An appeal has been made for donors to come forward to give blood in Suffolk to prevent stocks from running low in the future.

Two sessions have been arranged, the first at River of Life Church in Carr Road, Felixstowe on Tuesday (July 5) and the second at the Harvest Centre in Brandon on Thursday (July 7).

As of the end of June, the church event was only 68% full, while the Brandon session had 29% spare capacity.

A spokesperson for NHS Blood and Transplant said at present, blood levels in hospitals were sufficient to meet existing demand, but there could be a risk in future if more blood donors did not come forward.

The NHS Give Blood website states that 400 new donors are needed a day to meet demand, while 135,000 new donors were needed each year to replace those who can no longer give blood.

The healthcare service is also seeking donors from different backgrounds, including 40,000 more black donors to meet growing demand for better matched blood.

Young people in particular are being targeted to ensure that future demand can be met, while certain blood types are also being prioritised, especially O negative.

The spokesperson said: “Blood is collected and distributed on a regional and national basis.

“So donations do not stay in the same area and the amount of blood donated in each area does not determine blood supplies to the hospitals in that area.

“We currently have enough blood to meet demand and our service to hospitals remains as normal. But we need people to make appointments now to make sure stocks do not fall further.”

To donate or for more information, call 0300 1232323, download the NHS Give Blood app, or visit www.blood.co.uk