Donation and Transplantation Plan 2021 to 2026: annual progress update - December 2025

1. Background: The Donation and Transplantation Plan for Scotland: 2021 – 2026 (“the Plan”)

The Donation and Transplantation Plan for Scotland: 2021-2026 was developed in collaboration with the members of the Scottish Donation and Transplant Group (SDTG), building on the improvements in donation and transplantation following the UK Organ Donation Taskforce report in 2008 and the recommendations set out in A Donation and Transplantation Plan for Scotland: 2013-2020.

The current Plan is focused on those actions which will or are likely to:

• increase organ and tissue transplantation and improve access to transplantation for patients; and
• improve the outcomes from transplantation

The Plan covers both living and deceased donation of both organs and tissue for adults and children and is focused on recommendations which we anticipate can be delivered or where we can make significant progress in the five years covered by the Plan.

It contains seven priorities for organ and tissue donation and transplantation in Scotland:

Priority 1: Implementation of the Human Tissue (Authorisation) (Scotland) Act 2019

Priority 2: Increasing organ transplantation

Priority 3: Reducing missed opportunities for deceased donation

Priority 4: Increasing living donation and reducing the wait for a kidney transplant

Priority 5: Transplant recipient support and aftercare

Priority 6: Research and innovation

Priority 7: Public health improvement

There are 21 recommendations set out in the plan which have been grouped into short, medium and long term priorities.

As at 1 December 2025, 18 recommendations in the Plan are complete with a number continuing to be monitored. Three recommendations remain ongoing.

The following five working groups were set up to lead on the short to medium term recommendations in the Plan:

1. Equity of access to transplantation working group (Priority 2.3)

2. Timely transplantation in Scotland working group (Priority 4.1)

3. Prepare guidance for referring renal units on recommended staffing levels to support living kidney donation (Priority 4.3)

4. Transplant recipient and support aftercare working rroup (Priority 5.1)

5. Clinicians have the right expertise to support patients locally working group (Priority 5.2 and 5.3)

The Plan also complements the UK Organ Donation and Transplantation: Meeting the Need Strategy and the Honouring the gift of donation: utilising organs for transplant Report developed by the Organ Utilisation Group (OUG), which was established by the Department of Health and Social Care to review the UK organ transplantation system.

The Scottish Government welcomes the recommendations set out by the OUG, and those identified by the Implementation Steering Group for Organ Utilisation (ISOU), which was subsequently established by the OUG to bring together organisations, patients and lay representatives with a role in driving forward the 12 recommendations set out in the OUG report. The Scottish Government has been involved in this work via the SDTG.

The ISOU has now completed their work and the reports and recommendations of the five fixed term ISOU sub-groups that were established to provide a strategic steer on some of the more complex areas of work have now been published at Implementation Steering Group for Organ Utilisation - ODT Clinical - NHS Blood and Transplant. The Scottish Government will take account of these recommendations and any relevant actions for Scotland, as we seek to deliver the agreed actions in this Plan.

1.1 Organ Donation Joint Working Group (ODJWG)

The Scottish Government also welcomes the work of the Organ Donation Joint Working Group (ODJWG), jointly chaired by the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT). The ODJWG brought together national and international experts in the field of organ donation, including donor families and service providers, as well as representatives from all four UK Health departments to identify actions to maximise the number of lives saved in the UK through the gift of deceased organ donation.

The ODJWG intend to publish a report outlining their recommendations, actions and supporting activity required to improve UK organ donation rates and to expand the pool of potential donors. NHSBT will issue a formal implementation plan following publication of the report in due course and the Scottish Government will consider the actions relevant to Scotland.