Oliver Coppard, the South Yorkshire Mayor, has officially opened a new building for LGBTQ+ charity SAYiT on Division Street in Sheffield.
Speaking at the opening event on Friday, Mr Coppard said: “I’m here to show my support, as fundamentally I want South Yorkshire to be a welcoming place where anyone can grow up feeling that the world is their oyster.
“I want to set the tone that genuinely you can grow up and be whoever you want to be here in our region,” the mayor continued.”
SAYiT is an emotional wellbeing support charity for the LGBTQ+ community in Sheffield.
Heather Paterson, CEO, said: “We needed a new larger space as the demand for the services has grown considerably.
“The charity has been operating for 24 years, but in the current climate the need for young people’s mental health services has increased in this community. In the old place we were overgrown and sitting on top of things.”
Ms Paterson continued: “Although we did the move over Halloween weekend in October, we are now finally ready to show our space to the public and it is an opportunity to see what we have on offer.”
Established in 1999, the charity provides individualised assistance including a wide range of services related to sexual, emotional, mental health, and overall well-being for LGBTQ+ youth.
“SAYiT is a brilliant charity and organisation who have gone from strength to strength and I just want to carry on seeing that which I know they will do.” Mr Coppard proceeded.
Ms Paterson said that due to the recent events with the tragedy of Brianna Ghey, there will be ways for people to volunteer and support the transgender community both in Sheffield and further afield.
The CEO said that “I can’t wait to see the day when we can turn the lights out but people still need the support at the moment.”