New professional support service to help donors and the donor-conceived

Available to everyone affected by donations which took place in licensed clinics after August 1991, the service offers two free sessions to:

• donor-conceived people aged over 16 considering applying for both non-identifying and, after 18 years of age, identifying information about their donor or donor-conceived siblings,
• pre-2005 donors who are considering re-registering as identifiable, and those who are aware that a donor-conceived person has applied for their identifying information.

Family and friends of donors and donor-conceived people who have also been affected by their donation experiences will be able to access the service for a fee.

The scheme, which is provided by nationwide post-adoption agency PAC-UK on our behalf, will offer advice and support by phone, online and face-to-face from Monday to Friday. The HFEA funded sessions will be arranged after an initial request has been received from eligible people by our Opening the Register team (see below for contact details).

Peter Thompson, Chief Executive, welcomed the service as a great opportunity for those affected by donation to talk through the issues that matter most to them:

“Being a donor is a selfless and generous act that offers people the chance for a family they may not otherwise have had. But of this can be emotionally complex for all parties. This service gives people the chance to get the support they need to make the right choice for them, and to know what to expect when they’ve made it.

We hope as many people as want to make use of it over the coming months and years, and find the support they need.”