Taj Donville-Outerbridge has made a heavy stamp on his school’s LGBTQ+ community.

The King’s College London student spent the past year making history in his many social clubs and groups, or starting new ones altogether.

It was no surprise, then, when the Bermudian was crowned Queer of the Year by Britain’s National Queer Student Awards — and became the first Black student to achieve the honour.

Mr Donville-Outerbridge also received the Role Model of the Year: LGBTQ+ Youth award and became a finalist in the Legacy Builder of the Year category.

He said: “Winning these awards is not only a huge honour, but they also represent the culmination of an academic year filled with tireless liberation work.”

The accolades, which he received in a ceremony last Wednesday, were the latest in a string of successes for Mr Donville-Outerbridge.

In February, Kings College London’s academic department rewarded him for outstanding contribution to the college’s community.

The recognition came after serving two years as the department’s first Undergraduate Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Student Representative.

He also became a finalist for the National Student Pride’s Activist of the Year Award in the same month, though Mr Donville-Outerbridge said he “gladly lost” to a colleague whose work he supported.

Mr Donville-Outerbridge was the first Black student to serve as the co-president of the King’s College London LGBTQ+ Society and as the King’s College London Student Union LGBTQ+ Liberation Network chairperson, both roles he took up this year.

His role as the Liberation Network chairperson allowed him to represent the school at the National Union of Students’ Liberation Conference.

While at the event, Mr Donville-Outerbridge applied for a role on the National Union of Students’ Liberation Campaign Committee — a post he secured over ten other candidates from across Britain during a lengthy election process.

Mr Donville-Outerbridge said he will start his new role, to involve campaigning for queer students, on July 1.

He added that he will serve a third consecutive term as co-president of the King’s College London LGBTQ+ Society and will put his name forward to again be the union’s LGBTQ+ liberation network chairperson.

Mr Donville-Outerbridge attributed his success to hard work while at the university.

He explained that he sat on several boards to help with racial, gender-based and sexuality-based relations across the school.

Mr Donville-Outerbridge said he worked with other groups to improve resources, such as adding gender-neutral toilets for the school’s trans and non-binary communities.

He was most proud about creating the KCL QTIPOC Society, which supports queer, transgender and intersex students of colour at the school.

Mr Donville-Outerbridge said: “While QTIPOC individuals are undoubtedly the most at-risk group within the LGBTQ+ community and perhaps the most active in many advocacy spaces, their needs and concerns are often ignored.

“Based on my personal experience, I knew that QTIPOC students often struggle to find a place where we fit in, as both race and ethnic-based societies and LGBTQ+ societies are unequipped with the means to address and understand the intersectionality of our lived experiences.”

The group holds a biweekly social called Tea Time With Taj, where members have tea and strengthen their sense of community.

Mr Donville-Outerbridge said: “TTWT was founded not only on the basis of giving QTIPOC students a dedicated platform for them to be heard and seen, but to also ensure we have dedicated safe spaces on campus.”

He added: “TTWT is my proudest achievement as it will continue to have meaningful impact on the lives of many QTIPOC students at KCL long after I have graduated.”