Blood and stem cell projects

Key information for projects focusing on blood and stem cell donation.

The application window for the latest round of funding is now closed.

On this page:

The need for blood donation projects
Areas of focus for blood donation projects
The need for stem cell donation projects
Applying for funding
Further questions

The need for blood donation projects

Due to clinical need, any activity focusing on blood donation must engage the Black African and/or Black Caribbean communities. Activity must focus on driving registrations and not facilitating mobile blood donation sessions.

New figures reveal a record 250 donations are now needed every day to treat sickle cell, the fastest growing genetic condition in the UK.

The figure shows a huge increase in demand from hospitals to treat patients. Only 150 donations a day were needed five years ago.

The rising demand is driven by increasing patient numbers, as people live for longer, and greater use of complete blood transfusions – known as red cell exchanges – which improve patient outcomes.

Demand for blood to treat sickle cell has risen by 52% over the past five years and is projected to continue to rise.

Currently, NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is only able to provide matched blood for just over half of the hospital requests – other patients need to be treated with O Negative, the universal blood type.

Being treated with O Negative rather than the correct blood type is clinically safe but could mean, long term, patients are more likely to develop antibodies. This puts them at risk of complications and makes it even harder to find blood they can receive.

We are particularly keen to work with trusted voices and messengers who can help us address barriers, normalise blood donation and drive behaviour change within Black African and Black Caribbean communities, with a primary focus to increase Black donor registrations.

Projects support us by becoming part of our strategic approach to community engagement, mapping and identifying opportunities and using real life stories to show the impact Black blood donors can have.

Areas of focus for blood donation projects

This section details some of the themes applicants need to consider when putting together a project focused on blood donation.

Ro blood

The Ro subtype is a variation of the Rh positive blood type. You might have it if you have O positive, A positive, B positive or AB positive blood.

There is a gap between the number of donations that we collect and the amount of Ro blood that hospitals need.

Why do we need Ro blood?

Ro blood is important in the treatment of people with sickle cell, an inherited blood disorder that mainly affects people of Black heritage.

People with sickle cell have unusual shaped red blood cells, which can clump together and get stuck in blood vessels, causing extreme pain known as a ‘crisis’. This can lead to blindness, organ failure, stroke and many more symptoms.

There are currently 14,000 people living with sickle cell in the UK, with 300 babies born with the condition per year. It is the fastest growing blood disorder in the UK.

Since 2017, the NHS has provided a ground-breaking service for patients with sickle cell. It now provides regular transfusions to many patients, which help avoid sickle cell patients going into crisis, so they can enjoy a more normal life.

Subtypes are important when someone has regular transfusions as they need blood that ethnically matches their own as closely as possible.

People of Black heritage are ten-times more likely to have the Ro subtype, and due to the high number of people from that background who have the disorder, Ro blood is in high demand to ensure sickle cell patients can get the treatment they need. That’s why more Black blood donors are needed.

Key motivators to give blood

Saving lives is a consistent motivator across all target audiences, however additional motivations for Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities include:

Having a rare blood type or ‘special blood’
Helping someone from my community
Differences in altruism – people of Black heritage are more likely to give to a relative or community project rather than a stranger. For both blood & organs it’s seen as a ‘shared responsibility’ as part of a caring community.

Real life stories are an effective key motivator, although they require a contemporary twist to be relevant for a younger audience. Check out our Give Blood YouTube channel for inspiration.

Barriers to giving blood

The process of donation and personal barriers are consistent across all target audiences e.g. personal belief/faith, fear of needles, understanding what is involved, childcare and time issues.

However additional barriers for people of Black heritage include:

Belief there is enough blood
Lack of awareness around the need for ethnically matched blood and organs
Trust in the state
Information and concerns about low iron levels
A belief that they are not eligible to donate and that their blood is not needed
Unaware of where to donate and less likely to attend unfamiliar venues
Concerns and suspicions around hygiene / infection / safety / testing / use of data
Family influences, dynamics and power structures.

The need for stem cell donation projects

For someone with blood cancer or a blood disorder, a stranger donating stem cells could be their best chance of survival. Ethnicity can play an important part in this process.

Someone in need of a stem cell transplant is most likely to find a match in a person with a similar genetic history. That often means someone from the same ethnic background.

If you have blood cancer and your best treatment option is a stem cell transplant, your odds of finding an unrelated donor match is 72% if you're White, compared to 37% if you're from a minority ethnic background.

This is because people from minority ethnic backgrounds often have rarer tissue types which make it harder to find matching donors. While there are thousands of people from minority ethnic backgrounds on the register today, we must continue to raise awareness and recruit even more donors, to help find more matches for those that need it.

What are stem cells?

Stem cells are unique cells of the body that can divide to make more copies of themselves and become specialised cells such as white blood cells.

All other cells, tissue, organs and bones develop from stem cells. Usually, the stem cells found in bone marrow produce exactly the right amount of each type of blood cell – red blood cells, platelets and white blood cells – to keep us healthy.

Why do some people need a stem cell transplant?

The development of the blood system is a carefully controlled process but when things go wrong it can cause our body to produce too many blood cells that are not fully developed, so they can’t do their job properly. This can potentially develop into blood cancers or blood disorders.

For some people with blood cancer, a stem cell transplant could be their last treatment option, and their best chance at survival.

About Anthony Nolan

NHSBT are working in partnership with Anthony Nolan for our Community Grants Programme. Anthony Nolan saves three lives a day of people with blood cancer. They do this by matching stem cell donors to people with blood cancer and blood disorders in desperate need of a lifesaving transplant.

Every 20 minutes, someone in the UK is diagnosed with a blood cancer, and by joining the Anthony Nolan register, you could be the lifesaving match for a patient in need.

Right now, there are more than 875,000 people on the Anthony Nolan register, but our goal is to find a perfect matching donor for every patient in need, and there’s much more we need to do to get there.

Joining the Anthony Nolan register is simple – if you’re aged 16-30 and in generally good health then you could be the lifesaving match we need.

Find out more about the Anthony Nolan charity on their website

Applying for funding

The application window for the latest round of funding closed in January 2023.

All applicants have now been notified of funding decisions.

Further questions

If you have any further questions about the programme or previous projects we have funded, please contact community.funding@nhsbt.nhs.uk and we will respond as soon as we can.

About the programme

About the Community Grants Programme and why it's needed.

Find out more