A vital charity in Cumbria has announced the launch of a new fleet of cars, which will be used to transport lifesaving blood across the region.

Blood Bikes Cumbria, a charity which recently celebrated its 10th anniversary, helps to transport vital lifesaving blood and laboratory samples between hospitals and medical centres in Cumbria. 

The charity saves the NHS over £400,000 each year and the Great North Air Ambulance Service over £80,000 thanks to its daily deliveries. 

And now, thanks in part to the £6,000 that was raised at their recent anniversary gala, a new fleet of cars will now be available.

The charity said: "

Blood Bikes Cumbria is very proud to announce the launch of our new fleet of cars. These vehicles replace our ageing Mazda fleet which has served us for around 6 years, with all of our cars having covered well over 100,000 miles in that time and some were approaching 150,000 miles. Our new Kia Sportage fleet of 5 cars, provided by Lloyd Kia Carlisle has been purchased using funds which have been donated to us and will serve us for the foreseeable future.

"Although we are called ‘Blood Bikes Cumbria’, our All Wheel Drive fleet of cars works alongside our motorcycle fleet to allow us to respond whatever the weather and also when the consignment is too large to fit on a motorcycle. Our fleet is positioned strategically across our area to allow us to respond quickly to callouts and provide our service to our regular users.

"Following our riders and drivers conducting familiarisation training on the new vehicles we are pleased to announce all of the new cars are on the road serving our local NHS services."

The charity is also actively recruiting more drivers to help continue providing their lifesaving work in the region, and is appealing for interested volunteers to get in touch.