GWENT animal rights campaigner Bernice Jones (pictured) has died in hospital at the age of 80.

Mrs Jones ran Gwent Animal Rescue, at Llanhennock - which she set up in 1986 - until very recently.

She went into hospital two months ago after suffering a stroke, and died on August 1. The funeral is on hold until a post mortem examination can be carried out.

Before founding Gwent Animal Rescue, Mrs Jones, who lived in Newport, worked for the RSPCA. She set up the charity's Newport Animal Centre in Ringland.

She was also well-known for her campaigns for animal rights.

In the 1970s she campaigned against the export of live animals, and in the early 1990s she campaigned against the Dangerous Dogs Act.