About Positive East

Positive East is a leading community-based HIV Charity. By building on more than 20 years of experience in the successful delivery of services across east London boroughs, we are now even more able to provide a fully comprehensive and co-ordinated practical and emotional support for those people living with and affected by HIV in east London. Click here to download information about who may access our services and summary details about our wellbeing courses and groups, including contact links.

What is our aim?

Our aim is to create a safe environment for people to come and receive peer and professional support. Central to all our services is the principle of self empowerment i.e. people, where ever possible, should be independent and in control of their lives. To help maintain independence and not create dependence. Our services are set up to work with people to encourage them to achieve this.

Our Vision

Positive East's Vision is a world where people living with HIV are able to fulfil their potential, free from stigma and discrimination, living full healthy lives. We wish for a world where onward transmission of HIV is eliminated.

Our mission statement

"To improve the physical, economical, emotional and psychological quality of life for individuals and communities affected by HIV."
With services delivered from our Stepney centre as well as from our outreach venues across east London including Stratford, our goal is to maintain the provision of a high quality standard service, providing a flexibility of approach to meet the requirements of our uses.
Please note: our Centre provides specialist services which are not be available from all our outreach locations, this is due to local funding arrangements and the availability of space.

Positive East facts - What you may not know about us

In the last financial year:

• Positive East has worked with 2583 people who are resident, use hospital services or work in North East London in the period. The main focus for the work of the charity has been about enabling people to live well with HIV through promoting health and wellbeing in addressing a range of practical (advice, advocacy) through to psycho-social (counselling, group support) issues
• £2,400,604.82 was raised for clients through benefits and hardship awards in the period
• 18,921 service episodes have been delivered with clients in the period
• 343 clients accessed our group services (this includes both African and Gay mens’ groups). The groups covered issues from healthy living, action planning and goal setting, sex and relationship issues, sero-discordant relationships amongst other matters
• Positive East has 34 staff and over 70 volunteers delivering services via our two centres and via outreach in every London Borough in various community settings across East London
• East London has some of the highest rates of HIV infection in the UK particularly amongst the heterosexual community