A MONTHLY event set up to give lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people a safe place to socialise is moving to a Friday night due to popular demand.
Up to 100 people are now travelling to the Jam Jar in Dunfermline on a Wednesday for Fife’s only gay night, organised by community group Out in Fife.
Chairman Dave Jackson (31) has now persuaded the venue to host the event on Friday, allowing even more of the estimated 15,000 LGBT people in the region to attend.
He said: “When we started Out in Fife, most of the bars in Dunfermline said no to our events when they found out what it was. The only one that would do it was Jam Jar, but they do a lot of live music so they only had a Wednesday night free.
“The police also said they’d prefer Wednesday night because it was quieter for them and easier for them to get to us if there was any trouble. But that was detrimental to us because a lot of people are working the next day.
“We still got 50 to 100 people but we’re hoping to get much more now that it’s on a Friday.”
The event is backed by sexual health charity the Terrence Higgins Trust.
Health promotion specialist Clive King, who helps organise the monthly gatherings, said: “Social nights and support groups such as this are an invaluable asset for LGBT people, especially in more remote and rural areas where there is no commercial ‘gay scene’.
“Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people living outside the big cities often experience a sense of isolation and can also find it difficult to find out about relevant services.
“From my perspective as a health promotion specialist working with gay and bisexual men in Fife, Out in Fife is a great opportunity to promote the work we are doing in the region.
“The fact that a need exists is borne out by the attendance at the monthly events to date. Now that the fun is moving to a Friday, we confidently expect it to become even busier in 2013.”
Out in Fife runs a bus service to take people to and from the event, which is also supported by Fife Community Safety Partnership (FCSP).
Last year there were 75 crimes reported to Fife police which were perceived to be motivated by sexual orientation.
Policy officer at FCSP Lyndsey Maricic said: “We are promoting the next Out in Fife LGBT night out event as part of our work to encourage the reporting of hate crime.
“Events and services which cater for people in Fife who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender provide valuable information and advice to community members who perhaps wouldn’t feel comfortable going to the usual services, for fear of retaliation, being ‘outed’, or who may not even be aware that support services exist.”
LGBT people in Fife previously had to travel as far as Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dundee to find gay nights.
Dave Jackson added: “Out in Fife is important to not just myself but to the people that come along.
“We’ve given the Fife LGBT community a safe and relaxed space where they can come along and meet other like-minded individuals without fear of being judged on their sexual orientation or gender identity.
“The nights also allow other organisations to get involved with other aspects, for example, the NHS through Terrence Higgins Trust can provide sexual health information.
“Fife police are now going to be working alongside us as well in relation to hate crime, so there are a lot of benefits to the community with these nights.”
pswindon@thecourier.co.uk