Our Ambassadors

Lorraine Kelly is a Scottish TV presenter, author, and journalist and hosts her own ITV morning show ‘Lorraine’. She was appointed OBE in 2012 for her services to charity and was promoted to CBE in the 2020 Birthday Honours for services to broadcasting, journalism, and charity. Born in Glasgow, Lorraine joined her local weekly newspaper The East Kilbride News aged seventeen.  Her TV career started in 1983, when she joined BBC Scotland as a researcher, and a year later she became TVam’s Scottish correspondent covering stories like the Piper Alpha disaster and the Lockerbie bombing. She went on to co-host TVam and GMTV and also did a short stint on radio with her own daily programme on Talk Radio.

Lorraine lives in Buckinghamshire with her husband Steve and their beloved dog Angus, a five year old Border Terrier, they also regularly babysit Ruby their daughter Rosie’s mini Daschund.

Lorraine has a history of championing pets, having previously raised awareness of the relevant role dogs play in beating social isolation - making the partnership with StreetVet a natural fit.

Lorraine Kelly, StreetVet Ambassador, says: “I love the special bond created between all the dogs I have had in my life. I fully appreciate the crucial role they play every day in my wellbeing. Supporting StreetVet and its mission is a way to give back something to pets and owners in need, ensuring more people can enjoy this special bond long-term.”

Clare Balding is an award-winning broadcaster and writer. She became the face of the BBC's racing coverage in 1998, and now works across a wide range of sports for television and radio. She has been a lead presenter for the Olympics, Paralympics, Winter Olympics and Commonwealth Games. For more than twenty years, she has hiked across the countryside for the BBC Radio 4 series Ramblings.
Clare has presented Crufts for many years on both the BBC and C4. She has also hosted Countryfile, Britain's Hidden Heritage, Britain By Bike, A League of Their Own, Have I Got News For You and Good Morning Sunday on Radio 2. She won a special BAFTA in recognition of her work on London 2012 and has won two RTS awards for her presentation.
Her first book My Animals and Other Family went to number 1 in the Sunday Times best-seller list and won Biography of the Year at the National Book Awards. Her latest book, Heroic Animals will be published in October.
She has just been announced as the new President of the Rugby Football League.

Until recently, Clare and her wife Alice shared their home with their beloved Tibetan Terrier, Archie.  His death, at the age of 15, has left a dog-shaped hole in their lives.  Balding is currently involved in the Virtual Big Dog Walk (www.bigdogwalk/worldwalk) and has nominated StreetVet as her chosen charity. She has also very kindly donated her fee from a recent filming project to StreetVet. Clare is looking forward to join a StreetVet outreach to appreciate first hand what is involved.

Comedian, writer, actor and radio DJ Paul O’Grady was perhaps best known for his straight-talking glamorous drag alter-ego ‘Lily Savage’.  From humble Irish roots, Paul was born near Liverpool and as an adult migrated down to London where he worked for Camden Council social services for a time.  Lily provided his breakthrough to mainstream media and a great platform to voice his views on LGBT rights.

In recent years  Paul became known as a flamboyant and kind-hearted TV presenter not least in his shows ‘For the Love of Dogs’ following his work at Battersea Dog’s Home and his documentary series ‘Paul O’Grady’s Animal Orphans’.  Dogs played a huge part in Paul’s life and his own dogs joined him on his TV shows and tours.

Paul understood the significance of the bond between people and their dogs and cared deeply about human and animal welfare.  These values reflect everything that StreetVet is about.  We were humbled that he agreed to work with us as an ambassador to promote a greater understanding of the homeless crisis and the struggles of our clients and their dogs and his sudden passing deeply saddened us all

The late Paul O’Grady spent time out and about with the StreetVet London team and said:

“When we were filming ‘For the Love of Dogs’ we went out on the streets with StreetVet to see first-hand what they do for the homeless and their pets. I was really impressed with the dedication of the team and want to support them to enable them to reach even more homeless people around the country.”

It was an absolute privilege to have Paul as an ambassador for StreetVet, we cannot thank him enough for everything he did to raise awareness of our charity. He was a true advocate for man’s best friend and a wonderful human being

We are thrilled to introduce our StreetVet ambassador: comedian, presenter, writer and actor Sue Perkins.

When Sue heard about StreetVet, she was intrigued by the concept and soon became keen to get involved. Sue enjoys the company of her own four-legged companion and understands the benefits of good veterinary care to both pet and owner. Our StreetVet volunteers treat and advise on veterinary issues, but we also listen to the owner and help them when we can too. Sometimes just knowing that their pet is healthy is often a huge boost to the owner’s wellbeing. This approach resonated with Sue who already actively supports several mental health and homeless charities.

“I am delighted to have been named as an ambassador for this remarkable charity which ensures that the companion animals of those experiencing homelessness get the vital veterinary care that they need and deserve.” – Sue Perkins

StreetVet feel hugely privileged to have Sue’s endorsement and are proud to welcome this strong and charismatic ambassador into the StreetVet community. We look forward to working with her for many years to come.

Dr Sabrina Cohen-Hatton, 38, is one of the most senior woman fire officers in the world. After leaving home at 15 and school at 16, she overcame extreme personal adversity and a period of homelessness and began her career as a firefighter. At night school, she studied for a 1^st Class Honours degree in Psychology, a Masters in International Fire Service Development and a PhD in Behavioural Neuroscience. She is now recognised as a leading international expert on risk-critical decision making in crises and is an Honorary Research Fellow at Cardiff University. She has presented her work all over the world and used her research to change deeply ingrained national policy. She has won international acclaim for this prize-winning work. As a Chief Fire Officer, she has attained the highest rank possible in the UK.   

Her story has received international interest and her first book, The Heat of the Moment, has been published in three languages. Since its launch, Sabrina has been named as an Ambassador for the Big Issue and was recently awarded the #3 of their top 100 changemakers for 2020. Marie Claire named her as a Future Shaper, and Cosmopolitan featured her in their 2019 Millennial Power List. 

We are thrilled to introduce our StreetVet ambassador: award-winning writer and presenter Anna Richardson.

“Anna is a dedicated animal lover and has first-hand experience of how powerful and valuable the human-animal bond can be. She has a long history of engagement with charitable causes and is passionate about homelessness, mental health and animal welfare. Her universal appeal and broad reach makes her the perfect person to help spread the StreetVet word and we couldn’t be more excited to have her on board.’ – Dr Sam Joseph, StreetVet Co-Founder

“I am delighted to have been named as an ambassador for this remarkable charity which ensures that the companion animals of those experiencing homelessness get the vital veterinary care that they need and deserve.” – Anna Richardson

StreetVet feel hugely privileged to have Anna’s endorsement and are proud to welcome this strong and charismatic ambassador into the StreetVet community. We look forward to working with her for many years to come.

‘Rory the Vet’ is a practicing veterinary surgeon now based in London after graduating from the Royal Veterinary College in 2015.  From the outset he has balanced his clinical career with media work and managing his hugely popular Instagram account (@rorythevet). Rory features alongside James on the CBBC show ‘The Pets Factor’ and has also appeared on many other well known BBC, ITV and Channel 5 shows.  Rory has been an active StreetVet volunteer since our Clapham outreach station was set up and supports the charity whole heartedly.

Rory says, “I first heard about StreetVet through my friends in the veterinary industry. Back then it was a small group of volunteers in a few locations in London. Over the past few years I have been amazed by the growth and support for the charity and I couldn’t be more honoured to be a part of it. Being announced as an ambassador for StreetVet, alongside my friend and colleague James Greenwood, is absolutely amazing. Having seen the work of the volunteers and the incredible support for the vulnerable and homeless, I am such a huge supporter and I couldn’t be happier to be involved. I look forward to helping steer StreetVet’s growth and providing as much support as I can.”

When Rory isn’t on screen, in the clinic, or helping out at Clapham, he is at home with his three legged cat ‘Tripod’.

Dr James Greenwood is a practicing small animal vet.  Originally from Yorkshire, James qualified from Bristol University in 2007 and since then has worked in both equine and small animal practice, although now his work predominantly covers small animal species.

James knows all too well the stressors of being a vet and for the past six years he has developed a deep passion for ceramics, both making and collecting work.

This brought him the opportunity to appear on BBC Two’s ‘The Great Pottery Throwdown’ which has since led onto further television work, including the hit CBBC series ‘The Pets Factor’, which is aimed at teaching children the importance of pet care and the work of a veterinarian.

He writes for various magazine publications, has worked with numerous animal charities and has appeared across a number of veterinary related podcasts.

James is absolutely thrilled to act as ambassador for StreetVet, who in his words, “are the true guardians of animal welfare for those pets who need them most.”

“For me, StreetVet is a fantastic opportunity for vets to ‘give back’ to their local community. The reward that can come from utilising the veterinary degree in its simplest form – to help the animals that need us the most – gives recognition to how important vets are as a profession to act as the chief guardians of animal welfare.  

Having witnessed how fast StreetVet has grown in such a relatively short space of time, it demonstrates how willing vets are to volunteer their time to a cause they feel is so worthwhile but it also shows how vitally important a service like StreetVet is to those who need it.”

Many of you may already know StreetVet’s ‘Andy & Bailey’ as Andy Hutchins and his incredible dog Bailey are graduated StreetVet clients. 

A big part of StreetVet’s mission is about protecting the human-animal bond, and the bond that Andy and Bailey share is very special. Andy’s relationship with Bailey embodies everything that StreetVet stands for and he openly credits Bailey with getting him back on the straight and narrow and saving his life. Andy has said “ Bailey is all the family I have got, he’s everything – it’s like having another heartbeat that is on your side’ 

Throughout his journey, Andy has always been very open in talking about his experience of homelessness, the challenges that homeless pet ownership brings and how he first met and grew to trust the StreetVet team. This is all crucial information that continues to help StreetVet evolve as a charity. We are privileged and delighted that Andy has agreed to take a more proactive role within StreetVet and help us promote and protect the human animal bond. 

Welcome to the team Andy & Bailey. 

Under the alias of Hercule Van Wolfwinkle, Phil began drawing self-proclaimed ‘rubbish’ portraits of people’s pets in 2020, in an attempt to amuse his son while in lockdown. His ‘ultra-realistic’ style and wit quickly garnered a loyal following on social media and Phil converted likes into charitable donations for a local homeless charity Turning Tides. Jade, StreetVet’s co-founder, discovered Hercule on social media and could not resist approaching him, so back in February 2021 she got in contact and asked him if he would consider fundraising for StreetVet … and the answer was YES!

Hercule's initial fundraiser for StreetVet totalled over £6K in just 1 week and was the start of an incredible partnership announced in October 2021. Since then, Phil has gone on to raise over £100K for StreetVet, whilst also continuing to fundraise for Turning Tides and making thousands of people globally smile. What has also been great, is recently StreetVet has also welcomed one of Turning Tides hostels to the StreetVet Accredited Hostel Scheme.

Phil (aka Hercule Van Wolfwinkle) said ‘when I got the call from Jade to support StreetVet, I didn’t hesitate in saying yes. I was drawing pictures of people’s pets to raise money and awareness for those experiencing homelessness, so to be able to support a charity that helps the pets of homeless men and women was a no brainer. It is an honour and a privilege to fundraise for StreetVet and to support them in a small way with the amazing work that they do.’

Given this tremendous fundraising achievement for StreetVet and his dedication and passion to StreetVet’s mission, we would like to recognise Hercule Van Wolfwinkle as our first official ‘Fundraising Advocate’ for StreetVet.

Welcome to the team Hercule!

To find out more about Hercule's work visit: https://herculevanwolfwinkle.co.uk/