In response, we have devised an initiative called HIV and Hepatitis Awareness for Tattoo and Piercing Artists. Over the past year we have worked closely with industry leaders and artists from across the UK and internationally who have shared how difficult it is to find reliable information and non-judgemental support to build safer and more inclusive practice when it comes to blood borne viruses (BBVs). We found that there are many artists eager to learn more and who want to help change attitudes among their peers.
So, we produced a range of high-quality FREE resources:
- For people living with HIV or hepatitis considering a tattoo or piercing: a zine-style leaflet about your rights and access to further support.
- For artists: basic information about blood borne viruses; inclusive consent forms and posters for your workplace on safety and inclusion.
- For HIV and hepatitis advocates: a training pack you can use for local events with artists; and an advocacy kit to promote even wider policy change in your area.
This work would not have been possible without the input and inspiration provided by people with lived experience, policy experts, artists, clinicians and local council staff. These materials will help you to promote and support best practice in tattooing and piercing, while also helping people living with blood borne viruses to identify and choose inclusive practitioners who apply equality and data protection laws in their practice. After all, as leading HIV clinicians have stated: “Collecting information about HIV status must be justifiable, as per current data protection legislation (Data Protection Act 2018 and General Data Protection Regulation 2018,) and is unnecessary in the context of tattooing, piercing and cosmetic or routine beauty treatments”.
The ultimate goal is to build better two-way trust between artists and their clients living with HIV and hepatitis so everyone can be more confident and healthy. This reduces stigma and discrimination by tackling misinformation and prejudice head-on. Many local and national organisations and leaders have key roles to play in bringing about this change including HIV and hepatitis support organisations, Local Authority licensing teams, UK Health Security Agency staff alongside those who carry influence in the piercing and tattooing trades. There are also opportunities to build on and strengthen recent changes to licensing in Wales that introduced standardised expectations around artists’ training.
We are thrilled and energised by the enthusiasm with which many artists and advocates are already embracing these resources. Several advocacy groups have started to pour over our Advocacy Toolkit and making plans for how they will bring about change in their area, including the provision of training for artists.
Fighting for equality and respect is at the core of what makes our sector strong. There’s work to be done with welcoming opportunities for strategic collaboration with artists in every UK city and town. Let’s work together for a more BBV-inclusive tattooing and piercing industry in the UK.
This project gratefully received funding from a UK Economic and Social Research Council Impact Acceleration Award through the University of Bristol.