The animal rescue and charity sector has had a difficult few years. Covid and lockdowns caused a devastating fall in donations and had a severe impact on staffing, in particular the lack of volunteers being able to work.

A message from the Trust’s Chair, David Simpson

In the last two years, the cost-of-living crisis has had a double impact. Firstly, on donations as people have less expendable income and, secondly, on the steep rise in the number of pets being given up to rehoming centres. This increase was a direct consequence of the surge in pet ownership (dogs in particular) during and post Covid, with many owners subsequently struggling to look after their pets.

We awarded over £230,000 to welfare charities in 2025

Luckily, grant-giving bodies such as the Petplan Charitable Trust are able to support on a consistent basis to help charities face these challenges. This year, we were able to help 44 welfare organisations including rescue and rehoming centres with grants totalling over £230,000. Of course, we couldn’t do this without your donations and the generosity of Petplan customers who opt-in to give a small monthly donation to the Trust.

In the past, our grants have focused a great deal on supporting the core work of rescue charities and rehoming centres. We are now seeing a greater emphasis on applications that enable charities to expand beyond their core operations and extend their reach. 28% of the grants we awarded this year, which included all 3 of the largest grants, were for community outreach initiatives and programmes.

The importance of these cannot be underestimated. Unless there is a wider public understanding in relation to responsible pet ownership and animal welfare, we can never break the cycle that sees so many animals ending up being taken in by rescue and rehoming charities.

Pets have a right to the best life we can give them

In our recently published Impact Report, celebrating 30 Years of Giving, the former chief executive of Battersea Dogs and Cat Home summed up the need for education succinctly in saying:

“As owners and pet rescuers, we absolutely have to work together to drive a fundamental rethink in the way we see pets in this country – not as commodities, trends or objects, but as individual joyous creatures with emotions, fears, worries, preferences and feelings, and a right to the best life we can give them.”

I hope you will continue to support the Trust in 2026 so that we, in turn, can support as many animal welfare projects and rescue and rehoming centres as possible. Together we really can make a difference.

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