North Yorkshire is the largest county in England, and one of the most deeply rural. There are three main centres of population York, Harrogate and Scarborough. The rest of the county is made up of small market towns and scattered villages.
The experience of being a Gay man living in North Yorkshire is radically different from living in more urban areas. There is a high degree of invisibility and isolation. Transport is difficult and scene activities are very limited.
Yorkshire MESMAC services in North Yorkshire are targeted at overcoming some of these barriers.
The specific services in North Yorkshire are listed below, for a list of services that are available at all of our offices please click here.
Meeting Rooms/Training Space
There is a leaflet available about using The Workshop as a training venue – to download a copy of it, click here. [top]
North Yorkshire Groups
For more information about any of these groups
please click on the name of the group:
Sports Groups
Married Men’s
Group
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Coming Together Residentials
Because living in a rural area can sometimes be an isolating experience, Yorkshire MESMAC organises two residential weekends a year, providing space and time to bring men together, to make new friends and to have fun. We aim for the weekends to be a relaxing experience, with workers available to make sure everything runs smoothly and to help stimulate discussions.
For more information on the residentials click here. [top]
Working with the Police
We are founder members of the DISC (Diversity Incorporating Safer Communities) Consultation Group; the mechanism set up by North Yorkshire Police to work with minority groups including LGB Communities. This now feeds into Independent Advisory Groups throughout the county. These groups bring the views and needs of community groups directly to the local police force.
If you have experienced any form of harassment or violence based on your sexuality, please report it. Reports can be made anonymously. Although you may see it as a minor incident that would not result in any form of arrest or prosecution, these reports do help to compile a picture of any geographical areas where we are experiencing particular problems. They can also help to give a clearer idea of what our communities are facing. To report online, or for more information on DISC, click here. We hope that Yorkshire MESMAC itself will soon become a Hate Incident Crime Reporting Centre. [top]
Domestic Abuse
Over the last couple of years Domestic Abuse has been moving up the political agenda and government money is helping to develop services across the country. Yorkshire MESMAC is in the process of developing a strategy for responding to and working with victims of Domestic Abuse and perpetrators.
We have moved away from the term Domestic Violence because Domestic Abuse incorporates better all the aspects of abuse a person can experience. All abuse is classed as a criminal offence. Over the next year we will be working with our partnerships across the project and our counselling service a unique programme of training, awareness and support around Domestic Abuse. [top]
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North Yorkshire MESMAC
P O Box 549
York
YO30 7GX
Tel: 01904 620400
Fax: 01904 620444
Email: northyorkshire@mesmac.co.uk
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