Those in the world of fashion know that what you wear can send a message.

Our message is clear – get tested, and get treated. The only way to ensure that we reduce new infections of HIV is to increase the number of people we can diagnose. There are 22,000 undiagnosed people with HIV in the UK – we need to get them into testing centres, and into treatment.

Fashion Saving Lives is about using the power of clothes, and the profile of models, to get that message out there on the billboards and catwalks of the nation. We all love a nice suit of new clothes, and the images which shall fashion are everywhere – we want to harness that power to get our message across, too.

From Gia Carangi to Perry Ellis or Patrick Kelly, HIV has taken some of fashion’s highest profile names; the fashion world has therefore been more aware than many of HIV, its dangers and the importance of tackling it. We’re proud to have the support of model agencies confident that the HIV message is one worth not just listening to but also heeding.

We’re equally proud to support – and have the support of – ‘grassroots’ fashion and fashion students, as in the below videos from World AIDS Day 2009.