Assistance dog charity Dogs for Autism has received an £8,474 donation from prize draw operator Raffle House.

Dogs for Autism was founded in 2019 by Hilary Armour, a dog trainer with an autistic son whose life was dramatically improved after getting his first dog.

She set up the charity with a mission to provide assistance dogs at no charge to autistic people of all ages. They are trained from puppies in Alton and usually partnered with a family by the age of two.

Raffle House is a UK prize draw provider that gives away multi-million-pound homes and various other prizes.

When people buy tickets, Raffle House lets them decide to which charity partner they wish to direct a portion of the price, and gives these funds to the charities annually. Dogs for Autism has been a partner since last year.

Dogs for Autism fundraising manager Laura McCreadie said: “Every penny raised helps us towards our goal of transforming the lives of families affected by autism and we are so grateful for the support from Raffle House players so far.

“The difference our dogs make is life-changing and it’s the kindness of people who choose our charity that makes this possible.

“Raffle House’s donation will help us to continue to train and support the amazing dogs we work with, who have a profound impact on their partners.”

Training a dog costs £25,000 and the charity can only afford to begin training five or six each year. Last time it invited applications more than 700 people applied.

Raffle House executive directorJames Mieville said: “We’re pleased to be able to support such a worthwhile charity and are glad our players have quickly gotten behind Dogs for Autism.

“We hope to grow our partnership further so that in future our financial support allows the charity to help even more people.”