New home found for Wellington charity shop after market regeneration raised closure fears
A charity shop in Wellington has found a new home after concerns the regeneration of the town market would force it to close for good.
After "months of negotiations" Cats Protection has secured a new home for its stall in Wellington.
Volunteers said they had been "dismayed" to find out their market stall had not been safeguarded as part of the regeneration of the Victorian market hall.
Now, following negotiations with Telford & Wrekin Council, the charity will soon be moving to the former Spirit of Bulgaria shop in the Market Piazza on Market Street.
Its current stall will close this Saturday (November 1) and reopen on Tuesday, November 25.
Tracy Hitchcock, coordinator for Cats Protection Telford and District, said: “We would like to thank our fantastic market stall customers for all their support and loyalty over the last three years and for rallying around us as we were threatened with closure.
"We are grateful to the council for continuing to work with us to find a solution that keeps us within the community.
“The stall has gone from strength to strength and we are proud that it not only raises funds that enable us to rehome around 150 cats each year, funding their vet care as needed, but has become a community hub from which we have provided a wide range of support to cat owners.
"This has included the trap-neuter-release of 300 feral cats since the stall began. We also provided neutering for 1,862 cats in 2023 and 2024 with a further 156 neutered this year to date.
"We have additionally supplied over 22,385 meals to cats across the local area via our Community Kitty scheme which provides donated cat food to owners who are struggling.”
Telford & Wrekin Council leader Councillor Lee Carter said: “I am personally delighted that we have been able to find a new home for Cats Protection.
"I appreciate the news of the investment works into the market did cause the charity and volunteers some concern but throughout the negotiations, the council remained committed to trying to find a solution with the charity and my thanks go to everyone involved in persevering until we found one.
“The once-in-a-generation market refurbishment is a complex project, even more so when our commitment has always been to ensure the market remains open while the work is underway and traders kept informed of works in progress.”
Volunteers will be offering refreshments to customers on Saturday, the final day of trade for the current market stall home.
Tracy said: “We are so excited to have this opportunity, thanks to the cat-lovers of Telford and the council, to continue at Wellington Market and for us, as volunteers, to raise money for the many cats in the Telford area that need our care.”
