A charity providing HIV support in Bristol will have its funding extended for another year after campaigners warned of the impact of cuts. Bristol City Council was considering cuts of £80,000, as part of wider efforts to reduce the ballooning amount of money spent on adult social care.
The cuts would have meant people living with HIV might not get alternative support, due to a shortage of help available elsewhere in the region. Campaigners welcomed the decision to scrap the proposed cuts, but warned a longer-term solution needed to be found.
Brigstowe is Bristol’s only dedicated support charity for people living with HIV. The charity receives around £80,000 a year from the council to advise and support people with HIV, although uncertainty remains about its future.
Two other services were cut by councillors on the adult social care policy committee on October 21. These were the Help When You Need It service for people living in sheltered housing, as well as the Home Improvement Agency, despite opposition from people affected by the cuts.
A committee report said: “The council heard through the consultation that this service plays a pivotal role in providing HIV support to people in Bristol but also the wider region. We heard that people living with HIV may choose not to access other support services due to concerns about discrimination and lack of training from professionals about HIV.
“The council has decided to extend the current contract for another year. This is to enable further conversations with service users, stakeholders, and health partners to take place to understand how HIV support services could be sustainably funded for the population in future.”
Two thirds of people responding to the consultation strongly disagreed with the plan to cut the funding. Extending the support for another year was welcomed by campaigners, who urged the council to ask local NHS bosses to help pay to keep the service running in the longer term.
David Redgewell, a campaigner speaking on behalf of Brigstowe, said: “There are many people in Bristol, LBGTQ and the BAME community, who live with HIV. We’re grateful you’re allowing the money to be extended, but this is a service that can’t simply be wound up on April 1 next year.
“The services provided at Southmead cover this part of the South West. The next big regional centre for HIV services is Plymouth. It’s unique, it’s dealing with people with protected characteristics. It needs a long-term solution, and a discussion possibly at a more regional level. Losing the service will have a detrimental effect on the community who live with HIV in the city.”
Earlier this summer, the council consulted the public on proposals to cut 100 per cent of the funding to the HIV Advice and Support Service, which is run by Brigstowe. The organisation said it was “delighted” the funding had been extended for another year.
After the meeting, a Brigstowe spokesperson said: “We want to take this opportunity to say a big thank you to all of you who took the time to complete the consultation and an even bigger thank you goes to our community. Those individuals who are living with HIV who came to the in-person consultation and who bravely and vulnerably told their story to the commissioners. Without your help, this decision would not have happened.
“Bristol City Council really did listen to each and every one of you and took on board everything that was said. Their decision is to continue to fund this service for another 12 months which will allow them time to to engage with other stakeholders and health partners to ensure this service is more sustainably funded for the future.”