Living Well and all partners across London’s NHS and the voluntary sector
“Working in this flexible way, being able to adapt what we were doing, working together with other charities and Fast-Track Cities London has made our projects so much better than the usual way of one pot of money for one specific project.” – Simon, Living Well
1. What problem are we trying to solve or what is the aim?
The problem is the significant unmet need for mental health support within the HIV community. Many individuals living with HIV face poor mental health, isolation, and stigma, yet there are limited services that specifically address their needs. The aim of the Connect Well program is to improve the mental health and well-being of people living with HIV by providing 1-2-1 support. The target is to ensure that by April 2025, over 80% of individuals receiving this support report an improvement in their mental health.
2. What did we do?
To address this problem, Connect Well implemented a range of activities:
- Expanded Therapy Team: Recruited new therapists from diverse backgrounds to ensure cultural competence and inclusivity.
- Face-to-Face Service Delivery: Explored offering face-to-face support at partner locations to reach individuals without access to technology or those who prefer in-person interactions.
- Referral Process Enhancement: Improved the referral process by adapting the Living Well website, making it easier for professionals and service users to refer people for support.
- Workshops and Counselling: Delivered online wellbeing workshops and offered therapy, life coaching, and hypnotherapy to individuals living with HIV.
3. What have we achieved so far?
Referrals
- From April 2024 to February 2025, 109 people were referred to Connect Well.
- NHS and voluntary sector organisations referred people living with HIV from across 28 London boroughs.
- A significant portion of referrals have been from underserved areas like Haringey, Lambeth, and Southwark.
Service Delivery
In the most recent quarter:
- 23 people received counselling (with 102 sessions delivered)
- 11 received life coaching (38 sessions)
- 5 received hypnotherapy (28 sessions)
Workshops
- Three wellbeing workshops were delivered online
- Participants’ engagement during the workshops was positive, despite attendance being lower than expected in some cases
Demographics
The participants reflected the diverse London population:
- 38% people identified female
- 62% people identified as male
- a wide range of sexual orientation and ethnic backgrounds.
Improved Access
Efforts we ongoing to address barriers such as:
- technology access
- lack of awareness about services
There are plans to expand the face-to-face support service.
4. Reflections
Challenges remain, including addressing:
- low professional referrals
- dropout between registrations and attending workshops,
The collaborative approach and activities used enabled significant progress to be made in providing tailored mental health support to underserved individuals in the HIV community.
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