Burgess Hill Girls sixth-former Georgina Wrigg wins national LGBTQ+ award

Year 12 student Georgina Wrigg, 17, was named Role Model of the Year at the 2022 Queer Student Awards ceremony in Manchester for her pioneering work at the school.

Georgina, who is studying for A levels in psychology, religious studies and politics, set up her school’s LGBTQIA+ club Prism because she wanted a unifying space for young people to talk about these issues.

“The award meant such an incredible amount that I was beyond thrilled and so grateful,” said Georgina, thanking everyone who supported her.

She said: “It was a wonderfully vibrant space with such brilliant people, a community that I could see myself reflected in, and I realized that that is the most important thing to feel as a young queer person – belonging – and that’s what Prism has been about building for students at Burgess Hill Girls.

“The warmth, fulfilment and joy of the award will only be secondary to creating that.”

The Queer Student Awards is a new annual celebration that recognizes talented LGBTQ+ students and allies who are leading in their lives and communities.

The awards aim to provide a space for positively addressing the adversity that LGBTQ+ youths experience, and they are judged by a panel of student recruitment industry experts, ‘queer influencers’ and young people from schools, colleges and universities across the UK and Ireland.

Burgess Hill Girls head Liz Laybourn said: “We are delighted that Georgina has achieved this.

"She has worked tirelessly to create our school club Prism and richly deserves this accolade.

"We are very proud indeed of her.”