PA24-L05 Changing minds about saving lives: A nationwide, student-led model for recruiting young blood donors

Published Date: 01st June 2026

Publication Authors: Whitter. L

Background
There is a global need to improve the sustainability of blood stocks through increased voluntary, non-remunerated donation. Proportionally fewer young people donate blood in high-income countries compared to low- and middle-income countries. In the UK, 51% of regular blood donors are aged over 45, indicating underrepresentation of younger age groups. As younger generations are critical to the future of blood supplies, engagement with blood donation among young people is essential. However, reported barriers include lifestyle-related eligibility criteria, fear, and convenience. Currently, there are no nationwide health campaigns targeting young people to address these barriers in the UK.

Aims
We aimed to establish a nationwide campaign aiming to raise awareness of blood donation among university students and recruit new donors. We aimed to: work in collaboration with UK students to run educational donor recruitment events on university campuses; develop engaging promotional materials to increase the appeal of blood donation among university students; provide peer-to-peer support for university students through their first blood donation.

Methods
We recruited and trained >120 student volunteers from 12 UK universities on the fundamentals of blood donation and transfusion, how to start conversations and answer questions from their peers, and how to register as a blood donor. With support from a national committee and national blood services they organised blood donor recruitment events, social events, and facilitated blood drives on their campuses. The numbers of students engaged (i.e. a conversation about blood donation), recruited as donors, and successfully donating blood as a result of these events were recorded.

Results
Between September 2021- September 2025, our volunteers organised 110 blood donor recruitment events across 12 UK university campuses. A total of 6054 students were engaged, 2052 students were recruited as blood donors, and 521 blood donations were directly facilitated. The events with highest engagement were blood type-testing events and ‘Freshers Fairs’. The events producing the most blood donations were facilitated group bookings at local donor centres.

Summary/Conclusions
We demonstrate that training university student volunteers to recruit their peers as blood donors with support from a national committee is a sustainable, replicable, and effective model to engage young people in blood donation conversations, and increase the number of young people making their first donation. Furthermore, we show that targeted events, partnerships, and appealing marketing materials can successfully overcome many barriers to donation identified by young people. Limiting factors including geographic access and low appointment availability influence the conversion from donor registration to successful donation, but can be addressed through facilitation of group blood donations on university campuses or at local donor centres.

Whitter, L et al. (2026). PA24-L05 Changing minds about saving lives: A nationwide, student-led model for recruiting young blood donors. Vox Sanguinis. 121(S1), p.107. [Online]. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/vox.70275 [Accessed 23 July 2026]