This weekend’s National Student Pride 2026 marks the end of NSP in its current format. National Student Pride is the UK’s longest-running LGBTQ+ student event.
Founded in 2005, National Student Pride is a non-profit organisation created to give LGBTQ+ students visibility, community, and access to inclusive employers. Over two decades, the event has welcomed tens of thousands of students from across the UK and beyond, becoming a staple of the UK Pride calendar and a platform for youth empowerment in the LGBTQ+ community.
The decision follows a significant and sustained drop in corporate funding. National Student Pride’s income has reduced by approximately two-thirds compared to two years ago, largely due to widespread cuts to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) budgets across employers. NSP is funded almost entirely through its diversity careers fair, which enables the daytime festival to remain free to attend. Reduced employer participation has therefore had a direct impact on the organisation’s ability to continue in its current form.
These pressures reflect wider global headwinds, with LGBTQ+ initiatives increasingly deprioritised amid economic uncertainty and the shifting geopolitical landscape. Despite this, NSP 2026 will go ahead as planned this weekend and continue its core mission.
National Student Pride is a volunteer-led organisation, supported by a board of trustees, a student committee, and one paid member of staff.
One of the original founders and a current trustee, Tom Guy, told QX: “We founded National Student Pride in 2005 in direct response to a homophobic and deeply divisive talk given by a trainee vicar at Oxford Brookes University. We chose to respond by creating something constructive — our very first event, intentionally centred on a welcoming and inclusive panel that included both a vicar and a rabbi — to show that faith, identity and LGBTQ+ lives do not have to be in conflict. That founding principle — meeting prejudice with openness and conversation — has shaped National Student Pride for the past 21 years.”
Throughout its history, National Student Pride has welcomed many influential figures from UK public life, culture, and activism. Notable contributors have included Sir Ian McKellen, who was interviewed by Evan Davis; Joe Lycett in conversation with Suzi Ruffell; Nick Grimshaw; and Joanna Lumley.
The festival has been recognised for addressing important and often challenging issues. Panels have covered topics such as mental health, with discussions featuring Will Young; homophobia in sports, including insights from former NBA player John Amaechi and former England footballer Graeme Le Saux; LGBTQ+ youth homelessness; and the process of coming out.
A significant panel discussion on sex and relationships, organised in collaboration with Attitude magazine, featured notable speakers including MP Stella Creasy and singer Olly Alexander. This event coincided with a campaign that ran alongside the National Union of Students, encouraging students to send Valentine’s cards to their MPs. This initiative helped bring about a change in government policy.
National Student Pride is recognised for its commitment to intersectionality and representation. The organisation hosted panels featuring asylum seekers from Rainbow Migration, collaborated with UK Black Pride, and featured voices such as Lady Phyll. Additionally, NSP facilitated political discussions that engaged students in direct conversations with politicians, including Zack Polanski and government minister Ashley Dalton in 2024.
The event, while addressing important issues, has consistently concluded on a positive note, celebrating the joy and community of LGBTQ+ individuals. The organisation hopes for National Student Pride to evolve into a new format under new leadership.
This weekend’s event will honour LGBTQ+ students, highlight their challenges, and celebrate the legacy of a project that has impacted lives, careers, and conversations for over two decades.
