Warwickshire Pride

A registered charity for the organisation of LGBT+ services and events

News 

Statement on Emmanuel Church and Warwickshire County Council

simonWP

Recently, when submitting Warwickshire Pride’s service details to Warwickshire County Council’s Search Out website, it was noticed that the Emmanuel Church, based in Leamington Spa, is listed on the same website. This was of concern to us because of the Emmanuel Church’s anti-LGBTQ+ attitudes, which include homophobic and transphobic statements on their website and signing an open letter in support of conversion therapy being able to remain legal for churches. Additionally, we have supported someone who said they were forced to undergo conversion therapy at the church and that other people at the church were being coerced into it.

Based on our knowledge of the Emmanuel Church, we contacted Warwickshire County Council and requested that they stop platforming a church that is openly anti-LGBTQ+ and potentially harming local LGBTQ+ people. Our request was denied, with Warwickshire County Council saying that they are not responsible for the attitudes or content of organisations listed on their Search Out website.

Following that, we submitted a complaint to Warwickshire County Council. The complaint detailed our concerns about the Emmanuel Church, the harm that could come to local LGBTQ+ people, and questioned whether Warwickshire County Council should be responsible for what they choose to platform. Another request was made to remove the Emmanuel Church’s listing.

Our complaint was investigated but ultimately dismissed by Warwickshire County Council. Again, they claimed to have no responsibility for the attitudes or content of organisations listed on their Search Out website.

We then submitted an appeal, which can mean that complaints are looked at again. Unfortunately, Warwickshire County Council has declined to consider our complaint again.

It is hugely concerning that a local authority is platforming a church that is openly anti-LGBTQ+. It is also an indicator of the direction that Warwickshire County Council is going in.

Since the Reform administration came into power in 2025, there have been a number of anti-LGBTQ+ and anti-Warwickshire Pride actions and statements. For example:

  • The leader of Warwickshire County Council, Councillor George Finch, is against a rainbow flag flying for Pride month, ordered it to be taken down, and was then part of bringing in a new flag policy where a single councillor is able to say yes or no to requests for flags to fly. All our requests to fly Pride related flags on key dates for our communities have been declined.
  • The leader of Warwickshire County Council, Councillor George Finch, mentioned in a public Council meeting that we had received a £5,000 grant from the Council (which helps us to employ youth workers for our LGBTQ+ youth groups) and said that “Warwickshire Pride is not a priority” for receiving community grant funding. No other charity or group was singled out. Only Warwickshire Pride was singled out as apparently not being deserving of grant funding.
  • The Reform administration is deciding next month whether to dismantle Warwickshire County Council’s equalities service.

It is clear from these examples that there is an anti-LGBTQ+ agenda at Warwickshire County Council. The decision to dismiss our complaint and not remove the Emmanuel Church’s listing from the Search Out website appears to be a further example of Warwickshire County Council moving backwards on supporting LGBTQ+ communities. This is completely unacceptable.

We call on Warwickshire County Council to look at our complaint again, to remove the Emmanuel Church’s listing from the Search Out website, and to take responsibility for what they choose to platform.

Additionally, we call on Councillor George Finch to publicly apologise for singling out Warwickshire Pride as not being deserving of funding support. We also call on him to commit to not interfering in the community grant process and allowing grant applications to be assessed on merit, not on whether they support LGBTQ+ communities or not. Finally, we call on the Reform administration to stop moving towards dismantling Warwickshire County Council’s equalities service and call on councillors from the other political parties to do everything in their power to oppose what is being done by the Reform administration in relation to LGBTQ+ communities and minority communities in general.

As an LGBTQ+ charity, we remain here to support the communities we serve. We will also continue to stand up to hate and discrimination, and will always call out attempts to harm LGBTQ+ people.

Warwickshire Pride’s Board of Trustees