Manchester Pride 2009 has raised £135,000 for good causes.
It’s the highest figure for a number of years, but not if you take into account inflation (which is about 30% over a decade). Allowing for inflation it is about the same as was raised in 2000 from the free and much-smaller GayFest and less than was raised in the years from 2003 to 2006.
But, considering the current economic situation across the country, the organisers have done well to keep the figure anywhere near those of previous years.
I understand that ticket sales account for just under two-thirds of Manchester Pride’s total income. I don’t know whether ticket sales were up, down or the same as usual, as that information is rarely made public. Possibly they reduced running costs, which consumed 88% of the Manchester Pride income in 2007, and were able to prop up the charity amount in that way? But we won’t know until the accounts are released more than a year from now.
In the years since 2003, the Pride organisers and Manchester City Council have estimated that the extra business brought into the city due to Pride has a value of between £13m and £22m per year. That is for businesses city wide, not just in the gay village.
Here are the figures for charity amounts over the years:
2009: £135,000
2008: £105,000 (pay event)
2007: £95,000 (pay event)
2006: £121,000 after the VAT debarcle was sorted out (pay event)
2005: £120,772 (pay event)
2004: £129,426 (pay event)
2003: £127,690 (pay event)
2002: £65,000 (free event)
2001: £70,000 or £100,000 – reports vary (free event)
2000: £105,000 (free event)
1999: zero raised (pay event – the first year with the fences and ‘pledgeband’/wristband)
In the financial year 1994/95, Mardi Gras was free and The Village Charity managed to raise £60,000 for good causes.
Do you have details of the amount raised in any other years during the 1990’s? Perhaps leaflets or magazine articles? If so please let me have them.