Manchester Norfolk House Donor Centre

This was my first experience giving blood and I will definitely be doing it again. The online booking system was easy to use and when I arrived I felt very at ease. The staff are great and the whole place gives off a really positive feeling. If you are going to give blood I would definitely recommend doing it here, I felt very looked after.

This is where you go to donate blood — look away now if that makes you feel icky!
Where I’m from there is no dedicated blood donation centre and so to donate blood I’d have to go to a church, village hall, or a porta cabin etc. So it’s great to me that this place has one purpose and is open most days for that purpose.
It’s clean and bright and welcoming in here, which is helped by the very friendly staff who will take time to chat to you and make you feel at ease. There are closed off rooms where you discuss your health questionnaire and get the dreaded finger prick (worst bit of donating blood — seriously). In the makeshift blood donation centres I’m used to going to this would just be a table with a screen pulled round it — not very confidential if you’re discussing something sensitive!
I’ve never had any pain or discomfort during the actual donation here, even though I have small uncooperative veins. Tip for anyone who struggles to make a full donation within the time limit: you might be dehydrated, up your water intake in general and drink loads of water in the days leading up to the appointment. The staff always make sure I’m happy and have a laugh and a joke with me.
After your donation you have to sit for a few minutes so the staff can monitor you in case you die (I’m kidding…) and so you can have a hot drink and some snacks which include Seabrooks crisps. Yes, king of all crisps, for the small price of a pint of your blood. You’ve (hopefully) got plenty of that.
Dropping one star because on my most recent visit, my arm felt weird (sore, tender, painful) after the donation and when I asked a nurse about it they said I should ring the helpline if it got worse. Of course there was nothing wrong and while I fully believe that they’d have helped me if there was, I didn’t feel particularly supported in that moment.
In terms of city centre location and the fact that I always have a good experience here, I’d recommend coming here to give your blood away to those who need it.