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         Patron: Heather Mills

Latest News

On this page we mention, amongst other things, building work that goes on at the Retreat such as new fencing, new stable blocks etc. and we also like to pass on news about fundraising events that have taken place. These efforts, together with people donating money on a one off or regular basis ensure that the above mentioned work can go ahead as well as enabling us to care for the animals. We would like to thank everyone who raises money for the Retreat.


Nominate The Retreat!  

18/05/12 - Sainsbury’s are taking nominations from the public for their favourite local charity, which could then be supported by the local store, depot or support centre via a year’s worth of fund and awareness raising.  Please nominate The Retreat to help the animals!   Forms available at Sainsbury's stores' Customer Service desks, closes 23rd May 2012.  Click Here for more details.  Thank you!


Bank Holiday Sale at the Animal Lovers Charity Shop 

Animal Lovers Charity Shop sale on Monday 7th May. All welcome to come along, have a chat, and maybe find something you like -

Animal Lovers Charity Shop, 185 Petts Wood Road, Petts Wood, Orpington, Kent BR5 1JZ

Opening hours are Mon-Sat 10.00 am - 4:00 pm


All proceeds go to help rescued animals at genuine no-kill shelters. 


K9 Courses helping our rescued dogs

We would like to give huge thanks to K9 Courses for all their help with our rescued dogs. K9 Courses are a young and committed dog training school with dedicated, Academy of Dog Training and Behaviour (ADTB) approved trainers, who apply fun, motivational, positive reward-based training techniques and principles to help owners develop strong, loving and mutually beneficial relationships with their dogs.


The training services they offer (group obedience courses, one-to-one behavioural consultations, educational workshops, fun socials) have been designed to fit the key developmental stages, right from the start to help prepare for a new dog’s arrival, through each stage of training from puppyhood, through adolescence, to adulthood. For anyone planning, or who already has a new puppy, or is welcoming a rescue dog from The Retreat, or any other rescue centre, dealing with a specific behavioural problem, or just wanting to help their beloved four-legged friend with some additional training, K9 Courses are a great place to start for all the necessary courses, help and advice. You can find them at www.k9courses.com and Facebook or Twitter (@K9Courses).


Thank You 

 

(((MWAH)))


Thanks for supporting all of us living at The Retreat.


love from Poppy xx




The Starfish Story


How to make a difference - read this inspiring story on our Volunteering page.



Homes for little ones needed

Please see our Rehoming page for details of Rosemary and Thyme, Peter and Jodie, Dexter and Tommy, also kittens and hens.


UKForex Charity Fundraiser

Thanks go to Hannah who after homing a dog from The Retreat decided that she would put us forward for a fundraiser her work was doing. Hannah really fought for us to be chosen and succeeded for us to be one of the Four charities.


 UKForex to donate day’s revenue to charity

 As part of the OzForex Group, UKForex will donate global profits generated on 3 August 2011 to charity, under a new company initiative that sees the group centralising its worldwide corporate social responsibility efforts. All revenue from the day will be divided between a selection of local charities, including The Retreat Animal Rescue in the UK and The Sumba Foundation Australia.


 The Retreat Animal Rescue

The Retreat, based in northwest Kent, is entirely voluntary and a not-for-profit organisation. All funds raised go to the welfare of the animals that come into the Retreat's care and where possible animals are re-homed in permanent, loving homes. The Retreat operates a no-kill policy.


 The Retreat offers much needed support to all animals, farmed, domestic and wild. Their aim is to educate the public that all animals need commitment, love and respect. All animals are given the time, veterinary care and love they need to recover before being homed. If a suitable home cannot be found they are never killed, they simply stay at the Retreat for the rest of their lives.


 The Sumba Foundation Australia

The Sumba Foundation Australia is dedicated to improving quality of life for the indigenous people of Sumba, Indonesia, and is currently helping over 20,000 people in more than 147 villages. In the Foundation’s surveys of the schools and clinics in the area it was found that over 90% had neither running water nor a clean water source nearby.


 Over the past 10 years, The Sumba Foundation Australia has been providing clean water, building and operating healthcare clinics, repairing and supplying schools, bringing in doctors and nurses and helping to eradicate malaria and malnutrition.


 OzForex’s donation will contribute to the Sumba Water Project, which will establish wells and associated infrastructure within the villages of Lolowo and Welajung, providing nearly 2000 people with clean water. Dr Stephen Nolan, Chairman of The Sumba Foundation Australia, said “The Sumba Water Project is about providing the people of Sumba with the basic infrastructure that allows opportunity to flourish.”


Other Charities

Additional funds will be donated to charities in Australia and Canada, as selected by OzForex employees in each respective office:

 

Additional Charitable Donations

An equal share of funds will be made available for contribution to natural disaster relief, as well as to match charitable donations by OzForex employees.


 Charity Websites


Foreign Exchange Home


Building Work Continues

The building work/repairs that have to be carried out at the Retreat are a never ending job. We are pleased to say that work on our new sheep field is progressing with netting and a new water trough (thanks to Brian for this), so we have some very happy sheep. Additionally work has started on the new fencing in our main pig field.

Heather Mills visits the Retreat

Our patron, Heather Mills, paid us a visit in June to see the Retreat for herself on what was, thankfully, a beautiful day with plenty of sunshine and no rain. Heather arrived with family and friends and spent a number of hours meeting the animals and learning about the work we do at our rescue centre.

We know how busy Heather is, so would like to thank her for taking the time to visit us and for showing such a great interest in the Retreat. Everyone had an enjoyable afternoon which included wonderful food provided by Neil. Below are a couple of photos from the day.


Building Work at the Retreat

2010 has so far seen a large amount of building work taking place at the Retreat. We have had two new mobile stable blocks erected, one of which is in the main pig field. This has meant that we now have an additional five stables providing shelter to more animals.

We have also had a large amount of building work/repairs carried out by Brian, who has (voluntarily) worked tirelessly at weekends, doing a wide range of jobs including repairing fencing, laying hardcore, erecting shelters and other vital work. He has even carved three huge signs out of wood (with a chain saw!), and two of these are pictured - with Degas! We must say a massive thank you to Brian for all his hard work.



Kent online Interview

In late December Kent online news held an interview with Billy discussing the numbers of animals disgarded due to the recession. To see this interview please click on Kent online

Heather Mills becomes our patron

We are delighted to announce that Heather has agreed to become a patron of the Retreat. We wrote to Heather asking if she would consider taking up the position and, knowing how many requests of this nature she must receive, were not sure if she would be able to accept. However in September we received confirmation from Heather that she would accept the patronage. We had never considered before having a patron, however as we grew and evolved, we felt that it was the right time to ask a well known figure to see if they would take the position. Heather was the automatic choice as we feel her aims and principles go hand in hand with our own. Thanks go to everyone who was involved with this, and especially of course Heather herself.

Many of you may already know of Heather’s work in campaigning against animal abuse and also against landmines. In addition to this she carries out a large amount of charitable work helping people in various countries. Heather is a United Nations Association Goodwill Ambassador and a founding patron of No More Landmines in the UK. You can find out more about Heather and her work by visiting her website.

Charity shop opens to raise funds for the Retreat

A new charity shop opened in Petts Wood on Friday 6th November with all profits raised going to the Retreat.  Subject to the amounts raised we are in turn hoping to donate some of the proceeds we receive to certain other small, voluntary, “no-kill” animal rescues.  In addition to the items for sale that people have kindly donated to the shop, there are Retreat leaflets and newsletters on display and there are also a selection of leaflets and information from other animal campaigning groups such as Animal Aid.

So far there are around eight volunteers who are kindly giving up their time to work in the shop and telling customers about the Retreat and what their money is going towards.  If you are able, please do try and visit the shop to have a look around and chat to the volunteers.  Additionally if you have any items you would like to donate please contact us or drop it off at the shop (only during opening hours please - 10.00 am to  4 pm, Mon to Sat).
 
The details of the shop are: - ‘Animal Lovers Charity Shop’
185 Petts Wood Road, Petts Wood, Orpington, Kent, BR5 1JZ  (see map below)

Tel: 01689 835454

Map



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