Sexual health for adult daters: free testing across the UK

Testing is the least glamorous part of adult dating and one of the most important. Many sexually transmitted infections cause no symptoms, so the only way to know is to check, and the NHS makes that free.

What the NHS offers, free

Across the UK, NHS sexual health services offer free, confidential testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections (STIs: infections passed on through sex, such as chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis and HIV), and you can go to a clinic directly without a GP referral.

Clinics go by several names: sexual health clinic, GUM (genitourinary medicine) clinic, or sexual and reproductive health service. Some take walk-ins; many work by appointment or ask you to book online first. In England, the NHS sexual health clinic finder lists services by postcode, and the national sexual health helpline is on 0300 123 7123.

Testing at home

If you'd rather not visit a clinic, many areas offer a free kit by post. You take the samples yourself, post them to a lab and get your results without needing to visit.

How you get one depends on where you live:

Home kits are a good fit for routine checks. If you have symptoms, or you think you've been exposed to something recently, a clinic is the better choice, because staff can examine you and often start treatment sooner. Our pages for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland list local services in more detail.

What a check involves

A standard check is quick and not especially invasive. Depending on what you've been doing and what the clinic advises, it usually involves some combination of:

• a urine sample or self-taken swabs;
• a small blood sample, for HIV and syphilis.

You'll be asked about recent partners and the kind of sex you've had. It isn't a judgement; it tells the clinic which tests to run and where to take swabs from. Answer plainly and you'll get the right tests. Results usually come by text or phone, and you'll be called back if you need treatment.

How often to test

There's no single rule, but a sensible pattern for adult daters is to test after every new partner and routinely if you have several. The NHS says most people with chlamydia have no symptoms, which is why routine testing matters.

• After a new partner. Some infections take a few weeks to show on a test, so the clinic may suggest when to test, or to test again.
• Regularly, if you have several partners. Many people put a routine check in their calendar.
• Straight away, if you have symptoms or a partner tells you they've tested positive.

Condoms, PrEP and PEP

Condoms remain the most practical protection against most STIs. Take your own to any meeting, and use them. Our guide to talking about desires and limits covers how to agree this before you meet.

PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) is medication taken before sex that is highly effective at preventing HIV. It is free from NHS sexual health clinics, usually as tablets taken daily or around the times you have sex; some people are offered an injection every two months instead. A clinic will check whether it suits you. It doesn't protect against other infections.

PEP (post-exposure prophylaxis) is emergency HIV medication after a possible exposure, for example a condom that split with a partner whose status you don't know. It must be started as soon as possible, and within 72 hours. Go to a sexual health clinic or, out of hours, A&E (NHS HIV prevention).

After a condom split: what to do, and how fast

Timing matters more than anything else here. Use this as a checklist.

Emergency contraception is free from NHS sexual health clinics and GP surgeries, and most pharmacies provide the pill (NHS emergency contraception). The NHS lists where to find it near you.

Questions worth asking at the clinic

Clinic staff would rather you ask than guess. Useful questions, if they're not covered:

• Which infections am I being tested for, and which not?
• When should I test again after a recent partner?
• How will I get my results, and how long will they take?
• Is PrEP right for me, and how do I get it?
• Are there any vaccinations you'd recommend for me?

If you test positive

Most STIs are straightforward to treat, and clinics deal with them every day. Follow the treatment, avoid sex until the clinic says it's fine, and tell recent partners so they can get tested too. If that conversation feels impossible, ask the clinic about partner notification: they can contact partners for you without giving your name.

Talking to partners about it

The easiest way to raise sexual health is to give your own answer first: when you last tested, and that you use condoms. An example, to adapt: "I had a full check last month and everything was clear. I always use condoms. How about you?" Most people respond well to that. Anyone who reacts badly to a reasonable question about health is showing you how they'd handle other limits.

Our first meeting safety plan and consent guide cover the rest of the groundwork for a good meeting.