West Midlands Ambulance Service withdraws from Birmingham Pride just days before parade amid 'impartiality' fears

A spokesman said staff taking part in uniform would "create a reasonable perception that WMAS actively supports specific views, which would be contrary to the protected beliefs of some people".

WMAS's LGBT+ workplace community group, "Proud Network", said that while as a committee it was "disappointed with the decision, we understand the reasoning behind it".

A West Midlands Ambulance Service spokesman said: "The Trust can confirm it has withdrawn from the Birmingham Pride parade, along with police and fire services, based on legal advice.

"We are very fortunate to have staff from many different backgrounds, including the LGBTQ+ community, work for us and we remain fully supportive of them and the ‘Proud Network’ that we run within the Service.

"We have informed the organisers as to why we are unable to participate and will keep this decision under review for next and future years.

"We will also continue to support staff participating in other events that meet the public sector equality duty."

An anonymous member of West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) staff told the BBC the decision had left colleagues feeling "isolated, unsupported, and increasingly uncertain about where the organisation now draws the line on equality and inclusion".

They added: "For many staff, participation in Pride was never viewed as a political statement, but as a visible commitment to inclusion, staff wellbeing, and reassuring LGBTQ+ patients and communities that they are welcomed and respected by their ambulance service."

GB News has contacted Birmingham Pride for a comment.

Birmingham Pride is taking place on May 23 and 24, and will see performances from Katy B, Sigala, and Nadine Coyle. The event dates back to 1973 and is the largest two-day gay pride festival.

The recent ruling points to the case of Northumbria Police, which was subject to a Judicial Review heard in 2025 for allowing uniformed members of staff to attend Newcastle Pride in 2024.

Linzi Smith, who describes herself as a "gender critical" lesbian, took legal action against Northumbria Police over its decision to allow officers to participate in the Newcastle Pride in the City event last July, in which she also participated.

Lawyers for Ms Smith told the court that the officers’ involvement breached impartiality rules, and that the decision to allow them to take part was unlawful.

Barristers for the force opposed the challenge, claiming the decision, made by Chief Constable Vanessa Jardine, was within her "discretion".

In a ruling on Wednesday, Mr Justice Linden said the decision relating to last year’s event was unlawful, but that it was up to the force to decide how it approaches the 2025 event, which is due to take place this weekend.

In his judgment, he said that Ms Smith is opposed to "gender ideology", which she believes is "wrong and dangerous" but has been "embraced" by the organisers of the event, Northern Pride.

While Ms Smith agreed that the event should be policed, she objected to officers "associating themselves with the views of supporters of gender ideology and transgender activists by actively participating", the judge said.

Uniformed officers marched at the event last year with some carrying flags which included Pride colours alongside police insignia, and others wearing uniforms with the word "Police" in Pride colours.

In a letter to the force before the legal action, Ms Smith said the involvement of officers in the event led her to conclude it was "biased against gender critical people".

In response, the force said it considered that the decision to allow officers to participate in the event was a "lawful exercise" of the "discretion" of Ms Jardine, who considered that police participation in Pride was "necessary and justified".

Ms Jardine also said in her evidence to the court that she believed preventing officers from attending would be contrary to her duties under the Equality Act.

In his ruling, Mr Justice Linden said the participation of officers went against impartiality rules.

He found that those who opposed Northern Pride’s view on transgender rights were "not welcome" at its events, and that uniformed officers’ involvement meant they "demonstrated support for the cause".