Our Impact
Every person living with HIV deserves to be treated with acceptance, support and respect.
That’s why we stand alongside those affected by HIV, our partners, and our supporters to drive local and national change and bring an end to HIV inequality and stigma. For more than 35 years, we’ve been there for people affected by HIV and other blood-borne viruses. Together, we can make Scotland a fairer and kinder place where everyone feels supported and respected, regardless of their HIV status.
"Having your family summoned to your hospital bedside because you may not make it through the night was life-changing….and for me, it’s been a rollercoaster of a journey since that day 12 years ago. Waverley Care has provided me with much-needed support and empowerment."
HIV in Scotland
While medical advancements mean people living with HIV today can live long and healthy lives, it’s often the stigma that remains around HIV that makes it such a life-altering condition.
The Impact of Stigma
Significant advances in treatment mean that if someone is diagnosed with HIV today, they can take medication that prevents them from passing it on. Once the HIV in their blood becomes undetectable, it is untransmittable.
However, stigma still has a massive impact on people living with HIV, preventing them from leading fulfilling lives. Stigma is the most significant barrier to ending new HIV transmission. It is a barrier to education, accessing testing, taking up treatment, talking openly about HIV, and moving on with life following diagnosis.
Monica's story
Monica's story
Monica was diagnosed with HIV in 2010/11, and at first, she thought her life had ended. This powerful video tells Monica’s story, from her diagnosis to where she is today.
Making a Difference
We work with people living with HIV or other blood-borne viruses to empower them to live full and healthy lives. For many people living with HIV and hepatitis today, that means taking daily treatment and attending regular appointments. However, for some, living with HIV and hepatitis presents challenges.
Our services are as varied as the experiences of the people we support. We listen to them so that we can ensure they get the right support at the right time—whether that is dealing with stigma when telling family, friends, or colleagues, navigating a relationship with a partner, coping with a new diagnosis, or feeling confident enough to speak to a professional about their health.
Through our campaigning and influencing work, we’re fighting for the local and national change needed to create a Scotland free of new HIV transmission and stigma and to ensure equal and fair access to prevention, treatment, and support services for all.
You make all this possible—our volunteers, campaigners, and supporters. Whether you give your time, lend your voice to our campaigns, or donate to support our services, you’re making a real difference in the lives of people living with HIV.
Our Approach
Life-Changing Support
At Waverley Care, we understand the complex challenges faced by our service users. Our team is here to provide support at every step—from testing to dealing with a diagnosis and accessing treatment.
A holistic approach that addresses the whole person, not just the medical condition, is essential for sustained health improvements. We take the time to get to know our service users: what they like and dislike, what they want and need, and how we can best support them.
Eleanor Parris, Health Improvement Coordinator at Waverley CareIt is crucial to understand how our service users feel and learn about their survival strategies, beliefs, and coping mechanisms. By recognising their goals and how we can help them achieve these, we adopt a positive approach that identifies the spaces where people find healing.
Catherine's Story
Catherine's Story
Catherine was told that she was a month away from dying before Waverley Care helped her to access the medication that she needed in order to recover from Hepatitis C.
Testing and Prevention
There are many different ways to maintain good sexual health, prevent the transmission of HIV and STIs, and ensure timely access to treatment, such as testing regularly, using condoms, and taking PrEP or PEP. We support communities in accessing the options that work best for them and offer the opportunity to discuss sexual health without judgment, fear, or stigma.
Peer Support
Living with HIV can still be an isolating experience, especially in the face of ongoing stigma. That’s why peer support is at the heart of what we do at Waverley Care.
Our trained peer support volunteers bring lived experience of HIV, offering a unique and powerful form of support to those who are newly diagnosed or have been living with HIV for many years. Through empathy, understanding, and shared experience, they help others navigate the emotional and practical challenges that can come with an HIV diagnosis.
We create safe, confidential spaces where people living with HIV can connect, share, and support one another—both in groups and through one-to-one mentoring. Whether it’s meeting up for a coffee, talking through worries, or simply being around others who understand, these moments of connection can make a life-changing difference.
Our peer support also extends to families and loved ones, recognising that HIV impacts more than just the individual. By supporting the whole circle of care, we help build resilience, reduce isolation, and create stronger, more informed communities.
With your support, we’re making sure no one has to face HIV alone.
Iain Johnston, Volunteer and Peer Support CoordinatorPeer Support is the cornerstone of living well with HIV, ‘finding answers together with someone else in the same shoes’. People living with HIV are twice as likely to experience mental health problems than the general population, so sharing experiences and walking alongside someone else living with HIV provides important support, advocacy and equality so we can live well. At Waverley Care, we have a range of people living with HIV who provide peer support services specifically tailored to meet your individual requirements.
Gary's Story
Gary's Story
Gary was diagnosed with HIV in December 2001. For the first six months after his diagnosis, he didn’t want to meet anyone else living with HIV. Now, Gary volunteers as a peer mentor for Waverley Care, helping others living with HIV turn their lives around.
Community Outreach
HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C can affect anyone, but some communities in Scotland are more at risk than others. Waverley Care works closely with people from African communities, the Chinese community, and gay, bisexual, and all men who have sex with men to raise awareness about HIV and hepatitis and to increase their access to HIV testing, treatment and care. We also provide free infant formula to new parents living with HIV.
Influencing Policy
Our policy, campaigns and influencing work is guided by the Scottish Government’s commitment to reaching zero new HIV transmission by 2030. We work to influence local and national governments and policymakers to ensure that the voices of people living with HIV are not only heard but prioritised. Our ambition is for Waverley Care to be at the forefront of shaping sexual health and blood-borne virus policy in Scotland.
In 2020, the Scottish Government committed to getting zero new HIV transmission by 2030. Thanks to advances in treatment for HIV, we have the opportunity to make history. However, Scotland is now falling behind England and Wales in achieving this goal. We need action to ensure that everyone in Scotland has equitable access to testing, treatment and support, regardless of their postcode or life circumstances.
#GetToZero is a preventative campaign about ending new HIV transmissions by 2030. The campaign focuses on equal access to testing, treatment, and education to challenge misconceptions and misinformation about HIV. It is also about getting to zero HIV stigma for people living with HIV.
We all have to play our part to end new HIV transmissions. Click here to read more on how you can get involved.
How you can help
Related content
Our story
Waverley Care was founded in 1989 at the height of the HIV/AIDS crisis. Nearly 35 years later, we are working to end new transmissions of HIV in Scotland by 2030.
The Tartan Ribbon Story
From its introduction in the early 1990s, the Tartan Ribbon has been an iconic and important part of Waverley Care’s history and fundraising, acting as a symbol of HIV awareness across Scotland.
Our strategy
In June 2022, we launched our ambitious new Strategic Plan for 2022-2027. With the backdrop of the very real prospect of getting to zero new HIV transmissions by 2030 much of our work is now focused on the part we will play in getting there.