A blood donor from Otley has been praised for rolling up her sleeve an incredible 75 times to help others.

Ann Phimister was presented with a crystal award in recognition of her generosity at a ceremony in Leeds.

The 59-year-old joined other repeat donors from across Yorkshire at the NHS Blood and Transplant organised event, held at Leeds Metropolitan University.

She was presented with her award by someone who really knows the value of blood donations – mother-of-two Jayne Snell, from Selby.

Jayne was diagnosed with Myelodysplastic Syndrome, a rare blood cancer, in 2011 and the following year received numerous transfusions which helped keep her alive.

Lead donor relations manager at NHS Blood and Transplant, Donna Batty, paid tribute to Ann and the other award winners.

She said: “We would like to thank these donors for their commitment to blood donation.

“They are an inspiration to us all and we hope that others will follow in their footsteps to save and improve the lives of many people.

“If these donors have inspired you, please register to donate now, as we always need new donors.

“This is always an extremely challenging time of year for us as we need to make sure that hospitals are supplied with the blood they need to treat patients over the Christmas holidays.”

Each blood donation can potentially save the lives of up to three people, which means the donors at the awards ceremony potentially helped save or improve up to 17,000 lives between them.

Anyone aged between 17 and 65 who weighs more than 50kg (7 stone, 12lbs) and is in general good health can become a donor. For more information, call 0300 123 23 23 or visit blood.co.uk.