21st Century
The 21st century seemed to promise greater equality and freedom for queer people with the introduction of protective laws and the general relaxing of social attitudes to queerness. The spread of the internet, better representations in media and the rise of community groups and pride events have allowed queer Cumbrians to be more open and visible in the county. Since 2015, the rise of right-wing attitudes has impacted the safety and rights of queer people, with trans+ people being at the forefront of bigotry.
21st Century So Far
National Events
Cumbrian Events
Sex Discrimination (Gender Reassignment) Regulations
Provides protection for trans people from discrimination in the workplace.
Age of Consent Equalised
The Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act reduces the legal age of consent for male couples to 16, in line with heterosexual couples.
Same-Sex Couples Can Adopt
The Adoption & Children Act 2002 allows same-sex couples in England and Wales to adopt children.
Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations
Provide legal protection against discrimination at work on the grounds of sexual orientation or perceived sexual orientation.
Pride in North Cumbria (PiNC) founded
By OutReach Cumbria and the NHS to provide services for LGBTQ+ youth in Cumbria.
Age of Consent Fully Equalised
The Sexual Offences Act 2003 removes the privacy requirements for male-male sex, ensuring full legal equality.
Gender Recognition Act
Gives trans and intersex people diagnosed with gender dysphoria the right to change their sex assigned at birth.
Civil Partnerships Created
The first step on the road to marriage equality, providing same-sex couples with some of the legal benefits of marriage.
Same-Sex Female Couples Given Birth Rights
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act grants same-sex female couples equal parental rights in cases of in vitro fertilisation.
Trans Lakes formed
Providing a social and support group for trans+ people in South Lakes.
First Cumbria Pride
Cumbria’s first official pride event was held in Carlisle.
Protests in Barrow
In response to an increase in homophobic and transphobic attacks in the area.
Marriage Equality
Equal marriage for same-sex couples comes into force on March 19 2014.
Barrow Terrorist Threat
A local man is arrested after making serious threats of violence on a pride event at the New Empire pub in Barrow. He was later sentenced to an indefinite hospital order.
Alan Turing Law
The ‘Alan Turing Law’ gave posthumous pardons to men convicted of consensual same-sex activities and allowed living men the right to have their convictions disregarded.
First Furness Pride
Held online due to COVID-19 restrictions. The first in-person event was held in 2022 in Barrow.
Lakes Queer Adventures created
A social group providing outdoor adventures, based in South Lakes.
Proud in Kendal begins
A social group for queer people in and around Kendal.
Proud & Diverse Cumbria founded & First Pride by the Harbourside
Promoting equality, diversity and inclusion in and around Whitehaven.
Queer Cumbria founded
A queer arts organisation based in Carlisle.
1/5 Adoptions to LGBTQ+ Families
In Cumbria, around a fifth of all adopted children were taken in by LGBTQ+ families in 2024, which is higher than the national average.
Supreme Court Judgment
About the legal definition of a woman in 2025 has created uncertainty and concern about the rights of trans, non-binary and intersex people which, at the time of writing, has not been resolved.
