In their own words

A is 12 years old and lives with his mother who is HIV positive, and his two younger sister in Birmingham. He attends the Tuesday group at Barnardo's SOFAH Project for children affected and infected by HIV and has been coming to the group for a year.

A enjoys coming to the group and because he is the only boy at home he appreciates having the company of the other boys in the group and doing things that boys like to do. He is a very sociable child and gets on well with the other children in the group and staff. He has a mature outlook on life because he has to take a lot of responsibility at home, sometimes caring for his mother and younger sister especially when mum is feeling unwell.

A’s first language is not English, which is something else he has had to overcome; he has however coped with this and is doing well at school. A has quite a number of friends that he has made since joining the group and is highly thought of.