An impact evaluation study of a community mobilisation and HIV prevention programme among gay men

Gay and bisexual men continue to be the group most affected by HIV and AIDS in the UK. In 1996, as part of an effort to address this situation, a consortium of London health authorities commissioned a gay men's HIV prevention project based on principles of community mobilisation which the research literature suggests offers considerable scope for achieving effective HIV prevention. This impact evaluation study, analysing responses to a self-completion questionnaire administered to a community-based sample of 674 men in London, found highest reported levels of contact with the awareness-raising interventions in the project. Much lower levels of engagement with more participative and involving activities were identified. In relation to the reported outcomes of the project, awareness-raising was achieved to a greater extent than behavioural outcomes for prevention. Future gay men's HIV prevention based on community mobilisation should be oriented to focus more specifically on the achievement of these more complex outcomes.