M&S Gretna

Our rescue centre services the whole of Dumfries and Galloway but, when space permits, we will take in dogs from pounds in England and from Northern Ireland to save them from destruction. We have a contract with our local council to look after stray dogs while they wait to be reclaimed by their owners and to rehome them if they are not claimed. We are licensed by the local authority for the care of dogs. We take in around 350 dogs a year and have consistently rehomed about 300 during each year of our operations to date. We are very proud that there are a great many people whose lives have been enriched by the companionship given by one of our dogs. Our web site has enabled us to reach out beyond Dumfries and Galloway and we have rehomed dogs from Dorset to Orkney.

Food Train was created for older people by older people and we are very proud that 22 years on we are supporting more older people in our local communities than we ever have. In Dumfries and Galloway we offer four services to our customers:- a grocery shopping delivery service, a home support service where we help with small household jobs that our customers now find they struggle with, Meal Makers is our food share service where our Cooks provide a regular home cooked meal for a neighbour and we also offer a very successful befriending service. We support over 700 older people across the region and we can only do this because of the fantastic support we get from over 375 Food Train volunteers. Our volunteers are passionate, compassionate, hard working and very generous with their time. So far, we have 5 offices across Dumfries and Galloway, these are in Annan, Dumfries, Castle Douglas, Newton Stewart and Stranraer. Food Train is a Scottish Charity and a not for profit organisation so we must raise funds to cover all of our volunteer costs and funding for replacement delivery vans & equipment . Our volunteers support us in this area and regularly carry out exciting fundraising events which include coffee mornings, bag packing, sponsored walks and pub quizzes. We're looking for support from companies and local people to help us to continue to provide our vital services, vans and equipment. We are only able to provide these vital services because of the support of our 130 volunteers in the Dumfries area . Volunteers do give up their time freely but there are increasing costs attached to supporting volunteers. These increasing costs include travel expenses to get to and from their activity , volunteer training, ID badges and support in the form of regular team meetings giving vital support and guidance to the volunteers. The increase has had a huge impact on our outgoings but necessary in order to attract people who would like to volunteer With your help we can cover the cost of our amazing volunteers' expenses, empowering older people to stay independent and feel included and cared for within their communities.

We are a charitable organisation set up by local volunteers to deliver essential blood and urgent medical supplies, in and out of hours, between hospitals and healthcare sites in South West Scotland and beyond. As a charity, we provide a free service to the NHS transporting urgent samples, blood, medical equipment, medical notes, medication, and when required we assist with staff transport in severe weather conditions. This is all done by dedicated volunteers - we have no paid staff and all give our time freely and willingly to make a life-saving difference for the patients of our NHS.