Stephen Ireland, the charismatic founder of Pride in Surrey (PiS), used to be regarded as something of a local hero. He was a trusted member of the community with a regular slot on local radio. And he was often seen being driven around by the police in their rainbow-emblazoned police car.
But then, in June, the mask slipped. He was sentenced for six counts of making indecent images of children, three counts of causing a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity, and the rape of a 12-year-old boy referred to in court as Child A.
In early 2024, Ireland had targeted Child A on Grindr, an adult hook-up site for gay men, and painstakingly arranged to bring him to the flat he shared with his partner, David Sutton, a volunteer at PiS. Once there, Ireland prepared chemsex drugs in a bong, lined up pornography, then raped the child.
The court heard that Child A had contemplated jumping in front of a train after his rape. Instead, the day after the rape, he told his teacher what had happened. Had it not been for the bravery of Child A, Ireland and Sutton might never have been investigated.
It was only then that Ireland’s carefully cultivated public image began to disintegrate. He and Sutton were arrested just days later in April 2024. Alongside Ireland’s rape of Child A, the pair were initially investigated for the distribution and possession of indecent images of children — but by August 2024, police had uncovered a combined total of 45 offences.
Despite the huge number of offences under investigation, Ireland went to great lengths to conceal even more. A phone owned by PiS and exclusively used by Ireland was disposed of and never found. Investigators discovered a message sent via another device from Ireland to Sutton telling him to “delete everything”.
All the while, Ireland had been pivotal to the PiS movement. His position allowed him open access to children and young people. He accompanied police on visits to schools to give talks on LGBT awareness and was also a patron of Educate and Celebrate, an organisation that promoted transgender ideology in nurseries, schools, and higher education facilities. How had someone like Ireland, with such dangerously twisted sexual proclivities, become so trusted in the community, particularly around children?
Since the sentencing, I have spoken with several whistleblowers, as well as those who claim there was “no evidence” that Ireland was operating in plain sight, and who have denied that evidence was ignored. But the whistleblowers all had evidence, which I was given access to, that the information they provided to police, other Pride members, and Surrey County Council should have prompted a robust investigation into Ireland.
When Ireland first turned up in Surrey in 2018, he was an exuberant 34-year-old brimming with flamboyant confidence. When he announced that he was setting up a massive Pride event, gay residents were delighted. PiS was an immediate hit.
As Ireland’s influence grew, he cultivated strong ties with the police. A passionate trans activist, he positioned himself as a partner in their efforts to reduce “hate crime” in the community. The police, in turn, welcomed the positive publicity and affirmation that came from associating with this self-styled figurehead of the local LGBT scene. His influence over the force was so pronounced that in 2021, when Surrey’s Police and Crime Commissioner Lisa Townsend called for single-sex domestic abuse and rape crisis services, Ireland posted a photo of one of his officer chums sitting in the rainbow police vehicle holding up a sign that read: “TERFy Townsend not fit for office.” After Townsend raised the incident in the media, Chief Constable Gavin Stephens urged her to apologise to Ireland, informing her that he was “a friend of Surrey police”.
There were other warning signs. “It was very clear this wasn’t a Pride that was inclusive for lesbians,” recalls Maria Esposito, who attended initial planning meetings. “There was an obsessive focus on queer and trans stuff. Stephen portrayed himself as a fierce LGBTQ+ all-inclusive advocate and a self-anointed figurehead. We never went back.”
Ireland also swiftly appointed himself as Safeguarding Lead. Yet at the same time, PiS volunteers started to notice that he surrounded himself with young people who called him “daddy”. And it was becoming clear that a significant portion of his community outreach was directed at children. “If you look at PiS’s social media activity in 2019 and 2020, so much is focused on enticing children to take part,” one local lesbian says. “Stephen Ireland clearly set up PiS to get access to children.”
When volunteers voiced their disapproval, Ireland rebuffed all concerns, claiming he was in a “polyamorous relationship” — something that is legitimised and glamorised under the LGBTQ+ umbrella. And here is a problem with the expansion of the LGBTQ+ activism platform: some of the movement’s current agenda acts as a useful cover-up for nastier elements with depraved intentions. On International Fetish Day, Ireland was photographed leading a leather-clad person on all fours in a collar and dog mask. The “pup”, as discovered by one of the whistleblowers I spoke to, was a 17-year-old girl.
Glaring red flags like this are now far harder to confront. Pride has evolved away from its original purpose — seeking tolerance, acceptance and equality — and a new, hyper-permissive culture has taken root, which is normalising predatory behaviour. Unfortunately, the new openness for fetish, sexualised public displays, and Pride’s celebration of “transing” children has provided a convenient smokescreen for abusive men like Ireland.
Not that some people didn’t notice. Over the years, numerous whistleblowers from PiS spoke up, expressing concerns about Ireland’s behaviour. They worried that Ireland was procuring very young men and boys for sexual gain — but their testimony fell on deaf ears.
Marion Harding, one of seven volunteers who resigned for those very reasons, told me that she had tried to get Surrey County Council to investigate Ireland back in 2021, but no action was ever taken. At the time, Ireland had introduced Sam Powell, then barely 18, into his relationship with then-partner Charlie Watts. “That was a red flag for me, because Sam looked so young,” Harding tells me. “He told everyone that Sam was his cousin, and then that changed to being Charlie’s cousin, then somebody’s brother, and he had appointed himself as the PiS Safeguarding Lead. How can the most senior person in an organisation do that? It is totally against protocol.”
Eventually, Harding made her misgivings known at a special meeting called to discuss the issues at which other volunteers were present. “I told him, ‘Every bloody thing is about kinks and pups and fuck knows what. What you’re in is a threesome’,” she says. “He didn’t like that and shouted that I needed to educate myself, that I was being discriminatory.”
“I asked him, ‘If polyamory falls under LGBTQ+, what’s next? Paedophiles and rapists?’ That’s when he lost it. He was jumping up and down, jabbing his finger at me — spitting in my face.” Harding resigned on the spot.
Shortly afterwards, Harding received a “cease and desist” letter. That letter was, incidentally, co-signed by Kel Finan-Cooke, who, along with her wife Lisa Finan-Cooke, was a volunteer and subsequently a director of PiS until both resigned, on the same day, in June 2023. Both women are Liberal Democrat councillors for Surrey Heath. The Finan-Cookes, both of whom I have spoken to, insist that Harding’s concerns were taken seriously, “but it seemed to just be about Stephen having a younger boyfriend, and because he was 18 it was perfectly legal”.
Another woman, who attended PiS until 2023, tells me she sent “dozens” of emails to Surrey County Council, but was “fobbed off”. “All I wanted was for them to look into Ireland,” she says.
Only now has it become so painfully clear how right the whistleblowers’ instincts were. For his numerous crimes, Ireland was sentenced to 24 years, and with an additional six on extended licence, he will remain on the Sex Offenders Register for life. Sutton was sent to prison for four and a half years after being found guilty of three counts of making indecent photographs of children and one count of possession of an extreme pornographic image.
“Only now has it become so painfully clear how right the whistleblowers’ instincts were.”
Today, Watts, Ireland’s former partner, is the current CEO, and joint Safeguarding Lead with Powell. Now 23 years old, Powell is also Director of Pride Hub as well as Director and Company Secretary of PiS.
And PiS is alive and well, with its big annual event due to take place in Guildford on 6 September. The crowdfunder for the Pride Hub, which is still live online, has raised £1,809 to date, and it retains Ireland’s smiling face as the “project owner” profile. A fundraiser for Surrey Pride Hub, described as a “warm, sober, safe space”, is also still online. The blurb, asking for money for “operational costs”, reads: “The Pride Hub… is ideal for social meet ups, chillout groups, gaming and movie nights.”
Following the sentencing of Ireland and Sutton, I visited the PiS Hub on Egham High Street, which was staffed by Powell. In the Hub, leaflets on trans and non-binary rights predominate. I could not see anything specifically focusing on gay men or lesbians — but collars, leads, ears, tails, and paw-themed items were available to buy.
Every whistleblower I spoke to, most of whom requested anonymity, expressed the belief that PiS should be disbanded entirely. “He built this organisation,” one Surrey resident says, “and it’s in his image. Stephen Ireland put his stamp on everything and demanded loyalty, not accountability, encouraging a culture of silence.”
Regardless of all these concerns, and the sentencing of Ireland, several statutory bodies working with vulnerable children have maintained ties with PiS. Surrey Fostering, for example, which facilitates the recruitment and support of foster carers, has had a stall at PiS’s events ever since the organisation started up, and continues to be involved with PiS this year. A post on the organisation’s Facebook page from last year asks for volunteers to visit and befriend children in care in Surrey: “Could you offer a child or young person fun activities and one-to-one time?” (I contacted Surrey County Council several times to request a right of reply regarding this issue but was met with silence.)
Meanwhile, Surrey Police has maintained silence with respect to Ireland. Days after the sentencing, Surrey County Council finally distanced itself from PiS, declaring it no longer “truly representative” of the LGBTQ+ community. Council services, including Surrey Fire and Rescue, have been barred from attending Pride events in uniform or on duty.
And what about Pride on a national level? Not many years ago, it was indomitable. Institutions used to cheer it every step of the way. But cracks are appearing here too. A recent High Court ruling found that the Northumbria Police breached impartiality by allowing officers to march in uniform at Newcastle Pride 2024. And Police Scotland barred their officers from attending Pride events while in uniform. The era of tacit state approval of all things Pride is waning.
Sponsors, too, have started distancing themselves from the movement. This year, three quarters of event organisers have reported a decrease in corporate partnerships. A quarter have seen as much as a 50% drop, according to the UK Pride Organisers Network. But the money aside, many lesbians and gay men are also increasingly speaking out about how Pride no longer represents them.
Certainly, the Ireland case should make the whole organisation ask itself some searching questions about who it stands for. What happened to safeguarding the vulnerable and scrutinising the powerful? Why were whistleblowers ignored? Where is the public apology, the expression of concern, and the clear commitment to learning from these failures? But most important of all: how is it that an organisation once rooted in justice and dignity was so easily co-opted as a cover for predatory behaviour?
