Dear Friends and Allies
We hope you are well and have been having as productive a summer as we have!
First, the urgent stuff: The Wales HIV Action Plan is still open for consultation until the 14th of September. There are upcoming options this coming week to participate in person:
- Welsh Government are running online information sessions tomorrow, Thursday (1st September) via MS Teams. The 10.30am session is aimed at statutory Health and Social Care staff and the 2pm one is for third sector organisations, community groups and people living with HIV. If you would like to attend please email Laurie Hayward (Laurie.Hayward@gov.wales) for a diary invitation.
- Fast Track and the Welsh Government are also holding a face-to-face session in Cardiff Central Library (5th Floor, Creative Suite) 6-7pm next Monday (5th September) to hear your views. This event is open to everyone, but please email advocacy@hiv.wales so that we can get an idea of numbers.
- You can find out how to respond to the consultation on our website www.fasttrackcardiff.wales. We are running a social media campaign to encourage participation in the consultation. Please take a look at the Padlet document we have made for this campaign here: https://padlet.com/dralessandroceccarelli/lzwf29rucq455bzt.
There is a Fighting HIV Stigma march and rally in London’s Trafalgar Square on Saturday 1st October, organised by THT and supported by many groups. FTC&V are looking at organising a free coach from Cardiff (leaving about 8.30-9 for a 1pm march). Please email advocacy@hiv.wales if you would like to join us.
We’re also starting to plan our campaign for this year’s Wales HIV Testing Week (21-27 November). Put the date in your diary and we’ll be letting you know about materials, Padlet, etc shortly in an extra bulletin message.
Now, what we’ve been up to:
Pride Cymru on August bank holiday weekend was a great success for us. It was lovely to see so many old friends and long-term supporters of FTC&V as well as meet lots of new people interested in our work – welcome to those of you that signed up to our Advocacy Network over the weekend! A special thank you to the Order of Perpetual Indulgence who came to bless our stall, you were utterly fabulous as always.
8th August was our first Advocacy Network meeting. It was great to have a discussion with like-minded people about involving and supporting communities in HIV advocacy. Our second meeting is on Monday the 12th of September 6-7pm via MS Teams. All are welcome – please email Hana at advocacy@hiv.wales for a meeting invite.
Phase 1 of our Texting 4 Testing project has been very successful. Everyone aged 16+ with a GP in Western Vale or Cardiff East got text messages offering a free, confidential postal HIV testing kit. This autumn, people with GPs in all other wards of Cardiff and the Vale will also receive texts, so look forward to that if you’re local.
Our photo exhibition “21st Century HIV”, made up of twelve panels showcasing people living with HIV in Wales was launched at a THT event at the Senedd on the 14th of June. The A1 panels are now available for events and are proving very popular. Downloadable copies are also available on our website to print at home. If you would like to borrow this exhibition please email advocacy@hiv.wales.
Our Research Lead Dr Dave Gillespie also attended the World AIDS Conference on our behalf and there is an excellent blog of what he found there at https://blogs.cardiff.ac.uk/centre-for-trials-research/aids-2022-when-cutting-edge-science-meets-powerful-community-activism/.
We are also preparing a revised Student Guide to Sexual Health for Cardiff & Vale for Freshers Week, which you can find at https://fasttrackcardiff.wales/student-guide-sexual-health-cardiff/– please feel free to use and amplify on social media.
As ever, if you no longer wish to receive this bulletin, please feel free to unsubscribe from our mailing lists, but if you know of an individual or organisation that would benefit from receiving it please email advocacy@hiv.wales to let us know.
Best wishes,
The FTC&V Team
Fast Track Cardiff & Vale 