A council is accidentally celebrating pride – after erecting a colourful rainbow shelter it just thought it was quite stylish.

A newly-renovated shelter in Hemel was unveiled recently by Dacorum Borough Council – and though the choice of rainbow colours had nothing to do with LGBT rights, it won praise online from those who assumed it was a statement of equality.

The debate was started by Luke Gill, who posted a picture of the shelter on a community social media page.

“We have had hundreds of comments and people seem to be supportive of the idea,” he explained to Tring Today.

“They like the idea that it might be a symbol of the council supporting the LGBT community.

“They see it as a fantastic way of acknowledging one of the many communities that the council represents.

The shelter – whose roof is made up of rainbow coloured panels – was erected for a new events space in the town as part of regeneration works.

Mr Gill added: “Others said it looks nicer than before, others say it brightens up the town.”

However, a spokesperson for Dacorum Borough Council has clarified that the shelter actually has nothing to do with the local LGBT community.

“We chose the glass canopy of the Rainbow Stage to pick out the bright colours of the new children’s areas,” the spokesperson said.

“The stage is located in the newly-created New Town Square along with the fountain and big screen TV. This area will become a hub for community events.”

“Available for hire during the day, it will also be used for live music performances, competitions, drama or any other special events.”

Cities and towns that have intentionally dedicated areas to supporting LGBT over the past twelve months include Reykjavik in Iceland – where a whole road was painted in rainbow colours – and Totnes in Devon – which is set to get a permanent rainbow crossing.