A CHARITY which prevents suicides, self-harming and the spread of sexual infections says proposed funding cuts could see it close down.

Gay Advice Darlington and Durham (GADD) is one of the non-profit organisations in the firing line as Darlington Borough Council looks to slash its budget by £12.5m.

It was set up in 1995 to support the lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender (LGBT) communities and promote equality and diversity.

Founder and chief executive Emma Roebuck said the charity received about £20,000 per year from Darlington borough and Durham county councils.

She said this funding could now be lost as councils battle austerity and in the worst case scenario GADD would close.

“We’re funded by the council to support people in the area who are HIV positive," she said.

“It doesn’t look like much, but these people won’t have that care available to them if we shut.”

Ms Roebuck said every year more than 2,000 people seek the support and advice of GADD, with many of them in vulnerable positions with nowhere else to go.

“For example, there are a number of suicides which we have helped to prevent in the past year.

“Forty per cent of LGBT people will think about suicide or think about attempting it. I can think of six or seven people who are still here because they came to us.”

Despite the dire financial situation Ms Roebuck said she would do her best to keep GADD running.

“We’ve got to try. I worry about what’s going to happen to these people," she said.

“I think about the lives that could change for the worse if we shut down.

“In the 21 years we’ve been open Darlington has changed from a not very diverse area, to one that has a healthy, diverse community.”

Jane from Darlington said GADD had kept her family together when her partner went through a gender transition.

She said: “GADD was there for my family when my partner went through her transition.

“They’ve been really supportive. It’s always been a place that we feel safe.”

Mike has been visiting GADD for 15 years and said it would be a “nightmare if it closed”.

He said: “I’ve been visiting and using the services here for the past 15 years.

“If it was to close nobody else would get that same level of help.”