Volunteering at Chichester Pride

Since its inception, Chichester Pride has always been run by volunteers. Our committee and support team are all volunteers giving up hours of their spare time to organise our annual activities, with the reward of knowing that every task completed supports our local LGBTQ+ community.

Of course, Chichester Pride could not exist without the major contribution of the volunteers on the day of our parade and annual festival. Over the past three years, over a hundred people have offered their help to make Pride day run smoothly and efficiently with an age range of eighteen to early eighties! Tasks range from scanning tickets on the entrance gate, stewarding the parade, selling merchandise and raffle tickets on our Pride stall and the rather less glamorous litter picking at the end of the day!

With the help of Voluntary Action Arun and Chichester, we have developed a volunteer policy to ensure that every volunteer feels supported and valued. Now we are a registered charity, we have also adopted a volunteers’ code of conduct which asks that everybody aligns with our key core values of unity and respect for all.

Feedback shows that volunteering for Chichester Pride is a great experience, as Jon’s story demonstrates.

“I’ve been a volunteer at Chichester Pride for the last two years, having been contacted via an organisation that I volunteer with, based in Chichester. I was a little nervous when I attended the pre-Pride meeting for volunteers in 2023, a few days before the event, but I couldn’t have been made to feel more welcome right from the start. The team leading the volunteers were all so upbeat,positive, friendly, warm and very organised. I came away from that meeting feeling like the day was going to be quite special and I wasn’t proved wrong! What a day it was, and it was clear, when it finished, that everyone had a fantastic time and I was so proud to play a tiny part in making the day go smoothly.

2024 was even better, if that was possible, as the Parade started the day off. The sun shone and everyone who came had an amazing, special day. That evening when I got home, I emailed the volunteer coordinator and asked if it was possible to put my name down on the volunteer list for 2025!

Volunteering at Chichester Pride is a truly wonderful experience, you are very much appreciated and it’s guaranteed to be great fun, I couldn’t recommend volunteering at Chichester Pride highly enough.”

Other feedback we’ve had include the following:

“I live in Chichester and lots of local residents were delighted to have this happening here. It was an honour to volunteer on the first Chichester Pride.  The event was so well-organised, professionally run and I felt like we were in very safe hands.”

“It was simply amazing and I went home buzzing! Congratulations.”

“It was a fab day, thank you for everything you did to make it an enjoyable volunteering experience.”

The Chichester Pride committee would like to thank everyone who takes part each year. Your hard work and commitment to our cause is truly valued.

If you would like to volunteer for or help with the organisation of Chichester Pride on the day or as part of our support team, please email volunteers@chichesterpride.co.uk