Key self-help, advocacy and specialist groups

The organisations below offer support and information to people living with HIV and those affected. We do not claim to have listed every single organisation offering support and we would encourage you to talk to staff at your local HIV clinic or call one of the national helplines listed previously to find out more about what is available in your area.

If you think there is an organisation missing from this list, do feel free to let us know by emailing info@nam.org.uk.

Body & Soul is a London-based charity, supporting children, teenagers and families living with or affected by HIV in the UK.

Services are designed for different age groups and include weekly sessions for children under 3 and aged 3-10. There are also group activities for young people aged 10-12 (BaSe) and 13-19 (Teen Spirit). One-to-one and family support is also available, which may be particularly useful for families where parents want to tell their children about their HIV status, or where there are emotional or behavioural difficulties.

Body & Soul also provide support services to adults, including one-to-one and group support sessions, health & treatment support, complementary therapies and counselling.

You can find out more about services provided by Body & Soul on their website, or by contacting them directly on 020 7923 6880 or by emailing info@bodyandsoulcharity.org.

George House Trust (GHT) is the largest HIV voluntary organisation outside of London and covers the North West of England. Based in central Manchester, GHT also provide services across the region by appointment, through clinics and through locally based volunteers.

GHT offer a range of services for people living with HIV as well as support for people affected. For example, GHT provide one-to-one appointments with advisers who can offer support following a diagnosis, advice and help with issues such as money, housing, immigration or employment, or simply someone to talk to about relationships or how you're feeling.

GHT also run regular group spaces, so you can meet other people living with HIV and support each other and also run events and courses, such as residential weekends.

You can contact the George House Trust for more information on 0161 274 4499 or email ght@ght.org.uk.

GMFA is a UK gay men's health charity. GMFA works with gay men on sexual health and HIV issues through health promotion campaigns and workshops. Their website is full of information on sexual health and HIV as well as details of information and support for gay men living with HIV.

You can find out more about GMFA on their website here or contact them on 020 7738 6872.

The Haemophilia Society provides information, support and advice to anyone living with haemophilia and related bleeding disorders.

They provide a freephone helpline, which is available Monday to Friday from 10am to 4pm on 0800 018 6068. You can also email info@haemophilia.org.uk.

Naz Project London provides HIV support services to several groups and communities, such as: South Asians (including Bangladeshis, Indians and Pakistanis), Muslims (including Middle Easterners and Africans), Horn of Africans (Eritreans, Ethiopians and Somalis), Portuguese speakers (including Angolans, Brazilians, Mozambicans and Portuguese) and Spanish speakers (mainly Latin Americans).

There is a team called the Client Support Service which can help you get in contact with the right people to help you - such as hospitals, social workers, counsellors, benefits agencies or housing officers. They can help with interpreting, can talk to people on your behalf and can come with you to important appointments.

NPL also offers peer support groups for people living with HIV, so you can meet other people living with HIV to share experiences and learn.

To find out more you can contact NPL on 020 8741 1879 or email npl@naz.org.uk.

Positive Action South West (PASW) provides services for people living with HIV across the south west of England, through centres in Exeter, Barnstaple, Taunton and Street.

PASW can help with practical issues such as filling in benefits forms, writing letters of support or coming to appointments with you but also focus on supporting you. There are drop-in sessions, where you can meet and talk to other people living with HIV in a safe, welcoming environment and there is also a counselling service, where you can talk through your feelings one to one.

PASW also provides complementary therapies and has an HIV Specialist Worker available to help you increase your understanding of HIV and treatments.

You can contact Positive Action South West for more details by telephone on 01392 494 441 or 0800 328 3508.

Positive East provides services for people living with HIV in east London, through centres in Stratford and Stepney.  

Positive East offers counselling and psychotherapy, training (on topics like getting into work, healthy living and 'positive eating'), advice (on housing, immigration and benefits) and support, including an African support team and a gay men's team.

You can contact Positive East for more details by telephone on 020 7791 2855 or by email info@positiveeast.org.uk. 

Positively Women is a national charity, based in London, providing support for women living with HIV by women living with HIV.

You can contact Positively Women through their helpline, which is answered by women living with HIV. It is open Monday to Friday 10am-1pm and 2-4pm. The number is 020 7713 0222.

Positively Women offer various services to women living with HIV, including one-to-one emotional and practical support, immigration support and advice, children and family support, and group support sessions. More details of these services are provided on their website.

Positively Women also produces a quarterly magazine, which is available free of charge to women living with HIV. You can read past issues and find out how to subscribe on their website.

The South London HIV Partnership (SLHP) provides help and support for people living with HIV in south London. You can contact them through a team called 'First Point', who will help you discuss any problems. You can call First Point on 020 7160 0949.

First Point can tell you more about the services available through the partnership, including:

• Advice and advocacy
• Counselling
• HIV health information
• Peer support

The South London HIV Partnership is funded by the NHS and councils in the boroughs of Bexley, Greenwich, Lambeth, Southwark, Lewisham, Croydon, Merton, Sutton, Wandsworth, Kingston, Richmond and Twickenham.

The Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) is the largest HIV organisation in the UK, with branches in many parts of the country. Services available vary from place to place, but include counselling, support groups, one-to-one support, advice and advocacy (for example help with benefits claim forms, and advice on housing, discrimination and immigration), one-to-one and group health and treatment support sessions, complementary therapies, information leaflets, condoms and lubricant. THT also runs STI screening and rapid HIV testing in many of its branches.

THT currently has offices in Aberdeen, Birkenhead, Birmingham, Brighton, Bristol, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Colchester, Coventry, Doncaster, Eastbourne, Glasgow, Inverness, Leeds, London, Nottingham, Oxford, Peterborough, Southend-on-Sea, St Helens, Swansea, Swindon, Telford, Wakefield, Woking and Wolverhampton.

You can find out more about services provided by THT on their main website, here. The website includes all of THT's leaflets on living with HIV, which can be ordered or downloaded as pdfs. THT have also produced several other websites aimed at gay men, which are listed here.

You can also find out more about THT by contacting their national helpline THT Direct on 0845 12 21 200 or by emailing info@tht.org.uk.

HIV Health Support

If you live in London, you can also access a new service for people living with HIV.

Sometimes making decisions about your health and life with HIV can be confusing, and it can be difficult to know where to begin. THT’s HIV Health Support is a new service which can help you to make sense of the bigger picture, and make changes to help you lead a healthier life.

You can ask the HHSS anything about living with HIV – from questions about the immune system, what your test results mean and starting treatment, to safer sex and telling other people about your status. One of THT’s Health Trainers will pick up your question and reply to you within two working days. If you'd like them to call you, please just let them know, and they will.

Just click the Ask the Trainer button below!

Waverley Care is the largest charity providing care and support to people living with HIV and hepatitis C in Scotland. They have centres in Edinburgh and Glasgow, but also work in many other parts of Scotland.

One of their centres, Milestone, offers short-term residential support for people living with HIV or hepatitis C, for example if they are unwell, experiencing side-effects of treatment, or dealing with depression or anxiety.

Additionally, Waverley Care offers counselling, a buddy service, complementary therapies, information and advice (such as on treatment, legal issues, housing and immigration), and support services for gay men and African people.

You can contact Waverley Care on 0131 661 0982 or email solas@waverleycare.org.