Barclays has donated £33,314 to help tackle the lack of awareness about HIV transmission among African communities in the UK. The funding will support an African Health Promotion post at Terrence Higgins Trust over one year.

African communities in the UK are disproportionately affected by sexual ill-health and face the biggest increase in new HIV diagnoses. Almost 40% of new HIV diagnoses in London are among people from African communities. But despite being at much higher risk of HIV, there is a lack of services to meet the needs of African people.

Barclays’ funding will enable THT to provide health promotion training for key organisations working with African communities in the UK and will also enable a range of leaflets for African communities to be produced. These leaflets will cover topics including the facts about HIV transmission, PEP (post exposure prophylaxis – treatment that can prevent HIV infection if taken within 72 hours of exposure to HIV through sex), and HIV testing services. 

These leaflets will be distributed by Terrence Higgins Trust’s African Outreach Workers, who visit community hotspots including markets, barber shops and African community centres to spread the word about HIV, sexual health and local testing services.

Gerard McGuickin, Sector Development Manager for Terrence Higgins Trust said:
“We’re delighted that Barclays are providing funding to enable us to continue the development of interventions with African people. It will mean that we can step-up our work with African communities in the UK, who are among the most at-risk of contracting HIV.”

Rachael Barber, Head of Global Community Investment at Barclays said:
“HIV and Aids is a major crisis in Africa, and a rapidly growing problem among UK’s African communities.  It’s also a crisis that thrives on ignorance, which is why education – effective and practical – is the surest way to combat the problem.  We’re looking at making a real difference in this community.”

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Notes to Editors

• PEP (post exposure prophylaxis), is a month-long treatment of HIV medication that can prevent HIV infection if taken within 72 hours of exposure through sex. Research has shown PEP to be 80% effective if taken within 72 hours.

• Terrence Higgins Trust is the UK’s leading HIV and sexual health charity, providing a wide range of services to over 50,000 people a year.  The charity also campaigns and lobbies for greater political and public understanding of the personal, social and medical impact of HIV and sexual health.

About Barclays
• Barclays runs one of the most comprehensive business-led programmes combating HIV/Aids in Africa, which is home to almost two-thirds of the globe’s HIV infected population. The programme includes free anti-retrovirals for staff and their families, and community based education.

• At Barclays we're really proud of our leading community investment programme and are taking our responsibilities seriously - investing £39.1 million in 2005.

• We're focusing our support in the areas where we can use our knowledge and expertise to make the biggest difference to key social issues. In the UK, this includes programmes about money education, debt advice, financial inclusion and getting people into work.

• We also strive to strengthen the local communities in which we live and work, and are investing £30 million over three years in grassroots sport through Barclays Spaces for Sports.

• It's important to us that we encourage and enable our people to get involved in the causes that they care about most. More than 26,000 Barclays employees received direct support for their volunteering and fundraising last year, to the benefit of more than 7,500 charities and community groups. We're delighted and humbled by their fantastic achievements.

• For further information about the Barclays Community Investment Programme please visit www.barclays.com/community