A call has been made for Oxfordshire families to discuss organ donation after five people in the county died last year before receiving the transplant they needed.

More people than ever across the UK donated their organs after their deaths in 2015, according to the Organ Donation and Transplantation Activity Report 2015/16, published today.

In Oxfordshire, 42 people received a potentially lifesaving or transforming transplant between April last year and March.

The report also showed that about four out of 10 families in the UK did not agree to donate a relative’s organs.

Sally Johnson, director of organ donation and transplantation at NHS Blood and Transplant, said: "We’re very grateful to every family in Oxfordshire who supported a relative’s decision to donate, or who made the decision to donate on behalf of their relative last year.

"Many families in Oxfordshire tell us they take huge comfort in knowing that their relative has saved the lives of others.

"We recognise that families are approached about organ donation at a difficult time, but with almost all of us prepared to take an organ if we need one, we need to be ready to donate too.

"There are 76 people in Oxfordshire waiting for a transplant now and they need people to agree to donate for them to get the organ transplant they so desperately need."

NHS Blood and Transplant is promoting Organ Donation Week starting on Monday.

Staff from the blood and transplant team said there was a particular need to encourage more black and Asian families to talk about organ donation.

To join the NHS Organ Donor Register visit organdonation.nhs.uk or call 0300 123 2323.