AN animal rescue shelter has opened its doors to the county's stray and unwanted animals after 18 years of planning and hard work.

The Worcestershire Animal Rescue Shelter at Deblin's Green, near Malvern, will initially only be able to take in dogs but, as funds permit, will provide shelter and food for all needy animals.

So far, more than £200,000 has been raised through the "sheer hard work" of the fundraising committee.

"Every penny raised has been ploughed into the purchase of land, the installation of services, the building of kennels and the employment of a site manager," said the president of the charity, Barbara Hardwick.

The idea for the shelter came 18 years ago when Mrs Hardwick was chairwoman of the Worcestershire Animal Protection Association (WAPA), an organisation formed in the 1970s to campaign against animal cruelty.

"We felt we were achieving minor successes but needed to put our money into something more concrete so people could actually see what we were doing," said Mrs Hardwick, whose WAPA campaigns included fighting to prevent circuses with live animal acts from performing in Worcestershire.

"There were quite a lot of stray animals at that time, so in 1983, we called a public meeting and it was overwhelmingly agreed to build and maintain a shelter and a small committee was formed," said Mrs Hardwick.

She said much of the work at the self-funding centre - the site for which was bought eight years ago - would depend on voluntary helpers.

"Apart from the routine care of the animals, finding and checking out prospective new homes, we will require volunteers skilled in dealing with the public," she said.

"Most importantly, we very much need someone to take on, hopefully on a voluntary basis, the role of fundraiser because financial needs do not end with the opening of the shelter but become more urgent as costs for vets, food, insurance, services and maintenance arise."

A part-time r elief manager and full-time animal carer have already been employed, and permanent housing for the site manager, a reception area and veterinary facilities will be added in time.

Money for the shelter has come from fundraising in the Worcester and Malvern areas and, in 1997, a one-off grant of £10,000 from Malvern Hills District Council.

A "considerable amount of help" has also been received from the Jean Sainsbury Animal Welfare Trust, to which the shelter is affiliated.

If anyone can help, either through donations or by volunteering, call the Worcestershire Animal Rescue Shelter on 01905 831651.