Full Members

Full Membership is available to individuals, registered charities or not for profit organisations with an appropriate and relevant status and objectives in their country of origin. They must meet the following criteria: –

• Resident and working in the British Isles or Republic of Ireland.
• Involved in, or actively supportive of, the rescue and/or rehoming of dogs and/or cats.
• Comply with the Association’s published Minimum Welfare and Operational Standards.
• Comply with all current animal welfare related legislation in the jurisdiction within which they operate.
• Operate on a non-commercial basis.
• Only import dogs or cats from other territories if these have been legally imported in a manner that meets all applicable transport and health requirements; have had the relevant vaccinations (including those not necessarily mandatory by the exporting or importing country); ensure all dogs are behaviourally assessed as suitable and safe to rehome to a British Isles environment; and have a plan in place in case the rehoming of an animal is not successful.
• Sympathetic to and compatible with the values of ADCH.

Affiliate Members

Affiliate membership is intended for not-for-profit organisations that have an interest and expertise in dog and cat welfare but are not eligible for Full Membership.

Affiliate membership is also available to individuals who sell goods and services into the sector and can demonstrate a gross annual turnover at or below the current UK VAT threshold at the time of application. All Affiliate Members must:

• Be resident and working in the British Isles or Republic of Ireland.
• Be involved in, or actively supportive of, the rescue and/or rehoming of dogs and/or cats.
• Comply with all current animal welfare related legislation in the jurisdiction within which they operate.
• Only import dogs or cats from other territories if these have been legally imported, imported in a manner that meets all applicable transport and health requirements; have had the relevant vaccinations (including those not necessarily mandatory by the exporting or importing country); ensure all dogs are behaviourally assessed as suitable and safe to rehome to a British Isles environment; and have a plan in place in case the rehoming of an animal is not successful.

Prior to Submitting an Application

Before applying for Membership please ensure that you have:

1. Checked the Membership Categories and Criteria (see above).
2. Read the Minimum Welfare & Operational Standards.
3. The following supporting information: –

• • A copy of the organisation’s constitution
  • Two years of accounts. Where accounts are not available (i.e. for newly formed organisations), recent bank statements for all bank accounts should be submitted.
  • Contact details of two existing Members who can endorse your application.  If you are unable to find two suitable ADCH Members, please provide details of two referees who can vouch for your operational welfare standards (i.e. veterinary practice or local authority).  For veterinary practices, the person giving the reference must be a qualified veterinary surgeon.  Please seek permission from your referee before sharing their contact details with us.

Assessment (Full Members Only)

We will review your application, and if initial approval is granted by the Trustee Board: –

• An ADCH Assessor will be assigned to carry out an assessment against the Minimum Welfare and Operational Standards. The role profile of our Assessors can be found here
• The ADCH Assessor will contact you to arrange a mutually convenient time and date to carry out the assessment.

Post Assessment

• The ADCH Assessor will go through the result of the assessment with you and a report and recommendation will be submitted to the Standards & Animal Welfare Committee (SAWC).
• SAWC will consider the Assessor’s report and make a decision whether to approve your membership.

Approval of Membership

• We will advise of the decision made by SAWC and provide any feedback. If your application has been approved, we will issue an invoice for the membership fee.
• When payment has been received, we will issue your Welcome Pack and Membership Certificate.
• If your application has been declined you will be provided with feedback and details of our appeals process.

Apply Now

Membership is affordable and offers tremendous value. Over 150 organisations have already taken advantage of the benefits that being part of ADCH brings.

Membership fees are on a sliding scale based on your income as submitted to the Charity Commission.

Download ADCH Membership – Information and Guidance for details of current Member fees.

We are currently experiencing a high volume of applications alongside staff vacancies. Please do bear with us if we take longer than we would like to process your application at this time.

A full list of members can be found here

You can also use our Rescue Search to find a Member near you.