Sahir

National HIV Testing Week

Know your status. Protect your health. Support your community.

National HIV Testing Week is a UK-wide campaign that encourages people to get tested for HIV and to see testing as a normal, routine part of healthcare. HIV testing is quick, confidential, and free, and knowing your status is one of the most important steps you can take for your own wellbeing and the wellbeing of others

What IS HIV Testing Week?

National HIV Testing Week takes place every year to raise awareness of HIV testing and to reduce stigma around HIV. The campaign focuses on making testing accessible, normalising conversations about HIV, and ensuring people know where and how to get tested.

Many people living with HIV do not experience symptoms for years. Regular testing helps ensure early diagnosis, timely access to treatment, and better health outcomes. HIV testing is not about blame or judgement  it is about care, confidence, and choice.

Why HIV Testing Matters

HIV testing plays a vital role in protecting individuals, partners, and communities. When HIV is diagnosed early, treatment is highly effective and allows people to live long, healthy lives.

• HIV testing is free and confidential

• Early diagnosis means earlier treatment and support

• Effective treatment can reduce HIV to undetectable levels

• When HIV is undetectable, it cannot be passed on Undetectable = Untransmittable (U=U)

• Regular testing helps reduce stigma and misinformation

• Testing supports healthier relationships and communities

Testing is a positive, proactive step regardless of your background, identity, or circumstances.

Ending HIV Transmission by 2030

The UK has committed to ending new HIV transmissions by 2030. This goal is achievable through a combination of regular HIV testing, early diagnosis, effective treatment, and prevention tools such as PrEP and condoms.

When people living with HIV are diagnosed early and supported into care, treatment suppresses the virus to undetectable levels. This means there is zero risk of passing HIV on to sexual partners (U=U). By increasing testing and reducing stigma, we can ensure fewer late diagnoses and stop new transmissions.

Ending HIV transmission by 2030 requires collective action from individuals, communities, health services, and support organisations working together.

Who Should Test?

HIV testing is for everyone.

You don’t need to think of yourself as “at risk” to benefit from testing. HIV can affect anyone, and regular testing is a positive, responsible step in looking after your health.

Testing helps you:

• Take control of your sexual health

• Make informed choices for yourself and your partners

• Access support and treatment early if needed

Whether you test regularly, occasionally, or are thinking about testing for the first time, choosing to test is an empowering act of self-care and support is always available.

Reassurance: What Testing Really Means

Getting tested does not mean you have done anything wrong. HIV is a manageable, treatable condition, and modern HIV care is one of the great successes of modern medicine.

Support is available at every stage  before testing, after testing, and beyond. Services are non-judgemental, inclusive, and confidential. You are never alone.

Where to Get a HIV Test during testing week

Community & Local Support

Sahir offers community-based support around HIV testing, including advice, signposting, and access to testing in safe and welcoming spaces.

Sahir (Liverpool City Region)
📞 0151 673 1972
📧 hivtesting@sahir.org.uk

Sahir / CGL (Wirral)

CGL – Office-Based HIV Testing (Birkenhead)
📅 Monday 9 February
🕛 12:00pm–5:00pm (Appointment only)

CGL Wallasey – HIV Testing
📅 Tuesday 10 February
🕘 9:00am–3:00pm (Drop-in testing available)

CGL Market Wells – HIV Testing (Birkenhead)
📅 Thursday 12 February
🕘 9:00am–5:00pm (Drop-in testing available)

📞 07551 573 320
📧 Testing.wirral@cgl.org.uk

NHS Sexual Health Clinics

Free, confidential HIV testing is available at NHS sexual health clinics across the UK.
Find your nearest clinic at here. 

No GP referral is needed.

Take the Step – I TEST

I TEST is a national campaign that promotes HIV testing as a normal, positive, and empowering part of healthcare. At its heart, I TEST is about visibility, shared responsibility, and breaking down the stigma that still surrounds HIV.

The campaign encourages people to speak openly about testing, to see it as routine rather than something to fear, and to recognise testing as an act of care not just for yourself, but for your partners and your wider community.

By saying “I TEST”, people help to:

• Normalise HIV testing as part of everyday health and wellbeing

• Challenge outdated myths and stigma around HIV

• Encourage conversations about sexual health without shame or judgement

• Support early diagnosis, treatment, and prevention

• Show solidarity with people living with HIV

I TEST is also about community leadership. When individuals, organisations, and allies visibly support testing, it creates safer environments where more people feel confident to access services, ask questions, and seek support.

At Sahir, we proudly support the I TEST campaign as part of our commitment to improving sexual health outcomes and reducing HIV transmission across our communities. Through testing, education, and open conversation, we can move closer to a future where HIV is no longer passed on and where everyone can live well, informed, and supported.

Pop-Up Information and Testing Events

During National HIV Testing Week, Sahir will be delivering a variety of pop-up information, testing and engagement activities across the Liverpool City Region, helping to raise awareness, reduce stigma, and encourage regular HIV testing.

Pop-Up Stalls

Our pop-up stalls are designed to be open, welcoming, and approachable, creating safe spaces for conversation about HIV testing, sexual health, and wellbeing. 

Each stall will be delivered by a trained member of Sahir staff and trained volunteers, ensuring a non-judgemental and supportive environment for everyone who engages.

What We’ll Be Sharing

At each pop-up stall, our team will focus on:

• Promoting National HIV Testing Week and I Test messaging

• Encouraging regular HIV and STI testing for all

• Challenging stigma and myths around HIV

• Information about PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis)

• Providing reassurance, accurate information, and practical guidance

• Signposting to local NHS sexual health clinics and prevention services delivered by clinical partners

Resources Available

Visitors to our stalls will be able to access:

• National HIV Testing Week information

• Details about Sahir’s services and support

• Safer sex packs

• HIV testing (at selected locations) 

Whether you’re looking for information, reassurance, or simply want to learn more, our pop-up stalls offer a friendly space to talk, ask questions, and connect with support.