A Berkshire charity has launched a campaign with councils in the area to get as many people as possible to test for HIV to stamp out transmissions by 2030.

Thames Valley Positive Support (TVPS) has partnered with Reading, Wokingham and West Berkshire councils to deliver free tests as part of National HIV Testing Week, which runs from February 6 to 12.

Free community testing sessions are taking place in Reading, Wokingham, and West Berkshire.

These sessions are in discreet venues, with tests taking a minute to give a result which will be received during an appointment.

To make testing even easier, the charity is also offering free postal HIV tests kits which are being dispatched or can be picked up from TVPS when they are in your area.

These tests are sent in plain packaging, with results being received via text or phone call.

The campaign is being run for three months and has been funded by the Public Health Teams at Reading, Wokingham and West Berkshire councils.

Sarah Macadam, CEO of TVPS, said “It’s fantastic to have the support of Public Health who are just as committed as we are to driving rates of HIV transmission to zero.

“We’re offering a choice of tests to make it as easy as possible for people to know their HIV status, either in the comfort of their own home or at one of our testing venues.

“There have been a couple of years where HIV testing hasn’t been top of everyone’s agenda and that’s understandable with other health concerns such as covid, but now is the time to get back into the habit of testing for HIV and making it an essential part of your healthcare routine!”

You can book a community test or order a postal test by emailing test@tvps.org.uk , calling 01628 603400 or sending a Whatsapp message to 07727289712.

The testing venues will be located in central Reading, Wokingham and Newbury, with information on location and appointment times being provided by TVPS once contact has been made.

Postal tests booked before 12pm will be delivered on the same day (during the working week), those booked after 12pm will be delivered on the next working day.

The campaign is being run until the end of April.

TVPS was founded in 1985 and supports the government target of having no new HIV transmissions by 2030.