RSPCA Chesterfield & North Derbyshire

The safe haven scheme

Click below to view our kind sponsors of our safe haven scheme

You can sponsor a dog kennel, cat pen or rabbit pod for as much as you can afford. Your donation will directly help give an animal the chance of a brighter future.

What is the safe haven scheme?

Our autumn fair in 2002 saw the launch of our safe haven scheme. It is designed to enable individuals, families and friends to sponsor animal accommodation at the centre. The sponsers contributions go directly to the running costs of keeping the animals at the centre before they are re-homed.

How much can I donate?

The scheme is flexible and easy to join, just choose the kind of animal accommodation you wish to sponsor and the payment method and we do the rest. You can pay with a single donation or by monthly standing order, spending as much as you can afford. Your donation will go directly to the upkeep of your chosen animal's living space.

We will reward your kindness by:

Displaying your name on the animal unit you are sponsoring and in out role of honour book at reception
Listing your name on our website as a sponsor
Sending you our yearly branch magazine
Sending you a safe haven certificate and car sticker

Can I make a gift of my sponsorship?

Yes you can. Sponsoring one of our animals through the safe haven scheme can make an excellent gift. Simply tell us who the gift is for when filling in the sponsorship form available to download at the top of this page.

So how do I donate?

Simply download and print off the safe haven sponsorship form available at the top of this page. Complete it and return it to the animal centre.

Where is my donation spent?

Your donation goes directly to helping the animals in the care of the RSPCA Chesterfield & North Derbyshire branch. All sponsors are assigned a cat pen, dog kennel or rabbit pod and the animal occupying this space will directly benefit from your donation.

So how much does it cost to keep the animal centre running?

We have calculated the average running costs to keep the animal centre open for 1 year. The expenditure includes:

Feeding and cleaning the animals
All veterinary costs and treatments
Maintenance of animal accommodation and the Animal Centre
Light, heating, water and telephone costs
Administration
Fundraising

It costs approximatley £200,000 a year to keep our centre open, that's around £600 a day! The safe haven scheme really can make a big difference to the animals of Chesterfield & North Derbyshire.

Branch bank details:

RSPCA Chesterfield & North Derbyshire Branch

The Co-operative Bank

P O Box 250

Delf House

Southway

Stelmersdale

WN8 6WT

Sort code 08 92 99

Account number 65167519

Why we need your help...

The Chesterfied and North Derbyshire branch receives no state aid or financial support from RSPCA headquarters for the upkeep of the animals and has to raise all its own funds locally via support from the public and businesses. The branch's operating costs are in the region of £200,000 per annum - the vast majority of this expenditure relates to the running of the animal centre on Spital Lane.

Maintaining a regular income is becoming increasingly difficult for charities, therefore we are constantly reviewing our costs but now feel that we can go no further without prejudicing the welfare of animals in our care

The board of trustees, centre staff and volunteers are all working hard to raise extra income from various events. The safe haven scheme has been introduced to provide an income and to give our supporters the ability to directly help the animals in the care of the animal centre.

Sheba's story

Click here to view other animal stories

When you work for the RSPCA you expect to come across some pretty harrowing stories. However the story of Sheba shocked us all.

Sheba came to us from John Preston one of our local RSPCA inspectors and the story he told us was beyond belief.

John had a call to a house and found two dogs. Both dogs had been involved in a violent attack and their previous owner had cut their throats shortly after a domestic argument. Soon after the event the owner notified relatives of what had happened and the police were called in along with a local vet. One of the dogs called Max died shortly after the vet arrived due to his injuries. The other dog, Sheba, made an amazing recovery, despite suffering for an estimated two and a half hours before she could be anaesthetised and treated. Sheba's wound was around twenty centimetres long however she had been very lucky that her blood loss has been minimal and that no major arteries had been severed.

Sheba was rushed to Carrick Veterinary Group in a desperate attempt to save her life and had to endure a one hour operation to save her. Luckily Sheba pulled through and over the next few days made a steady recovery.

When Sheba started to improve, we received a call at the animal centre to see if we had space to take Sheba into our care and help her to heal her wounds both emotional and physical. The answer was obviously yes and we went and collected her from the vets that very morning.

On our arrival to the vets we found a very frightened little dog who understandably has a deep mistrust of men.

Sheba quickly settled into the kennel routine and gradually with alot of understanding, plenty of love and coaxing from male members of staff and volunteers, she soon started to come out of her shell.

Sheba's wounds healed extremely well. So much so that the large scar became virtually invisible. However we feel her mental scars will take alot longer to heal.

Considering all she had been through, it was remarkable how affectionate she was to everyone at the centre. All the staff became attached to Sheba during her stay with us.

Sheba found a new home having been at the centre for a couple of months. It was very emotional for all involved to see this dog who had been through so much, come out the other side into a fantastic new home.

Sheba soon settled in and found much love and trust with her new owners. She also made a new canine friend who was with Sheba's new mum and dad when she arrived.

After pleading guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to two dogs, Sheba's previous owner was sentenced to four months in prison and given a lifetime ban from owning animals. Chesterfield Magistrates Court imposed a four month sentence per dog to run concurrently, with two months to be served immediately.

RSPCA inspector John Preston said: "These dogs suffered horrendously, one for over two hours, so we are satisfied that the sentence reflects this. Sheba has now been re-homed and can look forward to a much happier life with her new owners"

Sheba with her new owner