Guide Dogs Week 2012 - in pictures

Every hour, another person in the UK goes blind. When someone loses their sight, Guide Dogs makes sure they don’t lose their freedom as well. Guide Dogs currently supports 4,600 guide dog partnerships Photograph: PR

Since 1931, Guide Dogs has trained and partnered more than 30,000 guide dogs Photograph: PR

Guide Dogs is now the largest breeder of working dogs in the world. The new National Breeding Centre in Warwickshire enables the charity to breed more than 1,300 guide dog puppies a year Photograph: PR

Most guide dog pups are born in the homes of volunteers. There are around 280 brood stock holders and 85 stud dog holders who look after guide dog mums and dads Photograph: PR

At the Guide Dogs National Breeding Centre, the work begins to socialise the puppies, getting them used to interacting with people and with each other Photograph: PR

Dog welfare experts keep a close eye on all the dogs to make sure they are happy and healthy Photograph: PR

Volunteer puppy walkers look after the dogs from six weeks of age for the first year of their lives. It’s their job to help the puppy become used to everything it will encounter as a working guide dog, including public transport and walking in town and city centres Photograph: PR

There are four Guide Dogs training schools across the country. Dogs spend around 26 weeks learning how to become guide dogs Photograph: PR

Once a guide dog has been matched with a blind or partially sighted person, they train together for about three weeks Photograph: PR

It costs £50,000 to breed, train and support a guide dog during its working life. The guide dog service receives no government funding and relies solely on the support of the public Photograph: Jason Bye

Guide Dogs provides a range of mobility services and has trained over 1,000 My Guide volunteers who help people with sight loss get out and about Photograph: PR

The Buddy Dogs service is designed to support blind and partially sighted children and young people, countering isolation and depression, and helping assess whether they would benefit from a guide dog Photograph: PR