FAQs

There are no appointments available on your website – can I join a waiting list?

Absolutely! We have waiting lists for each individual appointment. The system is automated, so if someone cancels their appointment, you’ll get an email offering it to you for a limited time before it’s offered to the next person on the list. Don’t worry if you don’t have all the right info to hand as soon as the email arrives – just fill in what you can and email any extra info to us here.

If you’re offered a waiting list appointment and you’re still on multiple lists, please remove yourself from them to make room for people who are still waiting. You’ll find instructions on this in your waiting list confirmation email.

Of course, being on the waiting list is no guarantee of an appointment. If you’re not offered a waiting list appointment, please add yourself to the email list on our homepage to hear about new appointments in advance, or continue reading these FAQs for advice on where else to find cervical screening.

When will new appointments be available?

Please sign up to our email alerts on the homepage, or keep an eye on our Instagram for updates. We’ll always aim to give you a week’s notice of a new appointment release, so you can get ready to book. We release batches of appointments three or four times a year.

What if I’m on my period?

That’s totally fine. You’ll often hear that it’s not ideal to have your period during cervical screening, but we know you’ll have booked your appointment far ahead of time and our schedule won’t fit everyone’s cycle. Our team is highly experienced and will do everything they can to get the sample they need.

I’m a social worker, key worker or healthcare provider – can I refer a client?

Yes, of course. You can make an appointment on their behalf through our booking system.

Are there any cervical screening clinics solely for trans / non-binary people?
Yes, there are. These clinics offer cervical screening just for trans and non-binary people. Some are trans-led and all offer a safe, confidential space in which to have your appointment and discuss any worries.
•             56T at 56 Dean Street in London >
•             The Butterfly Clinic in Liverpool >
•             Clinic T in Brighton >
•             CliniQ in London >

For more information, please see Cervical screening for trans men, non-binary and intersex people with a cervix | The Eve Appeal.

Are your clinics free of charge?

Absolutely. We provide all our services entirely free of charge.

I’ve had my appointment – what happens next?

You should receive your result via your NHS app or by post directly from the NHS England Cervical Screening London Service within 2 to 6 weeks. If you or your GP haven’t received your results after 6 weeks, not to worry – this happens sometimes! Just email us bartshealth.akcbarts.cytologyresults@nhs.net and/or  bartshealth.mybodyback@nhs.net and we’ll track them down for you.

Your results will come from the national screening service, rather than our clinic, so your GP won’t know you’ve come to see us.
Sometimes cervical screening results are abnormal, meaning that further tests or treatment are needed. The NHS system may automatically refer you for further investigation. Because these arrangements are made online, which can be quicker than the post, you may get an appointment notification BEFORE you receive your results letter. It doesn’t mean that it is an emergency or that something’s wrong! It’s just the way we keep things moving quickly for you.

While we’re not able to provide further testing at My Body Back, we have plenty of Resources that might be helpful.

Of course, if you’d like some support before or after your results arrive, you can always email us at info@mybodybackproject.com.

Will your workshops be coming back?

We hope so! In the meantime, we’re working on putting lots of resources and key information online, so you can access them any time, anywhere. Please keep and eye on our Instagram for updates.

I don’t live in London or Glasgow – can I still attend? Or are there any equivalent organisations elsewhere?

Any resident of England can come to our London clinics and any Scottish resident can attend our Glasgow clinic.

While we don’t know of any equivalent organisations, we’d love to hear about them if you find one, so please let us know!

If you’re not able to attend one of our clinics, you might prefer to book cervical screening at a sexual health clinic instead of your GP. If you can, tell them (in whatever way works best for you) something about your experience or what your needs are. That way, they’ll know to pair you with a practitioner who understands your situation, which is quite different from the way it’s done at a GP’s surgery.

You might also like to use some of the resources on our website to prepare for your appointment.

Can I bring someone along with me?

While you’re very welcome to bring someone along to support you, if your companion is male-presenting then we may ask you to use our other waiting room next door, just to make sure all our clinic attendees feel comfortable.

Can I volunteer with MBB?

We do need volunteers sometimes, and we always post on Instagram and Twitter when we’re hoping to recruit them, so please keep an eye on them for updates.

Can I donate or fundraise for MBB?

While we’re really touched to hear that you’d like to donate or fundraise for us, we no longer operate as a charity, so we don’t accept funding. If you’d like to donate to a charity we work closely with, we always recommend the wonderful Rape Crisis.

I haven’t been sexually assaulted but I’ve had a traumatic experience that makes it very difficult to get my test done. Can I attend your clinic?

If you find screening or accessing contraceptive care challenging due to experiences other than sexual violence, we recommend looking for a good sexual health clinic and telling them (in whatever way works best for you) something about your experience. That way, they’ll know to pair you with a practitioner who understands your situation, which can be quite different from the way it’s done at a GP surgery.

You might also like to use some of the resources on our website to prepare for your appointment.

I can’t attend your clinic – do you have any advice on getting through my appointment with my GP?

If you’re not able to attend one of our clinics, you might prefer to book cervical screening at a sexual health clinic instead of your GP. If you can, tell them (in whatever way works best for you) something about your experience or what your needs are. That way, they’ll know to pair you with a practitioner who understands your situation, which is quite different from the way it’s done at a GP’s surgery.

You might also like to use some of the resources on our website to prepare for your appointment.

Do you provide STI screening?
Yes, we do STI screening for anyone attending for cervical screening. If you have symptoms that you think may be due to an infection, please email us.

What contraceptive care do you provide?
We can provide all methods of contraception to anyone attending for cervical screening, as well as any advice you may need.
We offer implants, both the copper IUDs (5 and 10 year devices) and the IUS (Mirena, Kyleena and Jaydess).  If this can’t be done at the same appointment, we’ll talk about a second appointment on the day.

For IUC (coil) fitting and removal, do you offer any anaesthetic?
Yes, we routinely use either topical anaesthetic spray or a local anaesthetic injection.

Do you offer anaesthetic for cervical screening?

We don’t offer local anaesthetic or numbing agents for cervical screening (smear tests), as they’re generally not helpful for the procedure. Our attendees usually find that the screening itself isn’t actually painful, and so we tend to use our tried and tested strategies for helping people through the procedure, like distraction, breathing exercises, taking it very slowly and enabling you to be in control of your body. Our team is highly experienced in helping people to feel calm, safe and in control, and this is where we focus our efforts.

We sometimes get asked whether we offer general anaesthetic for cervical screening and the answer is no, we’re not able to use general anaesthetic in our clinic.

I don’t need or want cervical screening, can I still access STI screening or contraceptive care?
This will depend on how busy our clinics are, so please email us to discuss how we can help you.

I’m worried about my appointment. Can I speak to someone beforehand?

Of course you can. Just email us to talk to Friya, our MBB Clinic Coordinator.

Where did The Clit List go?

We made the decision not to include The Clit List in our new website for many reasons. Our statistics showed that the resource was barely used, and also our small team of volunteers sadly doesn’t have time to maintain and moderate it. We have, however, received a number of emails about it, so we are open to working with anyone who would like to take it on as a project.