Blood Cars

Since early 2025 we have a fleet of four blood cars – Dacia Joggers. There are two main reasons – FMT and severe weather.

SSCBB manages the vital Faecal Microbiota Transplant (FMT) logistics for the Microbiome Treatment Centre at the Birmingham Medical School, arranging delivery to hospitals throughout the UK. This often requires the help of other blood bike groups and the Civil Air Support charity thus enabling us to meet the time sensitive delivery requirements.

The charity recognised that as the frequency of requests increased (284 in 2024), it couldn’t guarantee meeting these demands in sub zero temperatures when riding a bike is not a safe option. It trialled 4-wheel options at the back end of 2023 (a couple of leased vans) and it provided the solution needed to being able to meet the needs of FMT as well as other requests during inhospitable weather conditions.

This was proven when the first snows of winter fell in November and we had to close our bike service, relying on our first SSCBB car to ensure continuity of a pre-planned FMT relay to Cardiff. Our cars are named (just like our motorbikes), they are Kestrel, Merlin, Osprey and Falcon.

What people say about us

“The blood bikes are vital to getting our life saving faecal transplants to critically ill patients with C. dificile infection”

Professor Peter Hawkey, FMT Service Lead, PHE Public Health Laboratory Birmingham

“On a regular basis we need to transport samples urgently, between Shrewsbury and Telford, and also from here in Shropshire to Birmingham and beyond. In the past it has been quite difficult, out of hours, to get those samples moving quickly, so it has made a huge difference to us to be able to rely on blood bikes to get those samples moving for us.”

Debbie Jones, Support Services Care Group Director Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust

“The voluntary service the blood bikes offer us has been instrumental in widening the scope of our FMT service across the country and ensuring costs are a low as possible for the NHS”

Dr Vicki McCune, FMT Service Manager PHE Public Health Laboratory Birmingham

“There is certainly times when the quicker we can get results back, the better the outcome for the patient, so blood bikes are helping to save lives and, at the same time, they are saving the NHS lots of money”

Debbie Jones, Support Services Care Group Director Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust

“We are so grateful to the volunteer riders who give up their time to courier blood products and urgent samples for testing between our hospitals and the regional NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) centre in Birmingham. Every minute counts when it comes to helping seriously-ill and injured patients and being able to call on the blood bikes round the clock helps us to provide safe, effective treatment and transfusions.”

Paula Gardener, Chief Nurse Burton Hospital Trust (covering Burton, Lichfield and Tamworth)

“We very much appreciate all of their efforts and the support they give both SaTH and the wider NHS.”

Debbie Jones, Support Services Care Group Director Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust