News and events
10 March 2026
Well Proud Conference Brings Partners Together to Strengthen LGBTQ+ Health and Wellbeing
The Well Proud Conference brought together partners, practitioners and community organisations from across Calderdale and Kirklees to explore how we can strengthen support for LGBTQ+ health and wellbeing.
Held in Brighouse, the event created space for honest conversations about prevention, support and partnership working. Throughout the day, speakers shared insight from projects focused on improving wellbeing across LGBTQ+ communities.
A key session was delivered by John Fox from The Hep C Trust, who spoke about the Mission Zero approach and the shared ambition to end new transmissions of HIV, TB and viral hepatitis by 2030.
John highlighted how achieving this goal requires strong partnership working across healthcare services, community organisations and people with lived experience. Mission Zero focuses on improving access to prevention, testing and treatment, while also tackling stigma and reducing health inequalities.
The session reinforced that ending new transmissions is not only a clinical challenge. It also depends on trust, community engagement and ensuring people feel able to access services without fear of judgement or discrimination.
Alongside the Mission Zero discussion, the conference explored a range of other wellbeing initiatives.
Sessions included Prevention, Care and Connection with Anne Glew and Jess Tintor from Brunswick, which addressed ongoing HIV stigma and the importance of education and visibility. Jan Spence from Yorkshire Smokefree Calderdale introduced the Queer as Smoke project supporting LGBTQ+ people to stop smoking.
Steph Mallas from WomenCentre presented the LEVEL programme, which supports behaviour change within LGBTQ+ relationships, while Caroline Moralle shared the Queer Bits project focused on inclusive information around cervical, breast, pec and chest screening.
A number of panel sessions also explored wider community issues. The Pride panel highlighted the role of local Pride events in creating safe and visible spaces for LGBTQ+ communities, while the DRAG panel discussed substance use and alcohol within LGBTQ+ communities and the importance of harm reduction and partnership working.
The conference concluded with a powerful contribution from Nathaniel J Hall, whose work as a writer, performer and HIV activist continues to challenge stigma and open conversations around HIV through storytelling and creative activism.
The Well Proud Conference demonstrated the strength of partnership working across Calderdale and Kirklees. While each project focuses on different aspects of health and wellbeing, together they form part of a shared effort to ensure LGBTQ+ people can access the right support at the right time.
