The charity Irish Guide Dogs today announced that a record number of people were trained in its services during the course of last year.
The services include the charity’s guide dog programme, assistance dog programme for children with autism, its mobility programme, including long-cane training and independent living skills for people who are vision impaired, and its child mobility training.
Some 197 people were trained last year and the charity said it is planning to increase this number to 240 this year.
The charity also said it had raised more money through fundraising in 2013 compared with 2012.
Irish Guide Dogs chief executive Pádraig Mallon said the figures would “change lives for the better”.
“This is a great achievement in challenging times and it is reassuring that the public continue to value our work and trust us to deliver much needed services for people who are vision impaired and for families of children with autism,” he said.
