Trust donates huge sum
Dogs Trust has received the largest grant ever donated to support the charity’s work in Scotland.
The John William Hay Charitable Trust has pledged £1.3million has been pledged towards the rebuilding of Dogs Trust West Calder.
The generous is not only the largest grant from a trust Dogs Trust has ever received in Scotland, but also John William Hay Charitable Trust's largest donation to any charity.
The donation is in addition to previous pledges of over £78,000, donated since 2022, towards Dogs Trust’s work in Scotland, rehabilitating and rehoming dogs at the charity’s rehoming centre in West Calder and at Dogs Trust Dundee, where dogs are cared for and adopted within the Angus, Tayside, Fife and Perthshire areas via foster homes.
Since the Dogs Trust Dundee fostering scheme was launched in 2022, dog owners across Scotland have been supported from Inverness to the Inner Hebrides, with 100 dogs finding their forever homes via foster homes.
In August staff, guests and celebrity supporters celebrated breaking the ground at Dogs Trust West Calder as work begins on a two-phase rebuild of the rehoming centre. The rebuild, which is expected to be complete by May 2027, will transform the 31-year-old facilities into a world-class rehoming centre, incorporating the latest advances in kennel design and dog welfare.
Three Trustees from the John William Hay Charitable Trust were warmly welcomed to the ground-breaking event to celebrate the charity’s incredible donation. The trust’s transformative gift enabled Dogs Trust to cover the funding gap needed to start work on the first phase of the vital rebuild.
The John Wiliam Hay Charitable Trust was formed in the name of the late Carnoustie farmer John William Hay, who lived and worked on the 287-acre Carlungie Farm in Carnoustie, Angus.
Owen Sharp, chief executive of Dogs Trust said: “We are extremely grateful to the John William Hay Charitable Trust for their generous gift of £1.3m towards Dogs Trust at West Calder. This grant will help us not only transform our West Calder rehoming centre, but also the lives of countless dogs and their families throughout Scotland.
“Last year in Scotland, over 3,000 people reached out to us to take in their dogs, an increase of 22% from the year before. By redeveloping our West Calder centre, and with the support of our Dundee fostering network, we will be able to be there for even more dogs and their owners, whenever they need us.”
Nick Barclay, trustee of the John William Hay Charitable Trust said: “As an avid dog lover, we believe the late John Hay would have been pleased to know his generosity would transform the lives of so many dogs in Scotland. This donation represents a long-term legacy in memory of our late founder.”
