MORE than 200 people signed up to become blood donors in the city last week – almost double the amount for the previous four weeks.
The boost came after the Nottingham Post highlighted a drop in the number of young people giving blood.
A total of 207 people became new donors in Nottingham City between last Monday(Dec10) and Friday(Dec14).
Of those, 178 were on the Monday,(Dec10) when the Post highlighted the decline in young donors.
The new donors include 96 people aged 17 to 19 and 75 others aged between 20 and 24.
In the county, a further 107 people have also signed up as blood donors in Notts since December 10.
Of these 20 were 17 to 19, and 29 were aged 20 to 24.
Holly Mason, lead donor relations manager with NHS Blood and Transplant, said: "It is fantastic to see people in Nottingham and the county responding to our appeal for new blood donors.
"The majority of them are aged 17 to 24, which is an important age range for us to reach.
"We're looking for the lifesavers of the future."
The figures are a big increase on the numbers in the city achieved last month.(Nov)
Between November 7 and December 2, a total of 116 new donors came forward in the city.
The average number of new donors each month from January to September this year was 144.
In Notts, there were a total of 209 people became new donors between November 7 and December 2.
NHS Blood and Transplant is running a campaign to find 10,000 new donors in the East Midlands, and 100,000 nationally, by February 14.
Since launching the campaign last month(Nov), more than 48,000 people have now signed up nationally.
It comes after the number of young people registering to become blood donors in Nottingham and Notts has dropped by more than a third in the last two years.
More young people getting tattoos and piercings is thought to have contributed to the dip, as anyone who has a tattoo cannot give blood for at least four months after the procedure.
NHS Blood and Transplant say the decline needs to be addressed now, to avoid a shortage of supplies of life-saving blood in the years to come.
Ms Mason added: "We'd like to say a big thank you to everyone who has registered to become a blood donor.
"While the appeal is going well we still need more people to come forward to help us recruit 100,000 new donors in 100 days."
Every year 225,000 new donors are needed to replace those who drop out of the system in the UK.
People aged 17 and over can donate blood.
To find out more or to book an appointment, contact 0300 123 23 23 or visit www.blood.co.uk.
