World AIDS Day has been held on 1 December every year since 1988, and UNAIDS describes it as the first ever international day for global health. It remembers the people who have died of AIDS-related illnesses and stands with the people living with HIV today. In the UK it is led by National AIDS Trust, the HIV rights charity that runs the official World AIDS Day website, with Terrence Higgins Trust running a major fundraising and testing push around the same date.
Story lines that get booked on UK radio and TV, grouped by the kind of organisation that could front them.
Who could front it: A community pharmacist or a sexual health nurse
Who could front it: An independent financial adviser or a protection insurance specialist
Who could front it: An employment lawyer or an experienced HR director
Who could front it: An HIV consultant, a sexual health doctor or a relationships expert
Who could front it: A travel health specialist or a pharmacist
Who could front it: A long-standing venue owner or landlord, alongside an HIV charity representative
Relations Group has not run a campaign on World AIDS Day yet. If your brand or charity has something useful to say, the angles on this page are a starting point, and the team can tell you which stations are likely to book them.
World AIDS Day 2026 is on Tuesday 1 December. It is held on 1 December every year, so in 2027 it falls on a Wednesday.
UNAIDS coordinates World AIDS Day globally and sets a theme each year. In the UK it is led by National AIDS Trust, which runs the official World AIDS Day website and red ribbon sales. Terrence Higgins Trust and other HIV and sexual health charities run fundraising and testing activity around the day.
Start with an angle that gives listeners something useful, such as testing advice or a clear answer to a money, work or travel question. Put forward an independent expert, such as a clinician, pharmacist, lawyer or adviser, and use accurate, person-first language. Support the cause through a partnership or donation rather than using the red ribbon as decoration, and approach producers weeks ahead because health features are planned early. An agency like Relations Group can shape the story and arrange interviews across UK radio and TV.
Say HIV, not AIDS, when talking about people living with the virus today, and say people living with HIV rather than victims or sufferers. Avoid outdated terms such as full-blown AIDS. State plainly that people on effective treatment with an undetectable viral load cannot pass HIV on to their partners, because this is established science.
Talk to the team about the angles that would work for you, the stations likely to book them and what a campaign would cost.
Book a call with the team