Forty Years of Guide Dogs Training in Cardiff
Guide Dogs Cymru is marking a special anniversary on Thursday 29th September 2026. It’s exactly 40 years since the official opening of Wales’s first guide dog training centre at Trevillian House in Cathedral Road, Cardiff.
Television crews turned up to record the event in 1986, interviewing staff and guide dog owners. Among them was Eva Rich of Saundersfoot, who has had seven guide dogs in her lifetime. Previously, prospective guide dog owners from South and West Wales had travelled to Exeter, Leamington, Atherton and even Forfar for training, but the Cardiff centre brought the service a lot closer to home. Since that day, more than 1,000 Welsh partnerships have been created, bringing independence to blind and partially sighted owners.
Guide Dogs has tracked down some of the people who trained and worked there and invited them to share their memories at a special event in Cardiff as the charity looks to the future in Wales. They all remember Trevillian House as a warm, welcoming and homely environment. Katie Roberts, who trained scores of guide dog partnerships and went on to lead the Cardiff team, said: “It was one of the best periods of my Guide Dogs career. We were a tiny team in those days, but it was such a positive, inspiring place to work. The centre accommodated five dogs, and the clients lived in for two weeks before going home to finish their training. We would all sit around a table together to eat our meals, and it was great for access into the city centre. It was a real ground breaker and was set up as a bit of an experiment. Staff in Exeter had been trying to support people as far away as Aberystwyth, so the centre was based on practicalities and logistics.”
The experiment proved successful, and the charity outgrew Trevillian House. It moved to purpose-built premises in Newport Road and later to its current home on Eastern Business Park, St Mellons, where there are now 30-40 dogs in training at any one time. The charity relies heavily on volunteer fosterers, who live locally and give the dog a temporary home for the duration of training. When it’s time to be matched with a new owner, the partnership goes “on-class” with others in a hotel setting, or at home.
Looking to the future, Guide Dogs continues to create successful guide dog partnerships while offering a range of other services. Several families in Wales already benefit from a buddy dog, which can have a hugely positive effect on the life of a child with a vision impairment. There are habilitation services for children and young people plus Guide Dogs My Time To Play, a programme of friendly sessions helping babies and toddlers to develop their skills and confidence. Guide Dogs’ Vision Rehabilitation Officers help adults with sight loss to maximise daily living skills by using aids and equipment, including the latest technology.
Many thanks to Deborah Rees, Communications Manager in Guide Dogs Cymru, for writing this article.
Posted on the 7th of September 2026