Home

Support Dogs: Training life-changing partnerships

Thanks to players of The Health Lottery, £15,000 has been awarded by The Health Lottery Foundation to fund an instructor working with ten dogs on the charity’s Disability Assistance Programme.

Support Dogs work with people across England, Scotland and Wales and has been training highly skilled assistance dogs for more than 33 years. Their work transforms lives by helping people live more independently, safely and confidently.

Specialist training in three key areas

Support Dogs train dogs to assist in three specialist areas:

Epilepsy seizure alert – dogs provide a 100% reliable warning ahead of a seizure, giving people time to prepare and stay safe.
Autism assistance – dogs help autistic children stay calm, feel more independent and better able to manage the demands of everyday life.
Disability assistance – dogs act as around-the-clock carers for people with conditions like MS, cerebral palsy or spinal injuries, helping with daily tasks and personal care.

Rita Howson, CEO of Support Dogs, said:

“Our services are provided free of charge and a support dog relationship lasts on average 8 years. 1 in 4 of the dogs we train come to us from rescue centres or as unwanted pets. It’s our job to find dogs that have the personality and intelligence to be excellent support dogs.”

£15K from Health Lottery players to boost disability assistance

The Health Lottery Foundation has awarded £15,000 to support a new instructor focused on the Disability Assistance Programme. This programme trains dogs to carry out essential tasks that improve their owner’s daily life, from fetching items to opening doors or helping with dressing. It’s a highly specialised form of training that takes time, expertise and commitment.

Support Dogs stood out for the clear, long-term impact their dogs have on the lives of people with disabilities—and the lasting nature of those partnerships.

Players of The Health Lottery have now raised over £134 million for good causes across Great Britain.

Contributor(s):

Heather Suttie

Bringing understanding to hidden impairments

Children with hidden impairments including autism and learning difficulties can be misunderstood - but at WHISH in Whitby, North Yorkshire, they can find a safe space.

Helping people living with dementia to make Joyful Connections

An art and drama project bringing joy and support to dementia sufferers in the Home Counties using funds raised through The Health Lottery.

How IgniteYou is making dance accessible to all

“We’re really passionate about making dance accessible”. IgniteYou enables all ages with a range of abilities to improve their physical and mental health through dance, with funds raised through The Health Lottery.

Tapping House: helping people live well to the very end

Thanks to players of The Health Lottery, £15,000 has been awarded by The Health Lottery Foundation to help fund specialist end-of-life care for patients and families in Norfolk.

"Bringing our green-fingered community together has been a lifeline for many"

Money raised through The Health Lottery has helped The Aberbeeg Community Wellbeing Initiative change the lives of local residents.

How Take the Reins is building resilience and shaping young people’s futures

Take The Reins harnesses the power of horses to improve young people’s mental health and wellbeing with funding raised through The Health Lottery.

Mind The Gap: Changing the tune for people struggling with mental health issues

Funds raised through The Health Lottery have helped founder Sue Tebble provide a safe studio space in Norwich where people can come to use music to recover from trauma. Making music, battling loneliness, and breaking the taboos around mental health issues are why Mind The Gap was set up. Everybody’s welcome here for tunes, tea and biscuits...

Willow Tree: much more than a community shop

Boosting skills and confidence while making a local high street safer Willow Tree makes funding raised through The Health Lottery go a long way. A place for vulnerable people to meet, cook and learn about life.

The local football academy tackling challenges

Khalsa Youth Football Academy launched its Connecting Hope project with funds raised through The Health Lottery. It delivers weekly activities for children and adults with learning difficulties and special needs in Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire.

The Health Lottery operates on behalf of The Health Lottery Foundation, PO BOX 8109, Daventry, NN11 1JA. Promoter: Delva Patman.

The Health Lottery Foundation exists to raise funds in support of health-related causes throughout Great Britain. It receives and assesses grant applications and awards funding across GB. For information on good causes and to apply for a grant click HERE. 20% of every lottery draw ticket and online scratchcard purchased goes towards good causes. Across all games, 34% is spent on prizes and 46% is spent on expenses (actual expenses exceed this figure). Our average annual proceeds from lotteries are £14.5m. The odds of winning The Big Win jackpot are 1 in 2.1m and the odds of winning any Big Win prize is 1 in 9.7. The odds of winning the All or Nothing jackpot is 1 in 1.35m and the odds of winning any All or Nothing prize is 1 in 4.5. The odds of winning a QuickWin jackpot is 1 in 2.1m and the odds of winning any QuickWin prize is 1 in 6. All winning lottery numbers are selected using an approved random number generator (RNG). Click on the links below for full T&Cs and FAQs for each of our games.

Please help us to support vital health causes in your community. The Health Lottery Foundation is licensed by the Gambling Commission.