The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association is a British charitable organisation founded in 1934.

The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association (known as Guide Dogs) is a UK-based charity established in 1934. The training of Guide Dogs started three years earlier, in 1931. Guide Dogs provides independence and freedom to thousands of blind and partially-sighted people across the UK through the provision of guide dogs and other mobility services. They also campaign for the rights of those with visual impairments, educate the public about eye health and invest millions of pounds in eye disease research.

Guide Dogs’ vision is for “a world in which all people who are blind and partially-sighted enjoy the same rights, opportunities and responsibilities as everyone else.”

Guide Dogs’ mission is “to provide guide dogs, mobility and other rehabilitation services that meet the needs of blind and partially-sighted people.”

Guide Dogs’ head office is based near Reading in Berkshire. They have four dog training schools in Redbridge, Leamington, Bolton and Forfar, as well as a breeding centre near Leamington, plus 28 district teams and many fundraising branches across the country. As well as its paid employees, Guide Dogs support a huge network of more than 10,000 volunteers, fundraisers and supporters around the country.

The guide dog service

The guide dog service provides a partially-sighted or blind person with a guide dog as a second pair of eyes. These dogs start their life with a volunteer brood bitch holder, then move to the home of a volunteer puppy walker when six weeks old. After approximately a year the dog will move to a specialist trainer, where they train for around six months to gain the skills they need. This includes three to five weeks of intensive work with their new owner. The dog will have been matched very carefully with its prospective owner to ensure they suit each other. It does not end there; Guide Dogs is committed to providing support for the partnership and to the guide dog owner for as long as it is needed. After around six and a half years service, a guide dog is retired and is re-homed.

Guide Dogs is a world leader in the breeding and training of guide dogs. According to the Guide Dogs' website as of November 2007 there are around 4,700 working partnerships in the UK, and more than 1,000 puppies are born each year. It costs over £50 million per annum to fund and continue the work that Guide Dogs carries out. The guide dogs service receives no government funding and so the charity is completely reliant on voluntary donations.

History

The first British guide dogs completed their training in 1931, and three years after this the Guide Dogs for the Blind Association was formed. This would not have been possible without the selfless work of Muriel Crook and Rosamund Bond. The first permanent trainer for Guide Dogs for the Blind was Captain Nikolai Liakhoff, who began in 1933, and the most influential figure in the development of Guide Dogs’ puppy walking and breeding programmes was the late Derek Freeman MBE.

In 2007 in conjunction with the BBC Breakfast programme, Guide Dogs created a Guide Dog of the Year award to recognise sterling achievements of individual guide dogs.

Volunteering

Guide Dogs relies on many volunteers. Key roles filled by volunteers include puppy walking (where puppy walkers take a pup into their home for 12 months and help familiarise it with everyday sights and sounds), boarding (those who look after trainee guide dogs in the evenings and at weekends), breeding stock holders (those who look after the brood bitches and stud dogs), drivers, branch roles (such as branch treasurer or branch supporter), and fundraising.

Campaigning

Guide Dogs campaigns strongly on several major issues. Guide Dogs’ Re-think Rehab campaign focuses on raising awareness of the social exclusion and problems faced by partially-sighted and blind people as a result of under-investment in rehabilitation services. They are also committed to campaigning on issues that restrict the freedom and independence of blind and partially-sighted people so they have the same rights, opportunities and responsibilities as everyone else. Examples include campaigning for equal access to taxis, the inclusion of audio-visual equipment on buses, and encouraging service providers (such as shops, restaurants and banks) to provide a level of access and service that meets the needs of blind and partially-sighted people . Guide Dogs is also involved heavily in the current shared surfaces debate, as well as campaigning for safer streets, which involves working with local authorities, MPs and others to raise awareness of the problems caused by obstacles on our streets, which can cause real danger for partially-sighted and blind people.

Guide Dogs is the third largest funder of ophthalmic research in the UK and pays particular attention to educating young people about eye health.

Blue Peter

Guide Dogs has a long-standing relationship with the BBC’s Blue Peter. This began in 1964 when Blue Peter launched an appeal to collect silver foil and milk bottle tops. Blue Peter raised enough to fund two guide dog puppies, Cindy and Honey, whom the programme followed through their training. Since then Blue Peter and Guide Dogs have maintained a close working relationship, including the famed partnerships of Honey and Valerie Singleton, Cindy and Peter Purves, Prince and Peter Duncan, and a second Honey with John Leslie. Current presenter Andy Akinwolere is helping to train Magic, the latest Blue Peter guide dog.

See also

• The Travistrek fund which raises money for the Association.
• Guide dog
• List of Guide Dog Schools

References

External links

• Guidedogs.org.uk
• Registered charity 209617
• Intelligent Giving profile of Guide Dogs for the Blind