Guide Dogs Harleston and Diss fundraising group raises £25,000 with £13,000 paying for a new guide dog

The training, food and vet bills for a new guide dog have been covered by a fundraising group that has raised £13,000.

The Guide Dogs Harleston and Diss fundraising group has carried out numerous supermarket collections, talks and events over the past year to raise £25,000, with around half of that going toward the upkeep of new guide dog Miles (pictured inset).

Richard Bussien, from Wortwell, is the fundraising co-ordinator for the group and a guide dog puppy raiser.

“We started our group four years ago, and spent three years campaigning for puppy raising in Norfolk and Suffolk to help create more guide dogs in the area,” he said.

“That has now been taking place since October or November, and each puppy takes around 18 months to two years to fully train.

“We raise funds in a few different ways, including giving talks where we sell merchandise and encourage donations, and we are very pleased with what we have raised this year.”

Mandy Loveder, local community fundraising relationship manager for Guide Dogs, said: “This amazing, hard-working group of volunteers have done incredibly well to raise this sum, which will make a real difference for the people we support.

“Volunteers kindly offer their time, support and energy to our charity. Without them, we wouldn’t be able to continue our work.

“Our guide dogs are truly life-changing, allowing people with sight loss to enjoy all the same freedoms and independence as everyone else.

“We are so proud of our volunteers and would like to thank them for everything they do for us. We also wish to recognise all of the fantastic support that the group receives from many individuals and businesses within the local community.”