LGB Alliance
LGB Alliance is a British organisation that advocates for lesbian, gay and bisexual people. It was founded in 2019 following a dispute with advocacy organisation Stonewall over transgender policy. The organisation places sexual orientation at the centre and seeks to distinguish it from gender identity. See also gender and sexuality and the article about gay and lesbian young people in the gender debate.
Background
In April 2021, LGB Alliance was granted charitable status. The organisation Mermaids challenged the registration, but its appeal was dismissed in 2023 because Mermaids lacked standing. The court did not rule on whether the status had been rightly granted. Many LGBT organisations, politicians and academics describe LGB Alliance as anti-trans; the organisation itself rejects that characterisation.
What you can find
The website contains statements of position, research reports, news and information about the annual conference. The site is relevant to the debate about identities and to critical perspectives.
Who is behind it
The organisation names Bev Jackson and Kate Harris as its founders. PinkNews also counts barrister Allison Bailey and Ann Sinnott among the founders. According to the organisation, Malcolm Clark has been part of the management team from the beginning. Kate Barker is director and Eileen Gallagher is chair of the board. LGB Alliance is listed in the register of charities for England and Wales under number 1194148. It defines its mission as ensuring that lesbians, gay men and bisexual people can live freely without discrimination or disadvantage based on their sexual orientation. It seeks to highlight the double discrimination faced by lesbians, promote respectful free debate and oppose what it calls the medicalisation of children.
Activities and controversies
Its offerings include local groups under the name Friends of LGB Alliance, an online book club, a network for entrepreneurs, a forum for local councillors and a helpline for young people, which according to PinkNews launched on 14 October 2024 and attracted criticism because of its young target audience. The organisation campaigns against self-identification in law and against puberty blockers for children. Its funding has caused controversy on several occasions. In April 2022, a grant from Arts Council England was withdrawn and the London Community Foundation suspended a contribution; in June 2022, an award from the National Lottery Community Fund prompted protests. At the October 2024 conference in London, young activists released live crickets. Supporters include former MP Joanna Cherry, who joined the board in January 2025, and Jackie Doyle-Price, who expressed her support as an MP in 2020. More than fifty British Pride organisations objected to its charitable status in an open letter in 2021. The LGBT conference of the TUC trade union federation passed a motion to the same effect in 2022.
How to assess this source
LGB Alliance is an advocacy organisation with a controversial position within its own community. Its reports reflect its own point of view. Related groups exist in Ireland, Canada and Australia; see the profile of LGB Alliance Australia. A related British group is The Lesbian Project.