PAWS FOR PROGRESS CIC

Name

PAWS FOR PROGRESS CIC

Legal name

Paws for Progress CIC

Website

https://pawsforprogress.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Animal-Assisted Youth Intervention Services

NAICS

Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services (81291), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Foster & Volunteer Network Programs (BPAGAIAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Pet Services (Grooming, Training, Daycare) (CRALAIAJ)

Keywords

• Dog-assisted therapy
• Prison rehabilitation programmes
• Animal-assisted learning
• Youth intervention services
• Rescue dog training

Headquarters

HQ city

Stirling

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Donations: Individual donations through Local Giving platform, accepted as one-off or standing order payments. Every donation helps enhance well-being of people and animals.
2. Grants from Charitable Trusts and Funders: Funding from charitable trusts including National Lottery Community Fund, The Dunlossit and Islay Community Trust, The Marshall Foundation, The Cross Trust, Women's Fund for Scotland, The Corra Foundation, and anonymous charitable trusts.
3. Fundraising: Community fundraising activities including non-uniform days, bake sales, sponsored walks and runs. The organization supports fundraisers with promotional materials, leaflets, collection tins, and branded t-shirts.
4. Easy Fundraising: Commission from online shopping through Easy Fundraising platform when supporters shop at Tesco, M&S, Amazon, John Lewis and thousands of other retailers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

PAWS FOR PROGRESS CIC delivers dog-assisted personal development programmes for children and young people in schools, colleges and community settings, alongside custody-based programmes that pair prison residents with rescue dogs for training and rehabilitation. Its work is trauma-informed, neurodiversity-informed and rooted in positive reinforcement dog training methods, and it operates the UK's first prison-based rescue dog training programme.

Product overview

Paws for Progress CIC is a Community Interest Company offering a suite of dog-assisted learning programmes that combine therapeutic interventions with animal interaction. The core offerings include Community Programmes for at-risk youth in schools and charities, and Custody Programmes at HMP & YOI Polmont featuring tiered services from one-to-one wellbeing sessions to intensive 8-week Rescue Dog Training programmes. These are supported by Ambassadogs (staff and volunteer dogs) who facilitate learning and skill-building. All programmes are trauma-informed and neurodiversity-informed, designed for young people aged 13-25 facing barriers including mental health challenges, neurodivergence, and involvement with the criminal justice system.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Dog-Assisted Personal Development Programmes (Community Programmes) Trauma-informed, neurodiversity-informed group programmes that bring trained dogs into schools, colleges and community settings to support vulnerable and at-risk children, young people, families and adults in their personal development.
• Custody Programmes Prison-based personal development and animal welfare programmes delivered to prison residents in partnership with the Scottish Prison Service, supporting rehabilitation, vocational skills and wellbeing alongside rescue dog training.
• Rescue Dog Training Programme at HMP & YOI Polmont A pioneering prison-based rescue dog training programme at HMP & YOI Polmont in which selected prison residents train rescue dogs (notably from the Scottish SPCA and Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home) using positive reinforcement, with the aim of improving dog rehoming prospects and supporting rehabilitation of participants.

Quantifiable outcome

• 99% of attendees improve in mood during sessions
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor, core and supporting.

• Thistles Shopping CentreminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Community partnership with Stirling shopping centre through #ThistlesHelps initiative. Collaboration on photography competition celebrating human-dog relationships, with young people from HMP & YOI Polmont judging the competition and images displayed in the centre's community art gallery.
• Scottish Prison ServicecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2011Primary operational partnership delivering dog-assisted learning programmes at HMP & YOI Polmont. The Scottish Prison Service is an Executive Agency of the Scottish Government responsible for secure custody of around 8,300 people across Scotland. Polmont is the only prison in Scotland housing young males aged 18-21, adult females, and adult males.
• Edinburgh Dog and Cat HomecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2011Partnership providing rescue dogs for the training programme. Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home was founded in 1883 and supports pets and their owners through community support services. Dogs receive expert training and socialisation from programme participants, helping them be successfully rehomed. The organisation costs around £3 million a year to run and receives no government funding.
• Fife CollegecoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2011Educational partnership delivering contextualised core skill qualifications through SQA units focused on work with dogs. Education delivery is non-intrusive to dog training sessions, making it less formal than traditional classroom settings. All learners who participate achieve various SQA qualifications.
• University of StirlingcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2011Research partnership originating from PhD project of Dr. Rebecca Leonardi in 2011. Paws for Progress works closely with the University of Stirling and Stirling Human Animal Interaction Research (SHAIR) Centre to collect and evaluate data, providing evidence on the impact of services. Research findings have been published in peer-reviewed journals since 2017.
• Enable ScotlandsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerCharitable organisation partnership collaborating on services for young people across Central Scotland.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Scottish SPCA: Scotland's animal welfare charity, focused on rescue, rehoming and animal welfare enforcement. Comparable as a Scotland-based animal welfare charity operating in Paws for Progress's home geography, though with broader animal welfare scope and without the dog-training-for-youth angle.

Broad incumbents

• Barnardo's: UK's largest children's charity, supporting vulnerable children and young people including those in or at risk of entering the criminal justice system. Comparable in the at-risk youth and trauma-informed service mission, though much larger and without the dog-assisted intervention model.
• Dogs Trust: UK's largest dog welfare charity focused on rescue, rehoming and campaigning. Comparable in the rescue dog welfare and rehoming mission component of Paws for Progress, though operating at much greater scale and without the youth education focus.

Direct peers

• Support Dogs: UK charity training assistance dogs for people with autism, epilepsy and physical disabilities. Comparable as a UK non-profit combining dog training methodology with measurable social outcomes for vulnerable people, though focused on disability assistance rather than at-risk youth.
• Hearing Dogs for Deaf People: UK charity training dogs to assist deaf people and people with hearing loss. Comparable as a UK non-profit using structured dog training programmes with social impact outcomes, with similar reliance on positive reinforcement methods.
• Medical Detection Dogs: UK charity training dogs to detect human diseases and support people with complex medical conditions. Comparable as a UK specialist charity combining rigorous dog training methodology with measurable health outcomes, with research partnerships.
• Dogs for Good: UK charity training dogs to support people with disabilities and autism, using positive reinforcement methods. Comparable as a non-profit that combines dog training with social impact for vulnerable populations, though focused on assistance dogs rather than rescue dog rehabilitation.
• Pets as Therapy: UK charity providing animal-assisted therapy visits to hospitals, hospices, schools and other settings. Comparable as a UK-based non-profit delivering animal-assisted interventions to vulnerable groups, including children and young people, though focused on pet visitations rather than training-based programmes.
• Canine Partners: UK charity training assistance dogs for people with physical disabilities. Comparable as a UK-based non-profit using positive reinforcement dog training methods to deliver social impact, though focused on disability assistance partnerships.

Others

• Prisoners' Education Trust: UK charity funding and supporting prison education for people in custody. Comparable in the prison-based educational delivery and SQA/qualifications aspect, though focused on broader educational funding rather than dog-assisted delivery.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/paws-for-progress-cic

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about PAWS FOR PROGRESS CIC