Want to give blood in Islington? Here's how

Someone asked me where you'd need to go to donate blood in Islington recently, and it struck me that I had absolutely no idea. I can't donate myself due to pesky health reasons, so had never thought to look. But I am hoping that by reading this, another resident may be inspired to go and do the deed and help save some local lives!

As it turns out, there are loads of places you can go to get "vamped". These include the Emirate Stadium, which holds regular blood donation sessions a few feet away from the pitch (probably not on match days though!), Islington Town Hall and the Whittington Hospital. You can see a full list of venues here, and appointments can be booked online.

It goes without saying that donating blood is a fantastic way to help other people, and is probably the most effortless way that the average person can act to directly save lives. Despite this, only 4% of us do it, which means a lot of people are relying on very few. I'm also told you get given some rather wonderful snacks at the end of a session...

To find out if you are able to donate blood, complete the donor health check here and register here if you meet the service's criteria.

Image: Basykes