Planning decision leaves local pet charity without a home

PAWS is a local charity specialising in giving pets a second chance.

This is a plea for help by Founder Susan Curran.

After 5 years of dedicated fundraising by our hard-working volunteers and supporters to purchase suitable premises, we were elated after numerous enquiries and searching, to find a plot of land and outbuildings at Delph. Considering, that for 2 years we were under an eviction order to leave our rented site in Todmorden, when the offer on Delph was accepted, we believed we had found our forever rescue home.

Due to two failed planning applications plus a pre planning application at a cost of £15,000 to our charity, PAWS has been homeless since July 2023. Because of this, we are unable to help our community and their cats and dogs on anywhere near the scale that we could when we had fully functional premises.

It is well documented and reported that rescue centres nationally are experiencing a crisis and there has never been a greater need for our charitable services. Many rescues are having to close their doors due to being totally overwhelmed by pets being abandoned and thrown onto the streets. The cost-of-living crisis has had an enormous impact on animal charities. Those affected cannot afford to feed and care for their pets, many of these animals are loved members of the family and giving up a pet can be a very traumatic experience. Illness or even death of owners also adds to the pressure put on rescues. It is not only abandoned and abused pets that need help.

Our plans for the site at Delph included nature corridors to maintain and promote greater diversity in the insect and wildlife groups. Solar power and the use of green materials were among the number of items we were planning to implement. In essence, we planned to be environment, animal and human friendly, willing to develop and take of board suggestions for a futuristic eco-friendly charity- based site.

If anyone can help us find another site where we can have kennels and a cattery, the intention would be to follow our suggested model. We would need facilities for someone, mainly our founder member, to be on site 24 hours per day for the well -being, post- op care, feeding and hand-rearing and safety of the animals, and for the security of the site.

PAWS has made a tremendous and positive impression in the local community and surrounding areas. We are extremely fortunate to have a team of dedicated and hard-working volunteers, supporters and trustees who are ready to take on the challenge of building a future for our rescue.

PAWS is currently working at a much-reduced capacity, relying of foster carers and home to home rehoming. PAWS offer a service to the local community that has been forced to cut back and even turn away animals, leaving their owners distressed and upset. We are having to turn away dogs and cats daily, who’s owners are desperately in need of a pet rescue in our area.

We are looking to buy, rent or lease land and buildings. Please can anyone help us