HUNDREDS of people from Glasgow's South Asian community have signed up as organ donors since a new scheme was launched a year ago.

Kidney Research UK and the Scottish Government recruited eight peer educations to boost donor numbers in the West of Scotland.

The work involves trained volunteers raising awareness about organ donation and kidney disease in mosques and events such as the Mela.

So far, the award-winning two-year scheme has led to 300 extra sign-ups on the organ donor register, with the majority in the Glasgow area.

People from the South Asian community are up to five times more likely to have kidney disease and are more likely to require a transplant.

Yet, less than 1% of people from this grop are on the organ donor register.

This shortage results in people with a South Asian background waiting much longer for transplants - in the case of kidney transplants, up to twice as long as the rest of the population

Neerja Jain, Health Improvement Projects Manager at Kidney Research UK, said: "We were delighted to be approached by the Scottish Goverment to replicate what we have done in England to raise awareness about kidney disease and organ donation in the black and ethnic minority communities.

"People in this group face a longer wait for transplants and are also more likely to require them.

"There is a particular challenge within the Muslim community. We now have an extra 300 sign-ups.

"The success is down to the passion and commitment of the volunteers. We are now looking to recruit additional peer educators."

Glasgow MSP Anne McTaggart is driving forward a bill to introduce an opt-out transplant system in Scotland, on the back of the Evening Times' Opt for Life campaign.

Research shows that religion is often a barrier to people agreeing to organ donation because they feel their faith doesn't allow it, particularly amongst black Africans and Muslim communities.

However, all the major religions in the UK support the principles of organ donation and transplantation.