27 February 2025
Beth Sutton (she/they) is an anthropologist undertaking doctoral research while working in the Neurodevelopmental Service – a specialist clinical care team in Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. In addition to working clinically, she co-leads on Neurodevelopmental Participation and co-chairs the Trust’s LGBTQIA+ Staff Network.
Ahead of the LGBTQIA+ Staff Network's preparations for Pride 2025, here's a look back at the Network's successes in Pride 2024.
Beth's blog outlines how an anthropological approach can create different and potentially more valuable outcomes for service users and staff regarding participation opportunities in healthcare.
Broadly speaking, anthropology is about the study of people. Anthropologists tend to be curious about experience, culture and societies. An anthropological approach is usually ‘emic’: seeking to understand things from the perspective of people themselves, in contrast to more objectifying approaches (etic) – such as more conventional approaches in medicine. In other words, anthropologists try to understand things from the ‘bottom-up’ rather than ‘top-down’.
Brighton Pride 2024
Brighton Pride
Last year was the second year I co-chaired the LGBTQIA+ Staff Network through Pride season. This work included a Pride committee; attendance at Worthing Pride with a community stall; Trans and Brighton Pride and Trust-wide training facilitated by Switchboard, a leading LGBTQIA+ support service. A number of people also attended a Network social – the second free-to-attend event courtesy of the Collage Club
In Brighton Pride Parade, the Trust's LGBTQIA+ Staff Network joined colleagues in NHS Sussex on an open-top bus. The focus was 'Queer Joy' and sustainability, themes that were carefully selected by the Pride Committee; celebrating Queer Joy in a way that was environmentally conscious and future-orientated. There was also community engagement with Brighton Borrowers who kindly loaned a sound system for the Parade, in line with the Network’s commitment to sustainability.
The bus was decorated with 'Love hearts' made by service users. It also included upcycled banners made by Network members during two ‘Crafternoons’ that I facilitated.
'Love hearts'
Anthropological approaches ask participants to reflect on their own identities and express them in ways that are appropriate to them.
The LGBTQIA+ Staff Network was asked to decorate the open-top bus, secured by NHS Sussex for the Brighton Pride Parade.
Service users were invited to take an active role in Pride Month by creating their own 'Love hearts', inspired by the retro sweets, to adorn the double-decker bus. For accessibility reasons and to maximum impact, each design included short and sweet (pun intended) messages of queer relevance (LGBTQIA+ ‘Queer Joy’).
The Network received over 40 'Love hearts', including submissions from Trust sites Langley Green Hospital (Crawley), Lighthouse (Hove), Amberstone Hospital (Hailsham), Spring Tide (Hove) and Shepherd House (Worthing).
'Love hearts'
The brief created space for service users to express themselves, highlighting a diverse range of perspectives related to the LGBTQIA+ community.
A Clinical Specialist Occupational Therapist said: "The brief was brilliant; staff and service users at the centre absolutely embraced it. It was such a creative and uplifting session. My colleague said it helped them to feel more confident facilitating the session as it provided a clear and meaningful focus."
Taking an anthropological approach (etic), as established above, opened up participation opportunities for service users in a way that was tangible and suited to individual needs, in turn, amplifying the voices of people with lived experience, in terms of mental health and/or the LGBTQIA+ community.
Due to the success of service users’ response to the initiative I developed, there is now talk about creative briefs being taken forward for other events in the 'Inclusion calendar'. The Equality Diversity and Inclusion team have asked me to advise on future work because the approach taken here has the potential to elicit inclusive and valuable participation opportunities.
‘Crafternoons’
Building allyship across the Trust is one of the key objectives in the Network's 2024 Action Plan. For this reason, one ‘Crafternoon’ was available for allies to attend (Worthing) while the second was, as in the previous year, reserved for Network members only (Hove).
‘Crafternoons’ provided opportunities for connection and peer support while developing display materials in preparation for the Network and NHS Sussex's presence at Brighton Pride. For those unable to attend Brighton Pride Parade itself, they provided an alternative way to get involved.
Comments included: "I attended the Network members ‘Crafternoon’ for Brighton Pride this summer. It was my first Network meetup having only recently joined. As an asexual person who is often assumed to be straight, I was anxious about attending my first meeting and my identity and presence being questioned. But my fears were completely baseless - my presence was just accepted."
The Pride Committee wanted to prioritise ‘sustainability’ in their response to the theme ‘Queer Joy', deciding to upcycle existing materials, such as T-shirts and banners from previous events. “It was really nice to connect with others in the Network and to work together to produce something meaningful for our Brighton Pride entry”, the Network member continued.
In response to a call for resources, which went out to approximately 800 staff members, many came forward and donated surplus craft materials and fabrics. The concerted efforts of Network members and allies led to the development of two banners. The first NHS banner said: 'The Bus of Love' and featured on the front of the vehicle. The second banner positioned lengthways said: 'Supporting all communities' with particular reference to the Trans flag. More than 30 hearts were cut out and stitched on by staff to resemble butterflies in the sky, symbolising personal growth, self-discovery, freedom and 'Queer Joy'.
'Crafternoons'
Another Network member said: “Attending ‘Crafternoons’ with the LGBTQIA+ Staff Network has been a deeply rewarding experience. These sessions, where we gather in a relaxed and psychologically safe space to engage in creative activities, have provided me with a unique opportunity to connect—not only with myself but also with others in the community.”
“In a workplace where it can sometimes feel isolating, especially as a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, these moments of connection are invaluable", they continued.
"It's easy to feel disconnected from colleagues, but these art sessions have helped bridge that gap. Collaborating on creative projects, particularly for Pride events, has been especially fulfilling. Knowing that the artwork created by staff and service users would be seen by many added a sense of pride and shared purpose."
As the feedback suggests, taking an anthropological approach produced ‘meaningful and rewarding experiences’ for LGBTQIA+ staff; staff who reported feeling “accepted”, “psychologically safe” and ‘fulfilled’ by getting creative about participation opportunities in Brighton Pride 2024.
Image 4: “Supporting all our communities”
Thank you for reading!
If you would like to get in touch with Beth directly for consultancy opportunities, email beth.sutton2@nhs.net and/or bs350@sussex.ac.uk You can also find out more about Beth’s work by visiting their University of Sussex profile