The crowd was massive for Brighton’s Trans Pride festival on Saturday, as transgender people and allies sent a message of inclusivity.

The parade, only the fifth in its history, is one of the largest transgender-focused Pride celebrations in the UK.

An estimated 5,000 people turned out for the march along the beachfront, waving a sea of blue, pink and white transgender flags.

Participants carried signs calling for equal rights, following an intense year of media focus on the trans community and proposed changes to the UK’s Gender Recognition Act.

Others called for better access to trans healthcare services and pushed back against transphobia.

Outside the Marlborough with @pauladunstable @NinaGusterson ready for #TransPrideBrighton. Meeting friends from Twitter, @cjslgbt @LittleRed_Panda joining me soon. It’s got the makings of a fantastic day. Keep smiling pic.twitter.com/G3sV59V6nK — Andy Parkin (@AndyParkin0136) July 21, 2018

Organisers at the event had been braced for incidents, following the recent disruption of Pride in London by anti-transgender protesters.

Guidance issued to marchers ahead of the event warned participants not to “approach, speak to, look at, or even acknowledge the existence of” the protesters for fear of a confrontation.

They warned: “The anti-trans protestors have a clearly demonstrated desire to portray transgender people as violent and abusive – a characterisation we all know to be absurd, however their previous activities show this is a common tactic.

“They will attempt to obtain photography and video which portrays trans people (trans women and assigned-male-at-birth nonbinary people in particular) as dangerous.

“At previous protests they have been observed attempting to photograph people’s crotch areas, obtain upskirt images, to goad people into reacting so that they can film and edit the response. PLEASE DO NOT GIVE THEM WHAT THEY WANT!”

However the march proceeded without incident.

A group of cisgender lesbians marched at the event under the banner ‘L with the T’, a direct response to the protesters at Pride in London’s ‘Get the L Out’ slogan.

Trans Pride Brighton organisers have appealed for donations to cover the cost of the annual event.