The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has called for churchgoers and people of faith to become blood donors, especially those from ethnic minority backgrounds. Donors of Black heritage are urgently needed to help those with sickle cell, UK’s fastest-growing genetic blood disorder. Mr Khan, who donated blood himself at an event at City Hall, said he held a huge respect and admiration for church leaders and recognised their importance in encouraging people in their congregations to give blood and become organ donors. He said, ‘One of the things about our Christian neighbourhoods is the amount of good they do for their communities: the charity work, the food banks, homeless shelters and the work they did during the pandemic.’ Around 135,000 new donors are needed per year to meet demand; at least 40,000 new blood donors a year are needed in London over the next five years to keep being able to supply blood for lifesaving treatments.