Since 2005 Hope Rescue has been saving the lives of stray, abandoned and unwanted dogs that, through no fault of their own, need a second chance. We commit to take all the stray dogs from six Local Authorities in South Wales - Merthyr Tydfil, Torfaen, Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Vale of Glamorgan (West) and Rhondda Cynon Taf - irrespective of their age, breed or medical condition. We also help owners in crisis who need to surrender their dogs, giving them peace of mind that their dogs will be rehomed responsibly. After operating from commercial boarding kennels and foster homes for 12 years we finally purchased our own rescue centre in Llanharan, South Wales in March 2017. Our centre has 51 rescue kennels, two exercise paddocks, an indoor training centre, grooming room and 18 acres of private woodland. Since the closure of the local authority pound in June 2017, we also have the Rhondda Cynon Taf CBC stray dog kennelling contract. We currently help around 800 dogs a year and as well as rehoming from our rescue centre, we also work with other rescues, including Blue Cross, Dogs Trust and Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, to take our dogs. This enables us to significantly increase the number of dogs we help.   We feel passionately that our role is not simply to deal with the consequences of irresponsible ownership, but to also tackle the root causes and reduce the number of dogs needing to access the animal welfare system. We also believe in the valuable pastoral and therapeutic role that dogs can play in our local community. Our Hope in the Community programme focuses on helping both pets and people. We offer supported volunteering and employment placements at both our rescue centre and charity shop, working with several third sector organisations representing disadvantaged groups. Our respite service supports pet owners in crisis, for example facing domestic abuse, homelessness or hospitalisation.