Honouring service: RSPCA Norwich’s commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant and our shared history
10 April 2025
We’re delighted to announce that we are signatories of the Armed Forces Covenant, highlighting our commitment to the Armed Forces community, both as a charity and an employer.
We’ve joined hundreds of other organisations all over the UK to show our united support in acknowledging that those who serve or who have served in the armed forces, and their families, should be treated with fairness and respect in the communities, economy and society they serve with their lives. The Covenant supports serving personnel, service leavers, veterans, and their families, and is fulfilled by the different groups that have committed to making a difference.
As a small, local RSPCA Branch, we have often found that the two worlds of RSPCA and the Armed Forces collide: working together to provide an essential service to the British Public. Though our missions may differ, we both have strong structures – to serve society in meaningful ways, and both organisations require dedicated and passionate personnel to do so.
RSPCA and the Armed Forces: a long-standing partnership
The wider RSPCA society has a long history of working closely with the Armed Forces, providing vital animal welfare services throughout both world wars.
The RSPCA was the first charity to support the Army Veterinary Corps of the British Army. Alongside this we set up the RSPCA Fund for Sick and Wounded Horses. It was the only UK animal charity to be recognised and authorised by the Army Council to collect funds on behalf of British War horses.
During the First World War, the RSPCA established temporary kennels at Boulogne in France for dogs belonging to men going on leave as quarantine restricted the animals’ return to the UK.
When the war ended, we then set up the Soldiers Dog Fund to meet the cost of bringing the dogs over and keeping them in quarantine until the demobilised men were able to take them home. Five hundred kennels were specially built at Hackbridge, Surrey, to house the dogs.
Between August 1914 and December 1917, more than 1,850,000 horses and mules were treated in veterinary hospitals and 80% treated were returned fit for duty. This was critical as most of the British Army and Empire used horses. It was horses that were used by Cavalry regiments to pull the guns, to bring up supplies and to pull the ambulances for injured soldiers.
By 1915, over 50 per cent of our inspectors and staff were serving with the armed forces. Most enlisted into the Army Veterinary Corps (AVC) and these men initially led the training of new recruits as the AVC expanded.
Of the 2.5 million injured animals admitted to the Army Veterinary Corps during the First World War, over 85% were treated and returned to duty.
During the Second World War, we rescued and treated over 256,000 animal victims of enemy action, in addition to more than one million animals suffering from general injury and sickness.
The imminence of danger prompted the RSPCA to open a series of animal rescue centres – by 1944, we had established 734 animal rescue centres to deal with the casualties, strays and the sick, staffed mostly by volunteers and partly funded by animal charities from across the world including Canada, America, Australia and South Africa.
Our vast history is one of the many reasons why we wanted to support the Armed Forces Covenant. We believe our relationship with the British Army has helped to shape our organisation over the years – as demonstrated in our heritage exhibition last year.
Meet Charlotte - RSPCA Norwich Senior Animal Welfare Officer and Royal Army Veterinary Corps Reserve Dog Handler
Another reason that our team at RSPCA Norwich wanted to sign the Armed Forces Covenant was out of support for one of our Animal Welfare Officers who, outside of her role with us, works as a dog handler with the Royal Army Veterinary Corps.
Charlotte Billington, who joined RSPCA Norwich in May 2018 as an Animal Welfare Officer, and then joined the Army Reserves in April 2021. From June 2023 to June 2024, Charlotte took 12 months off her RSPCA role to support United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), which included a 6-month deployment in Cyprus as a UN Peacekeeper, before returning to her role with our Branch. During her time in Cyprus, Charlotte had the opportunity to experience some incredible things and says that flying in a UN helicopter through the buffer zone and learning the UN history from 1964 to date in Cyprus was a personal highlight.
Many of her family members have also served in the military so Charlotte wanted to join the Reserves to feel closer to them through a new and exciting experience: “I really enjoy my job with RSPCA Norwich and being a reservist means I get to experience the best of both worlds. I wanted to serve my country and liked the idea of meeting new people with similar interests and getting to do something different in my spare time.”
Joining the Army Reserve has also resulted in lots of benefits for the Branch as Charlotte has further developed her already excellent levels of discipline and team working skills: “I learnt a lot while serving with the Reserves, such as how to deal with working with 250 different people and how to adapt to different working hours and working styles. I feel my work ethic was already great, but it’s improved since being away. My communication skills have improved. I think doing something new and out of your comfort zone helps build confidence and exposes you to new things you might not ever experience otherwise.”
She added: “Serving for our country should be respected and understood. Having RSPCA Norwich’s support throughout my time in the Forces made me enjoy it more – and I was proud to talk to people I met about both roles, both as an Animal Welfare Officer and as a member of the British Army.”
Charlotte now works as a military working dog handler with the Royal Army Veterinary Corps alongside her role as Senior Animal Welfare Officer with RSPCA Norwich, volunteering her time, animal welfare skills and years of experience to continue showing her dedication to the British Army.
Thank you Charlotte for all you have done, and continue to do, for both organisations!
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