My name is Dr. Alan, and I have several roles in and around the city. I work for the National Trust, Box, and I'm also a lecturer at Plymouth and Marjo Universities. Recently, I've become the city's LGBT+ community lead. I've faced some personal barriers to excelling, mainly due to my belief that I wasn't legitimate or deserving of success.

However, as I started working with school groups and talking about queer heritage, I realized that I had no aspirations growing up. I didn't think I deserved a successful or interesting career, but that has since changed. Everywhere I've entered new roles and talked about who I am, people have been accepting and interested in my experiences.

I've realised that being a gay man in Plymouth is just as significant to who I am as my job title. I've done work around LGBT+ lives in Plymouth, and my promotion to community lead is significant for me. We are at a unique point in LGBTQ+ lives where conversations are happening, and while some people may be scared of offending others, we shouldn't mute those conversations. It's all about open communication, honesty, and having challenging conversations to help us grow and move forward.