A LEWES-based animal charity, Raystede, has announced the Chief Constable of Sussex Police Jo Shiner, is its new Patron.
Jo became the force’s ninth Chief Constable in July 2020 and is the first female Chief Constable in the history of Sussex Police. Jo, who joins the charity’s three other Patrons in the honorary position, will hold the role for three years.
In a policing career of over 31 years, Jo has undertaken a wide variety of roles across three forces. She is also a national ambassador for Oscar Kilo 9 (OK9) which is the canine element of the Police Wellbeing Service and the proud patron of Sussex Search and Rescue and Sussex Police Charitable Trust.
Stephanie Smith, Chief Executive of Raystede said: “We are delighted that the Chief Constable has accepted our invitation to become one of our Patrons.
Following her visit to Raystede earlier in the year, it was clear that not only was she a keen animal lover, but she had a real understanding of the many challenges that we face as an animal welfare charity. She expressed a great deal of interest in the work we are doing within community support, particularly around our Break Away scheme which provides temporary foster care for pets belonging to individuals facing crises, such as hospitalisation or fleeing domestic abuse.
It is therefore a great pleasure to welcome her as a Patron and we look forward to her support as we move forward with our work to expand our reach and impact, helping both animals and pet owners right across Sussex.”
Jo Shiner commenting: “I am incredibly humbled to become a Patron of this wonderful charity. As an animal lover and someone with a keen interest in animal welfare, I look forward to supporting Raystede in their ongoing work helping both animals and pet owners right across Sussex and the wider region.”
This year has been another challenging year for Raystede as the charity continues to experience a high number of requests from people needing to give up their pets as well as a slowdown in rehoming. Raystede had 4,278 animal surrender requests in 23/24, the highest ever total.
The charity receives no government funding, which means that it depends entirely on the generosity of supporters to meet the daily £6,500 cost to pay for its animal care and rehoming costs.
To find out more about the work of Raystede, visit https://www.raystede.org/
