Home News £600,000 funding of 12 projects by PHE to help prevent HIV

£600,000 funding of 12 projects by PHE to help prevent HIV

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Through the HIV Prevention Innovation Fund, PHE is funding 12 projects to help develop new and innovative ways of preventing HIV.

Public Health England (PHE) has announced the projects which have been awarded funding from the HIV Prevention Innovation Fund for 2017 to 2018. The projects have been chosen from across England to receive total funding of £600,000 from the Department of Health through PHE.

PHE received over 70 submissions from different organisations for funding for local HIV prevention initiatives. Projects that provided innovation were welcome, especially those that:

  • acknowledge and address the wider determinants of high risk behaviour
  • promote the prompt diagnosis of both HIV and other STIs, especially among men who have sex with men (MSM)
  • address stigma associated with HIV
  • integrate HIV prevention into health promotion and service delivery in other health areas
  • support increased knowledge, awareness and understanding including of pre-exposure prophylaxis for HIV, especially in currently underserved populations

HIV remains a public health concern despite major advances in treatment and reductions in diagnosis. In 2015, an estimated 101,000 people in the UK had HIV with 13,500 unaware and at risk of unknowingly passing on the virus to others. The risk of infection is higher in certain groups of the population; such as gay and bisexual men and Black African communities. However, targeted and innovative local initiatives that reach out to these and other groups can help reduce the risk of people contracting or passing on HIV.

Two examples of local initiatives receiving funding from PHE are the Sex Talk project run by National Prison Radio which will create information designed for prisoners to address issues of stigma around HIV and the Sholay Love project run by NAZ which aims to raise awareness of HIV and STIs and encourage testing amongst south Asian gay men in London, Bradford and Leeds.

Commenting on the innovation fund and the winning projects, Public Health Minister Steve Brine said:

“Now in its third year, the HIV Prevention Fund continues to foster local innovation projects which aim to tackle HIV in more targeted and impactful ways, especially for those most at risk. The 12 projects announced today will boost local action and spread best practice to further reduce rates of HIV across the whole country.”

Professor John Newton, Director of Health Improvement, PHE said:

“The HIV Innovation Fund continues to foster new approaches to HIV prevention. The 12 projects receiving funding have been chosen as they offer new and exciting ways to address key issues in HIV prevention, working particularly with groups at high risk. These projects will help share innovation and best practice around the country, helping other areas to replicate progress in London on lowering rates of HIV.”

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