Public responds to shortage of Blood supplies
How can I donate blood?
Although thousands of people have come forward to offer to donate blood, the Amber Alert will remain in place for at least four weeks.
Appointments to donate blood are filling up fast but new donors and existing donors are still welcome to sign up to donate, though they may have to wait to get an appointment.
People can check how and where to donate, at blood.co.uk , but should be prepared for online queues at the moment.
Some hospitals may have to cancel non-urgent operations to manage the shortage.
What type is most needed?
Type-O blood is in particular demand. O positive is the most common blood type. O negative is especially useful as anyone can receive in an emergency or if their blood type is unknown.
What if I can’t book an appointment?
Whilst there are limited appointments left, the NHS Blood and Transplant said they were doing prioritising appointments for blood types most in demand. They only have so many appointments available in the short term, but are developing a "register your interest" form so it can work with new donors who tried to sign up.
O negative donors are being asked to call the customer contact centre to book.
If you are an O-neg group blood donor, please call our customer-contact centre to book a priority appointment - we are asking all other blood donors to help by filling the appointments available in the coming few weeks at our permanent donor centres.
If you can't make an appointment now, please come back to us in a few weeks - we need to supply hospitals with blood every day of the year.
