Important news for West Lothian blood donors

In the coming weeks and months, you will notice some changes to where and when we are collecting blood in West Lothian.

During the Pandemic, many halls or venues across Scotland have had to cancel their community sessions, for very good reasons. Here at the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service (SNBTS) we continue to work very hard to avoid any disruption to the blood supply, whilst also meeting the needs of donors. For this reason, we are currently exploring alternative options to West Lothian community sessions and wanted to share this with you as soon as possible.

You may soon be invited to give your donation at our interim venue of St Andrew’s Church, Deans. We have secured this venue for a number of weeks during April and May while we explore venue options in the Livingston and West Lothian area. This venue is open four days a week, Wednesday to Saturday, and has provided us with a stable base for this period’s blood collections.

This temporary relocation to St Andrew's Church, Deans, means donations are no longer at the mercy of factors beyond our control, such as the Covid-19 pandemic or the Scottish weather. On a more personal level, it vastly reduces the likelihood of us having to contact you at the last minute to cancel or re-arrange your appointment. Giving blood is classed as essential travel by the Scottish Government, so if you are able to visit us at St Andrew's Church, a warm welcome awaits you.

At the moment, this means we have no further sessions planned in West Lothian. As this situation evolves, we will keep you up to date.  We are asking you to make an extra special effort to give blood at St Andrew's Church if you can. Every donation is very important to us at this time. You do not need to wait for your invitation. Please book your appointment now by creating your online donor account, or by phoning 0345 90 90 999.

Opening hours

Our opening times at St Andrew's Church, Deans are:

• Wednesday and Thursday: 1.30pm-3.30pm and 4.20pm-7pm
• Friday and Saturday: 10am-12pm and 12.50pm-3.30pm

We would like to thank you for all your donations. Your support is very much appreciated.

We welcome your feedback on this approach, and apologise if it causes you any issues.

Thank you for giving blood at this time.