With our shops closed and events cancelled or postponed, the Shelter is currently in a very difficult situation. As it stands, we're losing hundreds of pounds of income daily while our ever-growing costs eat away at our remaining money.

With the current lockdown potentially continuing for weeks if not months, we are in dire need of your support to ensure the Shelter is still running when things finally return to normal.

We were already struggling prior to the current situation, and had many events and fundraising campaigns planned for Spring and Summer to help raise money and spread awareness of our cause, however these have all had to be cancelled or postponed indefinitely, putting us in a very uncomfortable situation.

Our number one priority is protecting the cats who depend on us. These include the hundreds of cats that we home every year, as well as the many foster cats that depend on us to cover the costs of their medicines, surgeries, and ongoing treatments.

Cats who would otherwise have been left abandoned by owners who couldnt afford to cover these costs themselves.

We stand by our policies of protection, including the neutering, vaccinating, and microchipping of every cat that comes through our door, as well as our policy of never putting a cat down if it can lead a happy life - a policy not every charity shares with us. Such strong (but necessary) measures mean that our annual expenses are very high, with this years vet bills alone estimated to exceed £40000.

However, with more and more cats like Rush (below) joining our foster scheme even this may be a conservative estimate, and our total running costs already reach the hundreds of thousands.

We offer our cats things many other charities can't. We use rooms, not cages, so our cats can stay somewhere bright and spacious with other cats, rather than isolated in metal cages. Our facilities are operated by some of the most dedicated, knowledgeable, and genuinely caring staff you could hope to meet, and with our family of volunteers we have created a wonderful home-away-from-home for cats and humans alike.

We have protected cats in need and supported our local community for 123 years thanks to your support. Now, more than ever, we need you to help us help the animals that need us the most.