AN East Lancashire animal sanctuary has been shortlisted for a charity of the year award.

Healthy pet food company Burns Pet Nutrition recently announced a shortlist of six charities nominated to win their Burns Charity of the Year Award which is now in its seventh year.

Bleakholt Animal Sanctuary in Edenfield has made the list for this year.

The scheme, which recognises and rewards the outstanding achievement of animal welfare organisations throughout the UK and Ireland has run each year since 2015.

Due to be announced in late July, Burns will once again select a winning charity to receive the gift of a lifechanging donation, alongside an ongoing supportive partnership with the pet food company, often within the form of a large donation, financial assistance, multiple promotional opportunities and a supportive partnership with the pet food company.

Founder of Burns Pet Nutrition, John Burns, said: “Myself and the Burns Pet Nutrition team are extremely passionate about supporting and giving back to the community in any way, shape or form possible, and the same goes for charities in need of the support they aren’t currently receiving.

"We are looking forward to working with the selected charities throughout 2022 and, hopefully, they will feel the benefit of the support Burns Pet Nutrition can offer."

Alongside this initiative, Burns also continues to support more than 30 charities long term, and contributes multiple one-off donations throughout the year.

They also have their very own in-house charity, The John Burns Foundation, which runs multiple community initiatives, such as Burns by Your Side, a scheme that helps school children improve their literacy and communication skills with the aid of trained volunteers and reading dogs.