Following its closure in July 2024, aidsmap (previously NAM aidsmap) is now part of Terrence Higgins Trust, an HIV charity based in the United Kingdom.
After 37 years of pioneering health journalism, community engagement, and the empowerment of expert clinicians and patients through independent, accurate and accessible information about HIV, we are proud to carry forward aidsmap’s important legacy.
Together, we can continue to meet the diverse and evolving needs of people affected by HIV.
Our mission, vision and principles
Our mission
aidsmap provides independent, accurate and accessible information about HIV.
Our vision
A world where HIV is no longer a threat to health or happiness.
Our principles
- Independent, accurate and accessible information is vital in the fight against HIV and AIDS.
- Knowledge empowers and equips people to manage their health.
- Knowledge enables advocates, campaigners and communities to take action on health.
- The information we provide should help our audiences effect change in their own lives, their work or their communities.
- Reducing HIV stigma removes barriers to testing and treatment.
- Social inequalities must be addressed to deliver health equality.
- We strive to serve individuals, communities and providers across the world, recognising that needs and culture differ.
Maintaining high standards
We are committed to ensuring the information we produce is:
- Accurate
- Accessible
- Clearly communicated
- Evidence-based
- Independent
- Up to date
- Relevant
- Rooted in the experiences of those most affected by HIV.
We work with medical review panels, who review our resources to ensure our standards are being met, and peer review panels, so that people with HIV are able to contribute their expertise and share their experiences.
Your feedback and input really do make a difference. If you would like to comment on any of aidsmap's resources (for example, information that has been effective or valuable; feedback that would be useful for revising work; comments on new themes/information needed; any inaccuracies) please contact us.
aidsmap's history
NAM (later known as aidsmap) was founded by Peter Scott in 1987. Peter was working at the heart of the community affected by HIV – at the London Lesbian and Gay Switchboard. At that time there was extensive misinformation about HIV and AIDS, much of it confused and homophobic.
Peter and a group of committed volunteers set about creating a source of calm, authoritative and trustworthy information on which those living with HIV in the UK could rely. Thus, the National AIDS Manual (or NAM) was born.
As these pictures show, when the charity was founded, the 'Manual' was a huge ring binder containing the available information on HIV and AIDS. Produced at a time when there was lots of hysteria and little reliable information, it was an important, evidence-based, reference point for professionals as well as people diagnosed with HIV and AIDS.
NAM was one of the first organisations to produce accurate information on HIV and it quickly became the UK’s primary source of HIV information.
Since then, aidsmap’s users have grown and diversified within the UK and worldwide, and its resources have developed and evolved over the years to reflect the changing epidemic, developments in treatment and care and the changing information needs of people living with and working in HIV all over the world. Peter Scott's vision has been central to the development of aidsmap.
We have a range of HIV information resources available, including easy-to-read and illustrated leaflets, in-depth information pages, research briefings, news and conference reports, and videos and broadcasts. By providing a wide range of information, we are able to reach larger and broader audiences globally.
Although those weighty ringbinders are now tucked away in the aidsmap archive, the Manuals are an important part of the charity's history. The 'essence' of this approach to delivering HIV and AIDS information is reflected through our day-to-day work, providing calm, reliable, authoritative, independent information to anyone who needs it.
In July 2024, after 37 years, the aidsmap charity closed due to no longer being financially sustainable. However, in 2025, it was decided that aidsmap’s assets would be transferred to Terrence Higgins Trust and National AIDS Trust (NAT). Terrence Higgins Trust took on management of the aidsmap.com website, while NAT now manages the HIV Lens project.