All blood test appointments at Royal Free London sites must be pre-booked via the Swiftqueue platform, including for children. 

Children over 11 can be booked into the adult clinics via Swiftqueue. Children under 11 are seen in children's clinics and appointments can also be booked online.

Families with children who have additional needs or require play specialist input should be advised to call beforehand for guidance. The children’s outpatient play team at Barnet Hospital can be contacted via phone on 020 8216 5201 to discuss and coordinate support. 

Please remind families that the service can only accept patients within its catchment area, as results cannot be provided out of area.

When referring a child for a blood test, please advise parents, carers and guardians to follow the instructions provided for applying the local anaesthetic cream (EMLA cream). 

For patients being tested for infectious diseases or cortisol levels, please notify prior to scheduling so the tests can be booked at the beginning or end of clinics. Specifically, for infectious cases, families/guardians are encouraged to contact the children’s outpatient team in advance on 020 8216 5201 to facilitate proper appointment planning and safety measures.