its closing balance of £8,500, along with all physical and digital assets to Curious Arts. The charity, Northern Pride, has therefore ceased trading with immediate effect.
These funds and assets will be used to help plan the 2026 festival weekend, scheduled for July 25-26, 2026. Regular attendees will notice a slight change in dates for the 2026 event, as organisers have moved it one week later to avoid clashing with the World Cup final weekend. This adjustment prioritises community safety and ensures the city-wide celebration can go ahead smoothly without placing additional strain on city services, including emergency services.
Ste Dunn, former director of Northern Pride, said: “It has been an incredible 17 years for the Northern Pride charity, a team of volunteers, past and present, who’ve acted with real passion for our community. We are all delighted to have played a part in how Newcastle Pride has evolved over nearly two decades. From the days of Pride on the Tyne, a precursor to the existing Pride which quickly outgrew Leazes Park, moving to Exhibition Park, and then the Town Moor which was a much-loved home for several years until our more recent city-wide takeover, Pride is now unapologetically visible in the heart of Newcastle.
“Newcastle Pride hasn’t been without its challenges, especially over the last five years – from celebrating online during the pandemic, to navigating the cost-of-living crisis and even battling the extreme weather of 2023.
“After two strong years of stability and success, now feels like the right moment to hand things over. The board and I will support the transition, and I have every confidence that the Curious family will do an incredible job as the new custodians of Newcastle Pride.”
Sian Broadhurst, chair of Curious Arts, said: “We are honoured to bring Newcastle Pride into the Curious family. The event will be delivered by Curious Futures, our new not for profit company created to support our region wide events, global training programme and our wide-ranging community programmes. With Pride events and festivals across Teesside already delivered under Curious Arts, this is a brilliant next step for our community and the Curious team.
“I was involved in the early years of Northern Pride and it has been a joy to watch the event grow into what it is today. We’re excited to carry on this journey, with fresh ideas and our community at the heart. We will commence community consultation in early 2026 to help shape pride for the city for years to come.”
