Two centres that collect blood from the umbilical cords of newborn babies for use in medical research are to close – putting up to 16 jobs at risk.
The Anthony Nolan Trust is also in consultation with staff over the future of its Cell Therapy Centre at Nottingham Trent University's Clifton campus, where 23 people work.
Sixteen staff are on hands at the Queen's Medical Centre and City Hospital to take donated umbilical cords from new mums. These can then be used for research and for the harvesting of blood stem cells to treat children with leukaemia or genetic conditions.
But Government money that pays for the two sites will run out in February and both will close immediately afterwards.
The future of the Cell Therapy Centre – a cord blood bank and research operation – is being reviewed.
But the charity will not say how many jobs could be lost or what the centre's future will be until the consultation period is over.
The cord collection centres opened in February 2014 and have proved popular with new mothers.
The team has collected 408 samples which have the potential to save lives.
The trust says that although mums will no longer be able to donate, all collections made by the time the centres close will be frozen for use later.
Chief executive, Henny Braund, said that closing the Nottingham centres was "not an easy decision" and he thanked donors for their generosity.
Mr Braund said: "We have a long-term strategy for our cord programme and we need to focus our efforts and resources most effectively for the benefit of transplant patients within a smaller number of collection centres.
"As a charity, we have to ensure that our resources are used most effectively for the benefit of patients who need a lifesaving transplant.
"Cord is an important option but is not the solution for everyone in
He said that the NHS stem cell strategic oversight committee had been reviewing what size of public cord bank was needed in the UK to meet the needs of patients.
"Anthony Nolan is working toward meeting this total along with NHS Blood and Transplant.
"Our proposed cord programme will enable us to meet the needs of the UK based on the expected demand and size of the cord blood bank required.
"With this in mind, we will be investing £2 million of voluntary funding from next April in cord blood collection and storage in the UK."
News of the cutbacks come just weeks after the Nottingham cord collection team was nominated in this year's NUHonours awards – recognising the best care and compassion shown in the city.
Speaking to the Post at the time, Penny Cole, lead midwife for the team, said: "It's been really popular. We do get a lot of women interested.
"Once the baby is out, it is taken away and we can then collect the umbilical cord from a holding area. It doesn't interfere with the birth.
"Until we started using them for this, they were thrown away as waste."
It is not clear how many jobs from the therapy centre will be lost but the charity has confirmed the contracts of 15 of the 16 staff at the collection sites will come to an end.
The other member of staff, a midwife, will continue to work at Nottingham's hospitals.
There are six other collection centres in the country: two in Leicester, one in Manchester, one in London and one in Birmingham.
The Birmingham site is to close in March.
