‘World Horse Welfare’ to be the new name for the ILPH

The International League for the Protection of Horses (ILPH) announces that from today it is changing its name to World Horse Welfare.

You can view a video on the name change in the ILPH Media Centre.

It had long been felt by many that the name ‘International League for the Protection of Horses’ or ‘ILPH’ no longer sufficiently reflects the breadth and depth of the charity’s activities and its desire to focus its efforts on the root causes, as well as the effects, of horse cruelty. In addition, it was felt that the word ‘League’ was outdated, that the name was cumbersome and that it needs to be clearer and sharper to engage with new and wider audiences. The decision followed a strategic review and a year long consultation with the charity’s supporters and staff. The Trustees have unanimously agreed the change.

The charity’s vision of ‘A world where the horse is used but never abused’ remains at the heart of its philosophy, which is reflected in today’s publication of a charity roadmap that affirms the strategic framework for its three areas of activity: UK Welfare, Campaigns and International Training.

The roadmap is founded on the achievements of the ILPH over the past 81 years; it seeks to build on these successes, but acknowledges the path the charity has increasingly been taking in recent years, and where it intends to go over the next decade. In practice this means:

For UK Welfare:

• Establishing a way to define the major causes of horse welfare abuse in the UK and to propose practical solutions.
• Focusing on education as a means to tackle the known major causes of horse welfare problems, such as horse obesity.
• Maintaining the charity’s position as the premier organisation for the recovery, rehabilitation and rehoming of horses, through its network of Field Officers, and Recovery and Rehabilitation Centres.

For International Training:

• Developing a more regional outlook to the charity’s training projects, like its current focus on Central America and Southern Africa, to enable it to maximise the use of native trainers on all its courses.
• Establishing a network of affiliates in all countries where it works, to ensure it has a practical link to these countries after it has moved on.
• Expanding its projects to include associated skills to make a lasting difference, such as business training.

For Campaigning:

• Completing a job that was the charity’s founding campaign, namely the abolition of long distance transportation of horses for slaughter in Europe
• Integrating Campaigns further into its UK Welfare and International Training Operations in order to provide comprehensive solutions for the challenges to horse welfare; as is happening with the charity’s current project in Romania
• Campaigning to change policy, practice and attitudes to promote the charity’s vision for a world where horses are used but never abused.

The new name, and the over-arching roadmap, is a step change in the life of the charity; it develops the charity’s outlook from an organisation that was once primarily focused around the ‘protection’ of the individual horse to one that supports the ‘welfare’ of many.

You can view a video on the name change in the ILPH Media Centre.

Source: www.ilph.org