2 Golds and a Silver!!

What a night! The Red Funnel Awards 2022 were held on Thursday 10th November -the tourism Oscars! The Sanctuary was represented by Tracy Hawkes (Visitors Services Manager), Lucy Smith (Online Fundraising and Social Media Manager), Chloe Remnant (Yard Manager) and Alyshia McLoughlin (Hospitality Assistant).

The night was our most successful yet!

Grazers Café won Silver, as runners up in the Best Café/Tea Room on the Island for 2022. This is a massive achievement for Chef Andrew Barton and the Kitchen and Café team, in a category that is incredibly competitive! Their hard work raises money for our donkeys every single day of the year, apart from Christmas Day, and we are indebted to them for their hard work (and of course their fabulous food).

We weren't done yet. Next up, the sanctuary won Gold as the winner of the ‘Best Place For Dogs’! We pride ourselves on our dog friendly approach inside and outside at the sanctuary. We have lovely walkways and paths for dog walkers, we run doggy events for our 4-legged friends, and there's always a dog biscuit to be found at meet and greet and in the café. We even have some of our staff bring their dogs to work.

But the BIG award was the real bonus of the night. We came away with gold for the 'Best Large Attraction' on the island! We were shocked but thrilled to have beaten lots of the ‘big league’ attractions to win this award. We have stayed true to ourselves as an animal sanctuary, and people enjoy our environment, love to get involved with our donkeys and the work we do, and really become part of the community that we have built. We are overwhelmed and so appreciative of the recognition that this award has given us.

Thank you so much to everybody who supported the sanctuary and voted for us. It has been a tough few months and this has brought delight to everybody who works here! It is just the bit of good news that we were all hoping for.

Award photo credits: Pamela Parker, Newsquest