People between the ages of 17 and 34 are being urged to donate blood, after new figures revealed a 20 per cent drop in the number of young blood donors over the last ten years.
According to NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT), the majority of people who donate regularly are over 40, with just 14 per cent of donors under the age of 30.
The organisation's figures show that there are now just 237,520 donors between the ages of 17 and 34, down from almost 300,000 in 2001.
It hopes than 10,000 people will 'make a date to donate' as a result of its latest campaign, which is backed by a number of celebrities, including Sophie Ellis-Bextor.
The singer said: 'When I heard about the many mothers who receive blood during labour it really hit home how important it is for me to do my bit to help.'
Jon Latham, assistant director of blood donation at NHSBT, revealed that just one unit of blood can save the lives of three adults or seven babies.
'However, three-quarters of people who have ever given blood last donated over two years ago, so we're also keen to emphasise the need to give blood on a regular basis, to help replace the 15 per cent of donors who leave the register each year.'
The majority of people who are in good health, aged 17 to 65, and weigh at least 7st 12lb can donate blood every 16 weeks.