Manchester Pride festival will include an event for LGBT teenagers 14 and over for the first time this summer.

Youth Pride MCR is a brand new element featuring in this year's line-up.

The annual music event has been a staple of the city for a number of years and takes place over August bank holiday weekend.

This year, it will be moved away from The Village for the first time due to development in the area. The main music programme will instead be coming from the Mayfield site in Piccadilly.

But it will still remain a huge part of the event with a new Gay Village Gathering event over the weekend with a stage for community performers and markets.

The new youth celebration will be a free-to-attend event for young LGBT+ people aged 14 and over and has been developed through engagement with young people from across Greater Manchester. 

Youth Pride MCR will be made up of two different elements over the course of two days at Manchester's YES venue - a fully accessible, private event space on Charles Street.

It is an event full of colour, fun and, most importantly, love

Located 320m from the Gay Village and minutes from the parade route, the event will take place across the venue’s pink room and basement area.

Saturday is Free Yourself, a day when youngsters can walk the parade together for the first time.

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Then it will be onto YES for an afternoon of fun with DJs, Vogue workshops, post parade partying and special guests.

Sunday’s theme is Know Yourself and will include author talks, acting workshops, a drag how-to workshop and more.

Guests who want some time away from the busy areas can visit the quiet zone for quiet games, a sensory area, mental health discussion, film screenings and meditation sessions.

Throughout the weekend there will be non alcoholic drinks on offer, pizza from Playboy Pizza, which includes their famous vegan option and a glitter stand to get everybody glittering.

Ariana Grande will return to Manchester for this year's Pride

Mark Fletcher, CEO of Manchester Pride, said: “We’re thrilled to be holding the first ever Youth Pride MCR this year as part of the Manchester Pride Festival celebrations.

"The event has been developed through engagement with young people from across Greater Manchester. Over recent months, we’ve been in talks with those who want to be involved in shaping these new and exciting events, and a separate youth event was what our audience asked for and what we felt they needed.

"We’re committed to constantly innovating Manchester Pride Festival in order to remain relevant and intune with what LGBT+ people in Greater Manchester tell us they want from their celebration.”

The Pink Room and Quiet Zone are encouraged to be a space for young people only but parents can enjoy the roof terrace or bar if they wish to wait within the venue.

US popstar Ariana Grande will be appearing at Pride, her first performance in the city since the One Love concert held in the wake of the terror attack at her Manchester Arena show in 2017.

The 25-year-old will headline the Sunday night slot alongside the likes of 80s duo Bananarama, singer-songwriter Becky Hill, former X Factor contestants Four of Diamonds and Liverpool singer Chelcee Grimes.

To express an interest in attending Youth Pride MCR 2019, details can be submitted here .