Our Story
Worthing Cat Welfare Trust was started 28 years ago by Iris Green and myself, with a lot of help and support from Carole, Sharon, Tina and Carole’s Mum, who bought us a van, so that Carole (our Welfare officer at that time) could carry on with her important work.
At that time we had 40 cats in our care and the princely sum of £40! We did car boot sales and any other fundraising that would help. We paid for cat food and vet bills ourselves. Carla Lane opened our first charity shop in Brighton Road, which proved to be very successful and started us out on the path to where we are today.
We couldn’t have done any of it without our band of fosterers, volunteers and loyal supporters. We all kept each other going through the ups and downs and, through sheer hard work and determination, have become the successful charity that we are today. We are so lucky and appreciate all you do for us.
We also have new Trustees and committee members, whose enthusiasm inspires us all.
We have an excellent network of temporary foster homes, which really equates to a ‘virtual sanctuary’ without the ruinous costs of setting up our own establishment. We will carry on with the excellent job that we do and that is rescuing and rehoming cats and kittens in and around the Worthing area.
Sandra Collins – WCWT Co-Founder
Mission Statement
We exist to provide and finance a safe and caring environment for abandoned, unwanted and distressed cats and kittens in the Worthing area, to arrange veterinary care, neutering, microchipping and to find loving, permanent homes wherever possible.
Charity Overview
The charity was formed in July 1995, granted charity status in October 1995 and consists of a team of experienced and professional carers watched over and supported by a board of trustees.
Prior to re-homing, our cats are cared for in a number of shelters (one of which is dedicated to mums & kittens) and by a number of foster-carers, who take them in as part of the family. We also have a location for cats, who are unfortunately unsuitable for re-homing due to old age, illness or severe trauma, in order that they can spend the rest of their lives in safety and tranquillity.
Meet The WCWT Team
Joss Loader – Chairman
Joss joined WCWT in August 2021 when she started fostering for the charity. She became a trustee in September 2022 and was elected as Chair at the AGM in September 2023.
Joss remembers WCWT’s early days, when Iris and Sandra set up the charity with just 40 cats and £40 in the bank! She was the Worthing Herald series’ news editor at the time, and Iris and Joss had many discussions. by way of support, Joss published many articles as this incredible charity established itself and then went from strength to strength.
Meanwhile, Joss has adopted five cats over the years from WCWT – including two lovely lads that she adopted recently.
Professionally, Joss moved on from journalism after the birth of her daughter and she is now a PR consultant as well as serving as an Independent Adur district councillor for Shoreham Beach.
Joss is also a trustee of the Shoreham & Adur Foodbank and a governor at Sir Robert Woodard Academy.
Her key objectives include securing WCWT’s financial future and continuing the excellent standards of animal care and welfare, which are second to none.
Sandra Collins – Co-Founder
Chairperson between 2017 and 2020, and a Co-Founder way back in 1995, I have been involved with practically every aspect of this charity over the years.
My long-term contribution to WCWT has been fostering Mums and Kittens in dedicated maternity pens here at my own home in Findon Valley. Finding the vital finances that underpin our rescue and welfare work has also absorbed plenty of my (and my husband’s) time over the years.
Adrian Radford – Treasurer
I am a chartered accountant and have worked in the charity sector in a variety of roles over the last 25 years. I was appointed treasurer of Worthing Cat Welfare Trust in 2023.
I am married to Maria and we have two cats- Ted and Louis. This photograph shows me with Tilly, who sadly died in early 2024, aged 16. My other two cats are camera shy.
Jackie Riddles – Rescue & Welfare Officer
I started with WCWT as a fosterer when it was first set up by Iris and Sandra. When the charity had their first shop in Worthing town centre, there was a vacancy for a Deputy Manager, so I applied and was given the job. I loved the challenge and eventually became Manager there.
For many years now I have been our Rescue and Welfare Officer. I meet lots of lovely people and I love the feeling of satisfaction that comes from taking in needy cats, nurturing them and seeing them re-homed with a caring family in their ‘forever home’.
Germaine Conroy-Schneider – Rescue & Welfare Officer and Lost & Found Coordinator
Being a real cat lover, I became involved with looking for feline fugitives a few years ago and its a “hobby” that grows into a complete way of life! Currently, I have five of my own and when one of them vanished a while back, I realized the importance of searching in a systematic and thorough way.
Losing a pet is a time of intense stress and misery for owners, but what satisfaction I get when I track Puss down and see the look of joy when reunion time comes.
Sandra Godden – Adoptions Coordinator
I started volunteering for WCWT in 2022 as an adoption officer. It was perhaps fate that the role of adoption coordinator became available in June 2024, which coincided with my retirement from my job of 16 years working in a further education college. This seemed an ideal way to have the chance to expand my involvement with the charity in rehoming our gorgeous rescue cats and finding them their forever home, as well as continuing the home checks and meeting our lovely adoption applicants.
I have always had cats in my life as well as other smaller furry friends and cannot imagine a home without a cat. I am pleased and proud to be part of such a great charity that has the welfare of all of the rescue cats at it’s heart.
Lynn Benfield – Administrator & Secretary
I can honestly never remember a time when cats haven’t played a huge part in my life. I’ve always adopted my cats from WCWT, and as soon as I was able to, I offered my services as a volunteer.
When I first joined WCWT, I took over the role of Administrator, and have now been appointed as Secretary for the Charity. WCWT is close to my heart, and I am proud to be a part of a team who work tirelessly to have a positive impact on the lives of so many cats.
Lucy Todd – Website Manager
I saw an article about WCWT in a local magazine in 2018, and they were asking for admin assistance so decided to see if I could be of any help.
I love cats, and am passionate about animal welfare so I think this is a very worthwhile use of my free time!
Paying tribute to Iris Green (April 2024)
Former Worthing Mayoress Iris Green who co-founded Worthing Cat Welfare Trust (WCWT) and devoted much of her life to animal welfare has sadly died.
Tributes have poured in for Iris, aged 85, who set up the now-registered charity with Sandra Collins nearly 30 years ago.
The wife of Honorary Alderman Peter Green, Iris also served as Worthing Mayoress at his side from 1996 to 1997.
At the time of establishing WCWT in 1995, Iris and Sandra had 40 cats and the princely sum of just £40 in the bank but, thanks to their determination and sheer hard work, WCWT went from strength to strength.
Former WCWT Chair and current Trustee, Sandra said: “Iris was an inspiration and we worked closely together, supported by our hard-working and loyal volunteers, to create and sustain the successful local charity that we see today.
“Initially we paid for cat food and vets bills ourselves, until we got our first charity shop, in Brighton Road, which was opened by animal welfare campaigner Carla Lane, and proved to be very successful for the charity.
“This started us out on the path to where we now, rehoming an average of 280 cats in need, annually.
“Above all, Iris was my very dear friend and I am deeply saddened by her death. My thoughts and prayers are with her husband Peter, and their son Nigel and his wife Paula”.
Iris was a former Chair of WCWT, stepping down in 2017, and took a keen interest in the charity until the end of her long life.
Professionally, she worked for Singer Link-Miles, the Scout Association in Lancing and Abbeyfield in Worthing.
Current WCWT Chair Joss Loader said: “I first met Iris when I was working as news editor for the Worthing Herald series, both in a professional capacity and also when I adopted cats from our incredible charity.
“Her passion for cat welfare, compassion for all animals and sheer drive and hard work were simply phenomenal. She leaves a remarkable legacy and WCWT is forever in her debt.”