- 01823 490333
- Wrantage, Taunton, Somerset TA3 6DJ
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Laura is our Finance Manager, overseeing the accounts department of the centre, as well as being the director of our Doggie Day Care service. She is Jack and Tom’s sister and also arrived at the Centre in 2010.
Laura has a passion for working dogs. She trained the family’s working Labrador as a teenager and has subsequently gone on to train and work her own canine companions.
Alice is our site manager, beginning as an apprentice before progressing onto supervising and now management. Alice works with both our rescue and boarding residents, ensuring that their stay with us is always of the highest standard.
Sarah is our full-time veterinary surgeon at the centre. Originally from Manchester, she qualified at Bristol University in 2007. Over the years she has gained a wealth of experience and knowledge in the veterinary field.
Sarah has a real passion for rescue animals and an interest in canine behaviour, she known for her wonderful way of helping build confidence and trust with animals from all different backgrounds. Sarah is known for fostering poorly or very young animals that come through and has even ended up adopting two – a sweet, cheeky yorkie cross, who she was rehabilitating, and a gorgeous Bengal cat that was extremely poorly upon arrival. Sarah works every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and every other Saturday morning.
Nicola is our part time veterinarian. She qualified from Bristol University in 1986 and, with over 30 years of experience in the veterinary field, there isn’t much Nicola hasn’t seen.
Nicola is currently completing a course in Veterinary Acupuncture, she has a real passion for holistic therapies.
Nicola has a smallholding that keeps her very busy and a passion for working dogs and horses. She has an array of gorgeous cats including a comical little domestic short hair called Betty that she adopted from the centre in 2019. Nicola will be at the clinic on Wednesdays and every other Saturday morning.
Skye, our full time veterinary nurse, is always on hand to offer a warm welcome and she loves all animals great and small. She began her journey with us as a veterinary care assistant before progressing to fulfil her dream, qualifying as a RVN in early 2021.
Shelly has the fantastic job of greeting all of our patients once they enter the practice. She is our full time experienced receptionist making sure everyone is looked after before and after their visits.
I live in a small village on the edge of the Quantocks on a smallholding. I keep sheep, chickens, ducks & have turkeys for Christmas. I also have a young Spring Spaniel, three cats & four tortoises. I grow fruit & veg which keeps me busy at harvest time plus an apple orchard where I make cider at the end of the year.
Katie started volunteering at St Giles in 2022 walking the rescue dogs, making enrichment and helping with the cleaning of the new cattery. Katie has always dreamt of working in a veterinary practice and is now a student veterinary nurse in her final year working at the vets here at St Giles.
Katie loves all animals and has a very cheeky Labrador cross of her own.
Jack is a qualified Veterinary Physiotherapist, registered with the Association of Animal Therapists (IAAT). Jack will perform treatments on small and large animals to improve mobility and performance, he also has an interest in post-operative rehabilitation, suitable for companion and high-level athletes.
Alice is our newly appointed site manager, beginning as an apprentice before progressing onto supervising and now management. Alice works with both our rescue and boarding residents, ensuring that their stay with us is always of the highest standard.
Amber has a lot of experience with small animals.
Komala joined the team in 2021 as our training & behaviorist here at the Centre. She has completed her canine psychology course to distinction level, an in-depth puppy development and training course through The School of Canine Science, as well as the 30 Days of Canine Science course that focused on the theory and application of dog training. She also has experience working in a kennel setting in canine care and behavior. She a great asset to the team and works very closely with our Rescue animals.
I grew up around sports dogs and police dogs as my Dad was an instructor in West Yorkshire police dog section and judge in high level dog sport. When he retired, we moved to East Devon where my parents ran a boarding kennels and cattery. When I was around 14, I began learning and getting involved in IGP dog sport and became obsessed with dog behaviour and training. My notable achievements in the sport include being an A-licensed ‘decoy’, winning the 2022 FCI World Championship Qualification event, and representing Great Britain at the 2023 WUSV World Championships.
Sophia is our doggy day care manager. Sophia oversees the day-to-day running of our day care department. She has been at the centre for several years now.
Sophia has a growing family at home. She has a huge love of animals and is fantastic with the day care dogs – they all love her! She can often be found having fun taking our boarding customers for their extra walks during their stays too
Carly joined the day care team in the summer of 2019. She completes the collections throughout the local villages and also assists with any extra walks for our boarding dogs.
Ana joined the St Giles team in May 2021, and has become a huge member of the team. Ana has a caring and empathetic personality, helping to support.
Ana has previously spent many years working in a range of animal care environments, including in rescue, and currently has two rescues of her own.
I grew up around sports dogs and police dogs as my Dad was an instructor in West Yorkshire police dog section and judge in high level dog sport. When he retired, we moved to East Devon where my parents ran a boarding kennels and cattery. When I was around 14, I began learning and getting involved in IGP dog sport and became obsessed with dog behaviour and training. My notable achievements in the sport include being an A-licensed ‘decoy’, winning the 2022 FCI World Championship Qualification event, and representing Great Britain at the 2023 WUSV World Championships.
Since obtaining my Master’s Degree in Animal Behaviour from the University of Exeter, I have worked in various roles in the Canine industry, including being a boarding kennel manager, dog trainer for various businesses, and handling dogs for film and tv. I have helped many owners with behavioural modification, run training classes for puppies, adolescents, rescue and reactive dogs; as well as residential programmes.
Gemma days involve assessing animals from their arrival, before matching them up and finding them their new, forever homes.
Gemma also has experience assisting in a grooming salon which gave her the push to pursue her dream of working with animals full time and her wish to gain qualifications in animal care and husbandry!.
Lin started volunteering in 2015 started doing fundraising then progressed in to helping out in the rescue office Lin is now our rehoming co-ordinator and always happy to help.
Lin has been volunteering at St Giles now for 9 years, she likes to help out any way she can weather its doing home visits, Admin, fundraising or fostering
Lin has a strong passion for animal care and welfare.
Mel is head of Marketing and Fundraising for the Welfare, responsible for the all our social media channels, website, promotion, events, corporate events and education sessions. She works closely with the Welfare team to provide support whenever needed.
Mel is very passionate about her role and loves working with the Welfare team. She has 2 fur babies of her own (Jack and Layla) – both are rescue!
Sam has worked for St Giles Centre since 2020, learning various skills and being involved in all aspects of Centre life. She is also a qualified teacher and drives our enrichment programme and is passionate about making a difference to SEN learning. Her current titles also include site supervisor and animal care assistant.
Sam has adopted a cat and a dog from St Giles Animal Welfare. She is very dedicated to her work and is a big part of the St Giles Family.
Mark is a qualified teacher and spent 15 years working as a class teacher and then an assistant head in a large primary school in Hertfordshire. He is also an Ofsted registered childminder providing before and after school care to the children in his local village. Mark has worked independently as a dog walker for the previous five years.
At home Mark has a number of different pets including a rescue dog, giant African land snails, cold water fish, a rat and two guinea pigs. In his spare time Mark and his eldest daughter are season ticket holders at Wycombe Wanderers FC and at Somerset Cricket Club.
