Max SteventonEvent production agency We Group has partnered with London Heritage Quarter to deliver Pride in the Quarter, a public sculpture trail featuring 17 hand-painted lion and lioness sculptures installed across Westminster.
The trail launched on 1 June and will run until 10 August. It takes visitors through locations across the London Heritage Quarter footprint, including Trafalgar Square, St James’s Park, Grosvenor Crescent and Eccleston Yards, exploring themes linked to England’s football history, culture and communities.
Inspired by the England national football team’s Three Lions emblem, the sculptures were created by a group of artists, with each artwork representing a different story. Themes include the development of women’s football and individuals who contributed to shaping communities across England.
One sculpture located in Victoria Embankment Gardens, close to the Pride in London route, features a rainbow-inspired design recognising diversity and inclusion within football and its supporter communities.
The project follows previous collaborations between We Group and London Heritage Quarter, including the Journey Through Time Heritage Trail in 2024 and the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Corgi Trail in 2022.
Delivery of Pride in the Quarter was led by We Are Placemaking and We Are OPS, agencies within We Group. The teams managed project delivery from concept through installation, including sculpture design and fabrication, artist commissioning, sponsor coordination, planning approvals, logistics and installation across a 1.945 km² area of central Westminster.
The trail was launched by former football manager Harry Redknapp and former England international Fara Williams MBE (pictured) in Trafalgar Square ahead of a summer expected to bring increased visitor activity to London through football, cultural events and Pride celebrations.
At the conclusion of the trail, the sculptures will be auctioned to raise funds for The Passage, a Westminster-based charity supporting people experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness.
We Group CEO Nick Morgan said, “The best events create reasons for people to come together and celebrate community, culture and space. Our teams keep this at the forefront of their minds in every project they deliver, and we’re proud to have partnered with London Heritage Quarter once again to produce Pride in the Quarter, which taps into London’s love for the game and the pride it inspires across the city, the country and the world.”