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Since its inception in 1996, the UK Serious Hazards of Transfusion (SHOT) haemovigilance scheme has played a central role in improving transfusion safety by sharing learning from errors, adverse reactions and near misses. In 2025, SHOT introduced the Transfusion Safety Standards, providing a structured framework to embed safety and quality across the transfusion process. This article explores the rationale, development, scope and impact of these standards, considers challenges in implementation, and discusses their role in shaping the future of safe transfusion practice.