APRIL 29, 2024 — THE joint National AIDS Trust and One Voice Network report “Unheard Voices: Understanding the landscape of London HIV commissioning and community involvement of Black African and Caribbean communities” is out now.
NAZ is proud to be a member of the One Voice Network and a contributor to this report, a report that underlines the need and advantage of using co-production in service development and commissioning practices.
Black African and Caribbean communities are disproportionately affected by HIV experiencing the highest rates of new and late HIV diagnosis and lower rates of PrEP uptake and awareness by Black women and straight men. They face structural barriers to accessing health and social services including language barriers, high rates of poverty and precarious income, and fear of retribution due to immigration status alongside other Global Majority communities. Including Black African and Caribbean communities living with and affected by HIV in the co-production of services and programmes utilises and compensates their expertise and knowledge, building sustainable, evidence-based interventions, equity, and positive health outcomes.
We hope that local commissioners and all organisations involved with service design will reflect on the findings and recommendations in the "Unheard Voices" report. Access the report here.