THIS year marks the 25th anniversary of Brighton And Hove Pride.

And to mark the occasion the parade to Preston Park is going back to its roots, starting out from Hove Lawns from 11am.

In excess of 160,000 people are expected to turn out to see the parade – with the most popular viewing area along London Road and the Old Steine.

The over-arching theme for 2015 is Carnival Of Diversity – and as ever the different organisations involved in the parade are keeping the designs of their floats tightly to their chests.

“Pride wanted a theme that celebrated the diversity of our city, but also allowed for visibility of our LGBT+ communities and the work done by community groups,” says Paul Kemp, managing director of Brighton Pride.

“We wanted a theme that also highlighted equality and diversity across the globe. Our Carnival Of Diversity theme encompasses everything that makes Brighton famous.”

Last year Pride raised in excess of £65,000 for the Rainbow Fund, Pride’s charity which supports LGBT groups and projects. Among those organisations which have won grants from the Rainbow Fund in 2014 were HIV charity Peer Action, mental health charity MindOut, the LGBT Community Safety Forum, Sussex Beacon, LGBT Switchboard, Lunch Positive and older gay men’s charity GEMS.

As ever organisers are asking visitors to the parade to dig deep and contribute to the bucket collections along the route.

The remainder of the money raised from tickets goes to the operational costs of the Brighton Pride CIC which puts on the festival, parade, village party and much more.

Advance tickets for the Party In The Park are still available for £21, or £42 for a family of two adults and two children.

Day tickets go up to £25 on the gate, and there are likely to be queues, so it is best to get on the website now at www.brighton-pride.org/tickets

The Argus: Pride Route Map 2015