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Author: Besi

More funding for sexual health services urgently needed

Posted on by Besi

Increases in STI diagnoses show more funding for sexual health services is urgently needed.

NEW STI figures published by Public Health England show there were 447,694 STIs reported in England in 2018.

STI data for England in 2018 show a 5% increase in STI diagnoses since 2017, with an especially worrying increase in gonorrhoea diagnoses of 26% and a 5% increase in syphilis diagnoses.

Key stats include:

  • 249% rise in gonorrhoea from 2009 and 26% from 2017, the highest increase in over 40 years
  • 165% increase in syphilis from 2009 and an increase in 5% from 2017
  • 22% drop in chlamydia testing of young people (15-24years) since 2014
  • Overall STI rates up by 5% on the year before, when there were 422,147 new STI diagnoses
  • Attendance at sexual health services has risen 15% in five years

There is encouraging evidence of the impact of HPV vaccination with a substantial drop in diagnoses of genital warts. But, overall the continuing climb in the incidence of serious STIs, especially affecting younger people, BAME communities and gay and bisexual men, demonstrates the urgent need to continue to improve the reach of sexual health services.

Deborah Gold
Deborah Gold

Deborah Gold, Chief Executive of NAT (National AIDS Trust), said: “We have high quality and dedicated sexual health services across the country. But year-on-year cuts to sexual health budgets are pushing these services to breaking point. Services cannot keep up with need or demand and sexual health inequalities are deepening. This shocking 26% increase in gonorrhoea diagnoses must be a wake-up call to Government. Reverse the cuts to public health and increase substantially the funds available to sexual health clinics. That is the only way to get on top of these serious infections.”

Debbie Laycock
Debbie Laycock

Debbie Laycock, Head of Policy and Public Affairs at Terrence Higgins Trust, said: “Today’s new STI statistics shows there needs to be urgent action to improve the state of the nation’s sexual health. We are yet again seeing soaring rates of syphilis and gonorrhoea, and increases in the number of people attending sexual health services, which is happening against a back drop of central government stripping £700m from public health budgets in the last five years. The Government cannot bury its head any longer, the consequences of under investment and services struggling to meet demand is plain to see with these STI numbers.

“Progress has sharply halted in tackling rates of chlamydia, with rates up 6% last year. While there continues to be a decline in the number of chlamydia tests being carried out. This is clear evidence that removing access to testing is having a direct impact on the rates of chlamydia with cases now rising.”

The data reveals that certain groups are disproportionately affected by sexually transmitted infections.

Debbie Laycock added: “The impact of continued slashing of sexual health budgets was laid bare in a report by the Health Committee just two days ago. It revealed there is now a real risk to widening health inequalities already faced by certain groups. These groups – including BAME communities, young people, people living with HIV and gay and bisexual men – are once again disproportionally affected by new STI rates. Gay and bisexual men for example accounted for 75% of new syphilis cases.

“A range of sexual health services must be available, including different options for testing and support, but this must not come at the expense of vital face-to-face services.

“We welcome the long overdue decision to include BAME-specific data in today’s report which has revealed large variation in STI diagnoses between ethnic groups-an important step in understanding the sexual health needs and experiences of different communities. However this must be translated into targeted interventions to support people to access sexual health services.

“Going forward, lessons must be learned from sexual health interventions that have seen positive results. The continued fall in new HIV diagnoses has seen the Government commit to ending new transmissions by 2030, while the introduction of the HPV vaccine to girls – which is due to be extended to boys this year – has resulted in rates of genital warts declining. We urgently need that same decisive action to get a grip of other rising STIs.

“That’s why we are calling on the Government to show leadership by urgently committing to an ambitious national sexual health strategy which fast-tracks action to address STIs. Sexual health funding must be increased as part of the forthcoming spending review to ensure services can properly meet local demand.

“Today’s STI statistics combined with the serious warning from MPs , demonstrates very clearly the dire impact on sexual health that decisions being made by central government are having. Ministers need to wake up to this crisis and take decisive action. Their handling of sexual health to date is simply not good enough.”

 

Celebrate Brighton’s LGBT+ volunteers on Thursday, June 6 at Friends Meeting House

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Working To Connect (WTC), the organisation that brings together small LGBT+ and HIV groups in Brighton & Hove will celebrate their volunteers during National Volunteer Week from June 1-7 with an event at Friends Meeting House on Thursday, June 6.

Pop along to Friends Meeting House, in Ship Street at 6.30pm on Thursday, June 6, to meet some of the hard working and most dedicated volunteers in the City and learn about the important and life-changing work they do.

At 7pm there will be a short presentation of their work followed by food and refreshments provided by the HIV charity, Lunch Positive with an opportunity to talk with service users and volunteers who meet a wide range of needs and support of our ever-growing and diverse LGBT+ communities.

WTC is formed of many of the City’s smaller LGBT+ voluntary and community organisations, including: BLAGSS, TransPride, Older and Out, Brighton Bothways, Rainbow Families, Peer Action, Trans Can Sport, and many more. Other members – such as The Clare Project, Lunch Positive, Rainbow Chorus have grown but remain a key part of the Network.

Their aims are to:

♦   to support each other to thrive and grow,

♦   to raise awareness of issues,

♦   share information and training and

♦   to voice legitimate concerns that affect the LGBT+ and HIV groups in Brighton and Hove.

The event is open to the public to showcase their work and encourage more people to become involved in volunteering with LGBT+ and HIV organisations.

Everyone is welcome to attend.

Event: Celebrating LGBT+ volunteers in Brighton and Hove

Where: Friends Meeting House, Ship St, Brighton BN1 1AF

When: Thursday, June 6

Time: 6.30pm

Cost: This is a free event. Refreshments provided by Lunch Positive

Greens call for Council to back local projects tackling climate emergency

Posted on by Besi

Council must back pioneering work to turn food waste into community energy say Greens.

AHEAD of World Environment Day, on June 5, Greens urge city council to do more to back a ‘food waste to community energy,’ project run by Brighton and Hove Energy Services Cooperative (BHESCo) that could reduce the fuel bills of hundreds of residents and boost the city’s efforts to tackle the climate crisis.

The project harnesses a technique for turning food waste into a source of energy known as ‘anaerobic digestion,’ where the gases released by food breaking down can be captured and converted to grid quality fuel.

The company Brighton Paper Round has already partnered with the project to collect food waste that will help BHESCo reach the 35,000 tonnes of restaurant, food and agricultural waste each year, waste that BHESCo say could supply biomethane gas to approximately 10,000 local homes.

However, Greens say that without better support from the council, opportunities to reduce fuel poverty, stop food waste going to incineration and landfill and tackle the climate crisis could be missed. At the very least, food waste produced by our schools, hospitals and universities should be feeding into the process.

A Green amendment to February’s budget included £500K for investment in sustainability and carbon reduction. This World Environment Day, Greens are calling on the council to invest in and promote the project, including initiating food waste collections from householders to stop food waste ending up being incinerated.  Incinerating wet food waste is counterproductive and a waste of a valuable resource.

Green Councillor Phélim Mac Cafferty said: “Just last year, Green Councillors pushed the Council to declare a climate emergency, in recognition of the urgent and decisive action that will be needed to tackle the environmental crisis facing our planet.

“In February’s council budget Greens won £500K for investment in sustainability and carbon reduction. So our council can take strong action. We also need to recognise that some of the solutions are right on our own doorsteps – in the form of fantastic organisations in the city like BHESCo – who have developed an important food waste project. Turning food waste into energy could help our local residents end their reliance on the high cost, fossil-fuel energy companies as well as tackling waste in our city.

“There is much more the city council could be doing to invest in a greener future. This is a double win: for our council to tackle the environmental crisis and to keep money in our residents’ pockets. As we set out in our Green manifesto, we also believe that the restrictive waste contract with private company Veolia could be reviewed to ensure food waste is being sent to the BHESCo plant instead of incinerated or dumped in landfill. Local businesses could be encouraged to sign up to the project, with the council as a major partner. In line with our calls for plastic-free events, event organisers could be encouraged to donate their food waste too, ready to be turned into clean fuel for our residents.

“With a climate crisis upon us and many of our residents unable to cover the cost of energy bills, we cannot afford to miss the opportunity to create a more sustainable future.”

Kayla Ente
Kayla Ente

Kayla Ente, CEO of BHESCo, added: “This project would establish Brighton and Hove as a  city that is leading the transition to zero emissions. Reducing food waste, tackling fuel poverty, and generating clean, renewable energy, keeping money in our local economy – this project delivers community benefits on so many levels. We hope that the Council will lend its support and help turn this incredible opportunity into a reality.”

 

Northern Pride announce plans for Stonewall Remembrance Garden

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Supporters of one of the UK’s largest free LGBT+ festivals will be able to take a walk through history at this year’s event.

NORTHERN Pride Festival returns to Newcastle from July 19 to 21, with the Festival Arena taking place at the Town Moor and Exhibition Park housing the Community Village.

And organisers have revealed that this year’s event will include the Stonewall Remembrance Garden, a new feature at the Community Village to celebrate key milestones in LGBT+ history.

Sponsored by EDF Energy, the space will complement the festival’s theme of 50 years since the Stonewall riots – which took place in 1969 at New York’s Stonewall Inn and served as a catalyst for the LGBT+ rights movement in the US and around the world.

As an extension of this, the garden will display images and information about prominent moments since then, such as the formation of the national LGBT+ charity, Stonewall, in 1989 and the legalisation of same-sex marriage in 2013.

Organiser of Northern Pride are inviting festival-goers to contribute to the exhibition by sending in their own images and experiences to info@npride.org.uk.

Ste Dunn
Ste Dunn

Ste Dunn, chair of Northern Pride, believes the Stonewall Remembrance Garden will be a great addition to this year’s event.

He said: “While Pride is a lot of fun and a great way to celebrate how much the LGBT+ community has achieved, it is so important that we don’t forget why it started,” said Ste.

“We’re always looking for new ways to add to the festival experience and the garden is a great way for members of the LGBT+ community and our allies to learn more about the background behind Pride.

“We want the installation to be a real community effort and we hope that the public will help us achieve this by sending in their own stories about being LGBT+ over the last 50 years.”

Along with the Stonewall Remembrance Garden, the Community Village will be home to the Curious Arts Stage, Rainbow Village and a number of zones, including the Health and Wellbeing Zone and the Family and Youth Zone.

Fleur East
Fleur East

Nearby Town Moor will transform into the Festival Arena, with the platinum bar, fun fair and main stage featuring big name acts across the weekend including Fleur East, Saara Aalto and Liberty X.

The festival is free to attend but if you want to secure a prime viewing position with access to a dedicated bar and toilet area, click here: to upgrade, to a Platinum Pass.

Buy a 12″ pizza and raise money for Rainbow Fund

Posted on by Besi

Dodo Pizza in Brighton to raise money for local charities on Pizza Sunday.

THE Dodo pizza company at 6 York Place, Brighton – telephone 01273 567356 will donate 20% of all sales on Sunday, June 9 from 11am-6.30pm to local good causes. Treat yourself to a 12″ Pepperoni or Cheese & Tomato pizza for just £5.

Staff at the Pizza shop have chosen a charity each to support and customers buying a pizza during the day will be asked to vote for one of three charities chosen by the staff.

Marina  Marzotto who works at Dodo Pizza has selected the Rainbow Fund as her chosen charity. For every pizza you buy you can put your vote in one of three boxes at the till.

Pop along on Sunday, June 9, order a pizza and raise some money for the Rainbow Fund.

The Rainbow Fund gives grants to local LGBT+/HIV groups and organisations who deliver effective front line services to LGBT people in Brighton and Hove.

Dodo Pizza, 6 York Pl, Brighton BN1 4GU – telephone 01273 567356 – www.dodopizza.co.uk

Dodo Pizza, bring a new approach to pizza delivery through cutting-edge technology and radical transparency. What started small as an ambitious idea in the mind of one pizza geek in 2011 has since become one of the fastest-growing pizza brands with branches in Coventry, Walsall Central, Walsall Wood as well as here in Brighton.

Martlets thanks its 500 volunteers as part of Volunteers Week 2019

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Marlets says ‘thank you’ to over 500 volunteers by highlighting the essential contribution they make to the care and support that it is able to give local people and their families as part of National Volunteers’ Week from June 1-7.

THE National Week celebrates the diversity of volunteering and the millions of people that make a difference to their communities by giving their time to support to charities – organisers estimate that the value of volunteers helping UK charities is £22.6bn.  Volunteering is also shown to be rewarding for volunteers themselves who can learn new skills and gain confidence.

Imelda Glackin
Imelda Glackin

Imelda Glackin, CEO of Martlets explains: “At Martlets our volunteers are the absolute backbone of everything we do, and we are so grateful for their support.  We have numerous roles that suit all kinds of people who have various skills, life experiences and knowledge.  We are so pleased that our volunteers say how rewarding the experience is for them too.  Friendships are often made and it’s human nature to feel good after helping someone out.

“Some of our volunteers might be helping in our charity shops, at our warehouse, enthusiastically fundraising, supporting patients and their families in their own homes or at the hospice itself.   They could also be providing counselling and bereavement care or giving complementary therapies.

“All our volunteers play an essential part in the hospice care that we provide to patients and their families.  We could not do what we do without their fantastic enthusiasm, commitment and contribution.”

Martlets welcomes everyone from all ages (over 16), backgrounds and experience as there are so many different roles available to volunteer. Volunteering at Martlets is particularly flexible, whether people are able to offer a few hours once in a while or a regular weekly shift – anyone who becomes part of Team Martlets plays an important role in helping to keeping the charity running smoothly.

Volunteer Barry Cole has been volunteering with Martlets since 2013.  He is the hospice’s coin and scrap metal expert, sorting the change that no-one else wants.  So far, his efforts have raised over £18,000.

Barry Cole
Barry Cole

Barry said: “I enjoy volunteering, it’s so rewarding. I had retired from work in 2012 and decided to volunteer for the hospice after coming along to a volunteer open day. Initially I helped out in the pound shop and with the online sales, but one day I was asked to look at some coins with a view to selling them on eBay and it all started from there. 

“The team here are always thanking me for my efforts and people are genuinely pleased at the amount that I’ve raised; it’s nice to be appreciated.  It is quite a time-consuming task, but Martlets is such a worthwhile local charity to be fundraising for.”

For anyone interested in volunteering their help – contact the hospice’s People Services Team on 01273 718788 or email: peopleservices@martlets.org.uk

Local action group announce date of AGM

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St James’s Street Community Action Group to hold their AGM on Friday, June 14.

THE AGM will be held St Mary’s Church Hall, Upper St James Street, Kemptown, Brighton starting at 7pm.
You will be able to raise issues with a newly appointed councillor and discuss policing priorities with a local police officer.
All local residents, representatives of local businesses, and charities operating locally are entitled to attend, vote and take an active part in the discussions.
If you are interested in improving your local environment pop along. New members of the working group are needed.
For more information, click here:

Planes and Perverts: Pride and Protest – an alternative event for London Pride

Posted on by Besi

LGBT+ activists and community groups in London organise alternative Pride event on the evening of Pride in London (July 6), to raise cash for LGBT+ people seeking asylum.

LGBT+ homeless and migrant organisations say that they feel excluded from Pride over the cost of being involved.

Across London there are parties which each year increasingly co-opt queer history for financial gain, while excluding the most oppressed members of the LGBT+ communities due to their lack of accessibility.

Taking inspiration from the group that inspired the film Pride, Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners, and their famous Pits and Perverts party in 1984, queer activist group Lesbians and Gays Support the Migrants (LGSMigrants) are throwing another edition of their hugely popular party Planes and Perverts on the same day as Pride in London on July 6, and organisers say it’s set to be the most-fabulous yet.

Planes and Perverts will both create an accessible space for community groups while raising loads of cash for grassroots organisations that support queer people seeking asylum.

When people arrive in the UK seeking asylum, they are often sent to disparate areas of the country, with little to no support network available.

This edition of Planes and Perverts will gather together as many of these people as possible for both Pride in London and UK Black Pride, to celebrate the strength and diversity within the LGBT+ communities.

Funds raised at Planes and Perverts will cover the travel, accommodation and other expenses for people seeking asylum to attend Pride – any excess money will also go to the African Rainbow Family and Micro Rainbow to help them continue the important work they do.

To make this party happen LGSMigrants are collaborating with African Rainbow Family, Micro Rainbow, Outside Project, The People’s Filmclub, Queefy Cabaret (Rhys’s Pieces) and Riposte.

The party will be on Saturday, July 6 from 8pm-4am at The Garage in Islington. There will be workshops, stalls, film screenings, live music, spoken word, performances and some of Londons best drag and DJs across two separate rooms.

There will be sober spaces in both areas. This party will be a safe, political and meaningful space to celebrate the diversity in our communities and what Pride really means to us – freedom, equality, justice and will be hosted by Liv Wynter, a party not to be missed!

Getting tickets in advance is highly recommended. For the full line-up of artists appearing keep  your eyes on LGSMigrants social media channels during June.

Sam Bjorn member of LGSMigrants said: “With this party, we want to capture the spirit that the original LGSM cultivated in ‘84 and create an alternative queer space that centres people most affected by a Tory government and right-wing press. This solidarity between the LGBTIQ+ community and other oppressed demographics endures, 35 years after the original LGSM event, and we want to play a part in making sure it continues to endure for years to come. Many LGBTIQ+ people have become disengaged with Pride due to its lack of political meaning and focus on corporations whilst pushing community groups to the back. Planes and Perverts is an alternative Pride event that aims to challenge this.”

Lesbians and Gays Support the Migrants are a group of queer activists, that through fundraising, solidarity and direct action, stand in solidarity with all migrants.

Event: Planes and Perverts: Pride and Protest

Where: The Garage, 20-22 Highbury Corner, London N5 1RD

When: Saturday. July 6 2019,

Time: 8pm-4am

Cost: Unwaged £5 (£1.25 fees) – Standard £12.50 (£2 fees) – Solidarity £18.00 (£2.50 fees)

To book online at Outsavvy, click here:

To book online at Ticketweb, click here:

 

 

Lord Cashman opens Pride Media Centre in Gateshead

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Celebrated LGBT+ campaigner opens innovative venture, to transform lives and boost job prospects in the North East.

THE Pride Media Centre, at Stonehills, Pelaw, Gateshead, is the UK’s first LGBT+ business and media hub.

The complex, which is designed to support LGBT+ entrepreneurs through training, facilities and advice, was officially opened by Lord Michael Cashman CBE on Friday May 31.

A variety of businesses and organisations have made a home in the centre, including the not for profit organisation, Pride Community Network and multi-channel broadcaster Pride World Media, which includes Pride Radio 89.2fm and Pride World Radio, which broadcasts online to around 125 countries around the globe.

One of the founders of national charity, Stonewall, and a former actor, Lord Cashman made history with the first same-sex kiss on mainstream British television in 1989 when he appeared as Colin in EastEnders.

He has since become a leading campaigner and equality activist and in his speech to the 100 strong audience, he said: “When we set up Stonewall 30 years ago, I never thought we’d achieve equality in my lifetime and I certainly never thought I would be here in Gateshead opening the Pride Media Centre.

“What we have got here is people who have got the guts to stand up not only for themselves but for others.”

The hub has been supported by Gateshead Council and Lord Cashman said: “I know it is ideas that change the world and I congratulate Gateshead Council for the idea and the support, which sends the signal that it’s not all about the bigger cities, it is about innovation and courage to put yourself at the front.”

Lord Cashman CBE on the Pride bus
Lord Cashman CBE on the Pride bus
Lord Cashman CBE with Peter Darrant
Lord Cashman CBE with Peter Darrant

The hub is also the home of newly launched online television station, Out and Proud TV, and it will provide a range of support and opportunities to the LGBT+ communities and their allies, including outreach programmes designed to reach isolated members of the LGBT+ communities.

“I am very proud that Gateshead has the first LGBT+ business and media centre in the UK and this is the place where we will start something big that will have repercussions all over the UK,” said Peter Darrant, CEO of Pride World Media.

“In this strange world we live in, where we think we have all the rights, it is still very important to fly the LGBT+ flag outside.

“There is an urgency to have something like this building and we have been waiting 50 years for it, so while we officially open the centre for the first time today, this is just the beginning.”

PREVIEW: AFTER 82 – The untold stories of the AIDS pandemic in the UK

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Central City Media release AFTER 82 via home entertainment on June 20, 2019, previewing in cinemas with events in major cities across the UK.

AFTER 82 brings to the screen the previously undocumented personal stories of the AIDS crisis in the UK. Narrated by Dominic West, Ben Lord and Steve Keeble, this compelling documentary looks back to the very early days of the pandemic when there were no medications available and a positive HIV test meant almost certain death.

Many of those featured have never spoken openly to the media about those traumatic early days, and this may be the only time they will do so.

The film features interviews with the actor Jonathan Blake (portrayed by Dominic West in the BAFTA-winning film Pride) who has lived with the virus for over 30 years. Dr. Rupert Whitaker was still a teenager when he fell in love with Terrence Higgins. The romance was not to last as Terry sadly died from virus complications on July 4, 1982, making him one of the first people to die from an AIDS related illness in the UK. Rupert also discovered that he too was HIV positive and given eighteen months to live, but here he recalls his memories of Terry and life since.

Lord Norman Fowler was part of Margaret Thatcher’s government and is the only man to have changed her mind about the then escalating crisis in the UK. Thanks to his persistence and massive campaign surrounding HIV/AIDS during the 1980s HIV infections started to decline and he is now one of the most respected ministers in the UK and gay community for his supportive work.

Further interviewees, such as the renowned campaigner Peter Tatchell and Lisa Power OBE who co-founded Stonewall, provide testimonies and insight to an era where hysteria from fear spread across the world through lack of knowledge and understanding.

AFTER 82 is a remarkable testament to human compassion, strength, love and resilience and ensures that those voices will never be forgotten.

For more information about Central City Media, click here:

 

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