Local charity offers Midland's needy horses a lifeline

Leading Sussex equine charity, The Blue Cross, has started work on a new equine welfare centre at Rolleston in Staffordshire.

Over the past decade, The Blue Cross in Northiam has seen an increase in demand for its equine welfare services, so the central location of the new centre will help the charity extend its reach to even more needy horses. Established over 100 years ago to combat the problems faced by working horses, today The Blue Cross is better known for its work rehoming homeless or neglected horses and ponies.

Kerstin Alford, director of equine welfare, at The Blue Cross said: “The new Rolleston centre will be a huge benefit, enabling The Blue Cross to provide a safe future, through its rehoming scheme, for even more horses and ponies that need help. Predicted to open in 2006, this year will be a critical time for both fundraising and building.”

The Staffordshire site was bequeathed to the charity in 1990 by Mr Robert Archer, to establish an animal sanctuary in memory of his late wife Hilda. Working in support of the two existing Blue Cross equine centres in Oxfordshire and East Sussex, the new 60 acre site will have the facilities, space and equipment to allow Blue Cross staff to give up to 35 horses at any one time the help they deserve.

The Blue Cross’s equine centres are not retirement sanctuaries. The charity’s goal is for all its animals to be given a second chance in a worthwhile, fulfilling new home. This means that new cases can only be admitted to the centres once horses have been successfully rehomed.

The Blue Cross is funded solely by public donations and relies on the support of animal lovers to help the hundreds of needy horses it cares for every year. Anyone interested in supporting The Blue Cross’s equine work or its new centre in Rolleston can call 01993 825517.

Notes to editors
The Blue Cross is Britain's pet charity, providing practical support, information and advice for pet and horse owners. Through its network of animal adoption centres it rehomes thousands of animals each year. Its hospitals provide veterinary care for the pets of people who cannot afford private vets' fees.

Media contact: Sam Roberts 020 7932 4065 (direct)
07917 132698 (out of hours)