Equality, diversity and inclusion

It is illegal to discriminate against a person on the basis of their sexual orientation. .

Southwark's statistics

2021 Census respondents were asked which term best described their sexual orientation: straight or heterosexual, gay or lesbian, bisexual, or another orientation. 

• in Southwark, more than 1 in 12 (8.1%, 20,700) residents reported an LGB+ sexual identity, around double the levels for London (4.3%) and England (3.2%).
• Southwark ranked 4th largest LGB+ population in England and 3rd highest in London (7 of the top 10 local authorities were in London)
• just under 1 in 10 Southwark residents did not answer the question
• Southwark’s 16+ LGB+ population predominantly identified as lesbian/gay (56%) or bisexual/pansexual (40%)
• around 1 in 20 Southwark residents (4.5%, 11,600) identified as lesbian or gay
  • about 1 in 30 (3.2%, 8,300) identified as bisexual or pansexual.
  • 0.2% identified as queer (450), 0.1% as asexual (200) and 0.1% with another LGB+ identity (150)

How we promote equality

To support residents, we:

• celebrate LGBT+ History Month with a series of events in Southwark each year
• commissioned Metro to provide counselling services to LGBTQ+ young people in Southwark