20 pivotal people and moments

On 15th April the BHWT will celebrate a very special milestone as we turn twenty! Having been founded in 2005 by Jane Howorth, here we look back on twenty of the key moments, individuals and a few very special hens who were all instrumental in some way or another for the charity’s success. We hope they aren’t blushing too much when they read...

Farmers first

Firstly, we must pay credit to one of our farmers because, simply, without them we wouldn’t have access to hens. We have worked with so many farmers over the 20 years, some of whom were happy to work with us from the outset, but some took time to trust us and one of those is Peter. With 8,000 in enriched cages and 5,000 in free-range units, Peter was initially introduced to us by an egg industry contact. We visited prior to even being allowed to take birds to the units, with the third party in attendance to vouch for our credentials again and tentatively we booked our first hens. Peter was so nervous about working with us initially, but now – some 12 years on – we are proud to have the relationship we do and to be able to say we save 100% of his colony hens and most of his free-range birds from slaughter. And Peter loves nothing more than a chat before depopulation starts – chicken diplomacy at its best!

A chance encounter

One day when I was trawling country lanes for signs of hidden battery farms, I struck ‘lucky’ twice. Firstly I came across a well-hidden farm with what I could tell from the noise and smell housed thousands of battery hens, and secondly at that farm was Philip – an egg wholesale supplier collecting eggs for his weekly round. Initially I think Philip was rather intrigued by me, but he was also extremely kind from the outset and over time he introduced me to many key industry figures which enabled me to be taken seriously and in a non-threatening way. Philip and I used to meet for tea and cake, when I would take my long list of questions to pick his brains about anything egg industry related, and he always came up trumps with answers and contacts from his little, very tatty, black book! Sadly Philip passed away many years ago now, but I went to his funeral and was not surprised to see the church was overwhelmed with those wishing to pay their respects. Philip helped me to take a first big step into the heart of the industry and for that I shall be forever grateful.

One of the originals

Our wonderful Adele has been with the charity since almost the ‘off’. Amongst my first handful of outlying volunteers in Lancashire, Adele has become a staunchly dedicated stalwart and dear friend through the years. She still helps on rehoming days, she’s sat on our board and then come off because she joined our team of staff managing our finances. She’s the office go-to when anyone needs help with our bespoke database system and she’s a key player in all decisions the charity takes. It blows me away that someone I didn’t meet for years could be so loyal, capable and kind and again, the charity would not be where it is today without her invaluable input. In fact, we’d quite possibly still be using pen and paper if I had my way…!! Thank you, Adele, for all your patience and foresight, you’re a gem, and here’s to the next 20!

A true stalwart

Ian Farrar – what a tour de force! Ian rang me up, ooh about 15 years ago, and just kept saying ‘That’s genius, that is, rehoming hens like cats and dogs, that’s just genius!’ And then he added: ‘How can I get involved?’ Well, how thrilled am I to let you know that both Ian, and his lovely poorly hen caring wife, Mollie, are still with the charity and still helping hens. Ian drove our very first Luton and still treks the countryside, first to farms and then to rehoming sites. And I could not be more grateful that he does. He has probably escorted more than 100,000 hens onto a better life. What an achievement. Ian and Mollie, if you’re reading this…thank you.

A key industry influencer

Andrew Joret, now retired, was the CEO Chair of the BEIC and I first met him many years ago when I worked from my home in Devon. Andrew had seen a small TV piece on BBC Inside Out about my work and rather than try to pigeon-hole me or be wary of my welfare badge, he immediately saw the opportunity to work in a collaborative way where both welfare and industry could offer positive messaging and education to consumers. We did several pieces for TV together including Countryfile as well as sharing some airtime on BBC R4 about key messages that were relevant to both industry and charity. Andrew was at one time CEO of Noble Food and I visited him at their Head Office where again we were able to find common ground and ways in which to promote poultry welfare to consumers. I shall be forever grateful to him for taking the charity, Battery Hen Welfare Trust in those days, seriously.

True dedication

I’ve not spoken to volunteer Sophie McCoy for many years now, but she was a coordinator for our Lancashire B Team around 2009, working in collaboration with Adele who headed up the A Team. Sophie was passionate about our hens and our work, so much so that she wrote a book about our beloved feathered friends ‘Tales from the Coop’ and from that book we landed our wonderful Chairman, David and his incredibly supportive wife, Sarah. I’ll never forget when Sophie was diagnosed with cancer and told the surgeon she wasn’t available for surgery because she had committed to a hen collection. I did not find this out until after the event! What dedication. Sophie still volunteers for our Lancs team today.

An astounding all rounder

David Marek, the Chair of our current board, has made a huge difference to the charity and been integral to improving our website and the implementation of many new systems, not least our online shop functions. David also rehomes hens for us and generally is there on hand to help with a whole host of tasks. Quite simply once again the charity would not be where it is today without his incredible support. And all the hours that David donates to the charity are on a voluntary basis.

And let me tell you, it’s a pretty awesome contribution.

An unsung hero

There are many unsung heroes within the BHWT, and Andy McPhillips is one of them. Her sister is our Head of Operations & Welfare, so by default Andy had to become involved to some extent with the charity, but nobody really expected this dedicated volunteer to go over and above on so many occasions. Whether it be helping on rehoming days, sorting out urgent problems, supporting with calls and helping with office admin, stepping into support on social media and many other aspects of our work. Andy is, like many of our volunteers, a total asset to the charity. Her willingness over the last 20 years to go above and beyond, sometimes at an unearthly hour, is deeply appreciated. A shout out, too, to Andy’s husband Mac who as a highly skilled welder has used his experience to our benefit on more than one occasion. Cheers to you both, and here’s to many more years of helping our beloved hens.

Notre sœur française

Heidi Carneau lives in France, but she used to live in the UK, and that’s where she found out about the BHWT and about the joys of keeping hens as pets. Always an avid animal-lover, Heidi moved back across The Channel and took with her a little acorn of an idea. Lots of conversations later, and Champs Libres aux Poules was hatched in 2020 with Heidi heading up the operation. To date, they are growing faster than the BHWT, benefitting from our experiences and structural model. Heidi now has around 140 volunteers and has rehomed almost 100,000 very lucky French hens. In the first six months of 2025, all being well, she and her team are set to rehome 30,000 hens on a par with their British counterpart! Amazing.

A valiant vet

I first met Marcella Perversi on a sad occasion when she came to put my adopted cat to sleep (the cat came with the house I purchased); whilst we waited for dear little Katie to gently nod off to sleep, we got to know each other and quickly discovered our mutual love of chickens. Fast forward a few years and Marcella has become one of the leading lights in poultry diagnosis and treatment for feathered pets. She was largely self-taught in the early days, and now sees clients from far afield, so valued is her experience and knowledge. There’s no doubt in my mind that Marcella helped the charity to take significant steps forward in the veterinary support offered to our pet hens.

A very special hen

Ok, so we all know about Vicky, the hen that changed my life, but we know less about Yoko. Arriving one summer’s day at my home, Yoko was at the bottom of a crate, completely unable to move and covered in egg yolk – Yoko seemed an appropriate name. To be honest I’m not sure why we didn’t spot this poor little hen at the farm, today she would be carried in someone’s arms so bad was her condition, but nearly 20 years ago, perhaps we were still learning. With hundreds of hens being unloaded, Yoko was placed in the sunshine on my front lawn, with my jacket propping her up; she couldn’t do anything for herself. The first thing she did was spread her wing quills (she had no feathers) soaking up the warmth of the sun. When we were able to give Yoko a thorough look over, to our horror she had a broken wing, a broken leg, and two broken toes. She was skeletal and had no feathers to speak about, and yet her comb appeared – against the odds – to be healthy.

Some hens just burn with the strongest will to survive, and Yoko was one of them. I took Yoko to my local vet and asked for help to mend this broken little hen. The vet, from New Zealand, scratched his head and was nonplussed at my expectation for her; he said she should be put to sleep.

But in the few days I had already cared for Yoko, I knew she had an extraordinary determination and so we drove back from the vet, and she received critical care, from me. She ‘lived’ in my horse feed bucket, propped up on all sides by the bedding that moulded to her shape and step by step, by gentle step, she started to improve. A brand-new set of glossy feathers emerged, she began to relish her feed and the treats she was given, and when the weather was nice and I felt she was strong enough, she lounged in the sunlight, sitting next to new made friends who accepted her.

Then one magical day, Yoko got up…and she started to potter, as all hens should potter, and I felt a surge of pride that this little hen, so broken and covered in egg yolk on the day she arrived, had managed to get back on her feet and live a free range retirement, just as we wished for her. And she taught me the resilience of a hen is oh so powerful. Dear Yoko - long gone but forever remembered.

The storyteller

Key to the charity’s success is, quite simply, being able to spread the word about it, and so we are incredibly thankful to all the journalists who help tell our story. One, however, deserves a special mention for her commitment to splashing ex-commercial hens over the pages of her magazine every month, without fail. Liz Wright, editor of Country Smallholding, dedicates two pages of every issue to whatever story we deem important enough to tell that month, as well as including our Hen of the Month in every poultry newsletter emailed out to subscribers. Liz, thank you.

Lacey and Joe Allen

It’s fair to say that issue 12 of C&E is one of our most iconic, mostly thanks to our cover star – Welsh international footballer Joe Allen, who made quite a splash by declaring his love of chickens and ended up appearing in several national news articles following publication. But the driver behind the Allens’ love of hens undoubtedly comes from Joe’s wife, Lacey, who has adopted dozens from the BHWT and continues to donate regularly to the charity, for which we are so thankful.

The Jamie Oliver effect

As you’ve already read, a pivotal moment in the history of the charity both in terms of spreading the word about our work and convincing people that chickens were worthy of higher welfare conditions, came in 2008 when Jane featured on Jamie’s Fowl Dinners alongside the man himself. The show set out to educate the public about misconceptions surrounding the UK poultry industry, outlining how meat and egg production is carried out in the UK. The generalised message was simple: spend less and accept lower welfare or dig deeper and ensure better conditions for the feathered friends who produce food for us. The result of that show was a phenomenal surge in interest in the charity, with some 4,000 calls being taken by Jane and some very frazzled volunteers in the days that followed. Jane remains forever grateful to Jamie for taking what we do seriously.

From Germany, with love

We will always be glad that Yvonne Brunotte spotted a BHWT poster when on holiday in the UK and took it upon herself to hold a fundraiser for us. Since then, Yvonne has gone above and beyond the call of duty raising thousands of pounds to help hens through her creative schemes. Not only that, she has given so much of her time supporting our marketing and fundraising teams creating materials for us to use across various platforms. She also attended the JustGiving Awards with us in 2018 when we were named Charity of the Year and helped us celebrate with a very fancy bottle of champagne! Thank you Yvonne, we think you’re a star.

Our generous donors

There are simply too many to mention one by one, so instead we raise a collective toast to each and every person who has donated to help hens over the past 20 years. Whether you’ve given £5, £500 or £5,000, please know that every penny has been spent furthering our lifesaving efforts rehoming hens, so that each one can enjoy a free-range retirement as nature intended, as well as broadening our horizons so that more people are aware of the joy hen keeping brings. Whenever we ask, our supporters rally round, like the time our van caught fire and you helped us raise £30,000 in just one day, or when we ran our most successful Christmas Appeal ever following the Covid pandemic. Your generosity is never taken for granted, and always appreciated.

Our supportive corporates

Working in collaboration with specially selected corporate partners has helped extend the BHWT’s reach to new audiences over the past 20 years and raised thousands of pounds in donations to further our work. We are proud of our partnerships with well-respected brands which support hen welfare, including the Smallholder Range, The Landmark Trust, Omlet, Dengie Fresh Bed for Chickens, Higgidy, Natures Grub, Nettex and Sophie Allport. To have their endorsement behind us gives us the encouragement to do more and go further in the name of hen welfare.

Pets Foundation

You’ll all know (and likely have shopped at) Pets at Home, but did you know they have a charitable arm known as the Pets Foundation? Since 2006 they have been supporting various causes within our charity and have funded projects such as trailers, local rehoming equipment, biosecurity kits and vet bills plus much more. To date the Pets Foundation have donated more than £88,000 to our charity, a huge chunk of which was to support the development of our essential Hen Helpline which many of you will have used in times of need. Just like us, the Pets Foundation know that hens make wonderful pets, and we are so grateful to have them on board supporting our work. Thank you.

Special feathered friends

Summer, by supporter Paul Checkley

I have been privileged to be allowed to rehome more than 40 girls from the BHWT over 10 years; I also enjoy raising vital funds for BHWT, without which our girls would never experience the joy of freedom. All my girls mean the world to me, and each came with their unique personality.

One girl stole a massive part of my heart (Summer, the one I am holding in the picture). When I collected her, she, like many others, was almost bald. As I let them out into their runs, each of the four girls I rescued on that day hesitantly made their way out of their coop, their little heads peeping in and out in fascination at what they could see: green grass, natural light, and somewhere to stretch their legs and roam for the first time. Summer stayed inside the coop for hours, scared to venture out, terrified of the unknown while her friends were busy scratching for worms and feasting on their new freedom diet.

I usually leave them to it, but I knew Summer struggled to adapt, so, I intervened, picked her up, and walked with her down my garden. Each day, I spent hours with her next to me, and like all my girls, we bonded, but there was something different about her. I have Bipolar Disorder and am also physically disabled, so I spend many hours in my world. Soon Summer acclimatised to her new surroundings and mixed with the other girls, but every time I came out to feed them or sit and admire them she would insist on sitting on my lap, as if to say "we both suffer with horrors of the mind but I am here for you". I loved the joy of sitting outside in all weathers just taking in the ambiance of joy they created. They gave so much and asked for so very little in return.

Liberty

Even now, despite battery cages having been banned from 2012, our hens are often referred to as ‘ex-bats’ such is the impact that these cages had on our view of the industry. Prior to 2012 hens were kept in ‘barren’ battery cages with very little room to exhibit any kind of natural behaviours – Liberty was one of these hens, in fact, the very last battery hen to be rehomed in the UK at the end of 2011. Such was the response from the public to rehome as many battery hens as possible that the charity found homes for 15,000 in the last six weeks of the year. Liberty marked a huge milestone in the history of hen welfare, and raised awareness of all the hens still kept in cages, even beyond the ban.