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Not only has O negative donor John Collins given an incredible 170 donations since his first at 17 years old, he also sees the power of his lifesaving blood type in action in his work as an emergency care assistant with South West Ambulance Service

Part-time Easter bunny Etta attended a donation session in Ipswich with a bountiful basket of chocolate eggs in April, giving donors her thanks for the blood and platelet transfusions that helped to save her life.

More people than ever before are joining our NHS Stem Cell Donor Registry to potentially be a life-saving match for a patient in need.

When Susan Gaffney, not yet a year old, was discovered to have a hole in her heart, her parents couldn't help but fear the worst. But thanks to open heart surgery and blood transfusions, she has gone on to live a full and happy life.

"She was a person who looked after people and offered to help, and I like to think she continued to do this even when her life ended." Those are the words of Bianca Corney, whose mum Helen Robbins became an organ donor in 2023.

For the first time in 25 years, NHS patients are receiving lifesaving medicines made from plasma given by blood and plasma donors in England.

Sometime in 2020, O negative donor Steve Bryant learned that his blood was suitable for neonatal patients – newborn babies. Despite his lengthy commitment to saving lives, nothing had previously quite hit home in the same way.

Donating blood and donating plasma – same same, but different. Both are vital, lifesaving acts that help people in need, but there are some key distinctions between the two.

Both big cricket fans, James and Oliver are season ticket holders for Birmingham Bears and Birmingham Phoenix. When they're not at Edgbaston, they're at Birmingham Donor Centre, forging a prolific partnership.

Having started out as a blood donor in Twickenham 13 years ago, Deepak made the switch to platelets after moving to Surrey and now makes the trip to Tooting Donor Centre every month.