Darlington school therapy dog heading to Buckingham Palace for Queen tribute

A therapy dog based at a school in Darlington is heading to Buckingham Palace to take part in a parade honouring the late Queen Elizabeth II.

Amadeus is a two-year-old cockapoo and his work with special needs children at Skerne Park Academy has earned him a place in a special canine tribute.

The event on 9 October has become known as The Corgi Parade because of the Queen's love of the breed.

Processions of dogs will take place at Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Sandringham, and Balmoral.

Amadeus will be at the palace with his owner Jo Beaton, who is also a teacher at the school.

She said: "We learnt a lot about the queen for the Platinum Jubilee so it is very fresh in the children's minds. Some of them were very upset at her passing and because she was such an animal lover and all of the children here adore Amadeus, we're just so proud that we're getting to take him to represent the school."

She said Amadeus has made a big difference to the children's lives.

She added: "Some of our children do struggle with emotions and lots of things going on. Obviously Covid had a massive impact on their wellbeing and so Amadeus was actually born during lockdown and I noticed with my own children that he was good at getting them through some really tough times emotionally.

"His impact was positive. All the children couldn't wait to come in again. With Amadeus here it just made for a more welcoming return."

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