Council join blood donor campaign

The council has thrown its weight behind the Missing Type campaign to encourage local people to come forward and save lives by registering as blood donors.

NHS Blood and Transplant says the number of people becoming donors and giving blood for the first time in England decreased by 24.4% in 2015 compared to 2005.

The Missing Type campaign, which first ran last year, is reaching beyond England and Wales by involving 21 countries around the world.

The campaign sees organisations and individuals encouraged to remove the As, Os and Bs – the letters that make up blood types – from their name to highlight the lack of blood donors.

Burnley Council workers lined up on the town hall steps to take part in the social media campaign and help raise awareness.

A number of organisations supporting the campaign in the UK, including Burnley-based Warburtons, Microsoft, Guys & St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, Boots, Manchester City, Transport for London, Santander and Odeon have released a 30-second teaser film on their social media channels.

Everybody can help raise awareness of the issue by sharing pictures on social media of their names with the missing letters using #MissingType hashtag.

To sign up as blood donor or find out more about the campaign, visit www.blood.co.uk.