Organ donations have declined sharply and the NHS has issued a desperate call to action.

NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) has warned that contributions has fallen by nine per cent. The unit has had to launch a campaign as part of Organ Donation Week, urging people to sign up to the register to help prospective patients.

Anthony Clarkson, director of organ and tissue donation and transplantation at NHSBT said: “We are facing one of the most challenging periods for organ donation in over a decade. The sharp decline in donors and the rising number of people waiting for a transplant need urgent action.

“We have already adapted significantly to changes in the donation environment, but saving lives and reducing the waiting list needs collective effort across the NHS and society.”

It’s the first time that NHSBT has put forward an urgent action plan for organ donations. NHS data shows that deceased donation rates have declined sharply in recent months and are currently trending at nine per cent below this time last year. The UK transplant waiting list continues to rise, with over 8,700 people currently waiting for a lifesaving transplant.

New figures released today, reveal that over 700 potential donations did not go ahead in the period between April 2021 and March 2026, because families did not know for certain what their loved one would have wanted. On average, each deceased donor will donate three organs, resulting in around 2,127 missed opportunities for transplant.

In the south east of England, 921 people are currently on the organ donation waiting list. Around 480 people have died while waiting for a transplant over the last decade.

Only one per cent of people in the UK die in circumstances where donation is possible and the pool of eligible donors has reduced by around 20% since 2019/20. At the same time, family consent rates have dropped from 67 per cent in 2020/21 to 57 per cent last year, resulting in hundreds of missed opportunities for transplants.

NHSBT said families support donation 90 per cent of the time when they know their loved one’s decision, but this falls to around 50 per cent when no decision is known. Donation cannot proceed without family support, making recorded decisions critical.

NHSBT is calling on one million people who have never registered before to confirm their organ donation decision on the NHS Organ Donor Register this year. Mr Clarkson added: “There is a simple action the public can take to help save lives.

“Please sign the NHS Organ Donor Register. Most of us would accept an organ if we needed one but opportunities to save lives are being lost because families didn’t know what their loved ones wanted. Leave them certain.

“It takes two minutes to confirm an organ donation decision on the NHS Organ Donor Register. Each donor can potentially save up to nine lives.”

People can sign up by visiting organdonation.nhs.uk, by using the NHS App, or by calling 0300 123 23.