Laura M

Funding and Partnerships Manager

I joined the charity in 2015.

My team identifies, works with and supports charities and projects that align with the Pets Foundation’s strategy and aim to improve the lives of pets and the people who love them. We look after the charity’s grant funding programme, supporting charities in making an application, checking applications and charities – sometimes involving a physical visit – and managing those applications throughout the entire cycle. We also manage the Community Partner programme, facilitating relationships between Pets at Home stores and local charities so those charities can benefit from fundraising and other opportunities. My role also involves measuring the impact of our charitable initiatives and finding new ways to work with partner organisations to help keep pets with their owners.

I am constantly learning. Animal shelter welfare best practices are constantly changing, as are the challenges faced by the rescue sector. Initiatives in helping pets remain with their owners and out of rescue is a relatively new area of work. Then there are the days that I get to visit a cattery and cuddle cats for an hour – all in the interests of work, obviously!

None! My husband has severe asthma so we are a pet-free household. We have offered to pet-sit the neighbours’ guinea pigs though.

My favourite pet is cats.

Being allowed to microchip a stray cat; under vet supervision of course!

We support more rescues than any other grant funder in the UK, which puts us in a unique position. I want to use this to find new ways to help rescues make a long-term difference to pets.

Either in the office with my head buried in paperwork… or getting cat cuddles at a rescue!