A new NHS Blood and Transplant service has been launched at the Brixton Blood Donor Centre, writes Lilian Mulholland…
Brixton Blood Donor Centre has been selected as one of three sites in the country to form part of a pioneering new service to boost the number of black heritage blood donors.
The new initiative is designed to make blood donation a more welcoming and empowering experience for donors of black heritage by enabling them to give blood together.
Local faith groups, community organisations, and work colleagues have been urged to book in and give blood.
The move comes after feedback from black heritage groups revealed they were more likely to become regular blood donors if they could do so as part of a group or network, from work colleagues to friendship groups.
NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) has created a group booking system especially for black heritage donors that allows them to reserve group slots and give blood together.
The goal is to create a shared experience that makes giving blood a more welcoming experience.
NHSBT director of donor experience Mark Chambers said: “The initiative is about creating a shared experience that makes donating more welcoming, inspiring, and impactful, especially for first time donors, in a setting that feels more like community than clinic.
“It harnesses the power of community and is a chance to come together, donate together, and save lives together.”
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The initiative was created to help boost the number of black heritage donors in order to treat people living with sickle cell, the country’s fastest-growing inherited blood disorder.
Sickle cell is more prevalent amongst people of black heritage, affecting around 18,000 people.
Donors of African, Caribbean, or mixed ethnic background are 10 times more likely to have the specific Ro blood subtype needed to treat sickle cell than white donors.
NHSBT is urgently calling for more black heritage donors as a single person with sickle cell could need blood from as many as 100 donors every year to stay healthy.
Currently, only two per cent of NHSBT donors have Ro type blood.
Sarah-Jane Nkrumah, of London-based Sickle Cell Unite, said: “We believe group bookings are incredibly important because they bring the community together.
“People are often more comfortable donating blood when they attend with friends or as part of a group, that sense of shared purpose really matters. It becomes more than just an opportunity to save lives; it’s a chance to do something meaningful together.
“Donating as a group strengthens relationships within the community, builds trust between different organisations, and inspires others to get involved.
“As an organisation, we’ve found the group bookings initiative to be a more effective, impactful, and rewarding way to encourage blood donation.”
London joins Birmingham and Manchester as the three cities to benefit from the new service.
The service is available at Brixton Blood Donor Centre, 444 Brixton Road, London, SW9 8BH.
The following link can be used to check availability and reserve a group booking.
