TRUSTEES of Gwent animal sanctuary All Creatures Great and Small have moved to reassure supporters concerned the sale of the farm is taking so long.

Campaigners raised £150,000 to buy out Gino Savini, the co-owner of the sanctuary at Church Farm, Llanfrechfa, and place it in trust for the animals.

A £60,000 interest-free loan helped supporters meet the deadline of December 1 and they began moves to buy it outright.

But nearly two months on, the sale has still not gone ahead - and Viv Harris, co-owner and head of the sanctuary, said worried donors were starting to question what was happening with the money.

The Argus has also received letters from several donors. Karen McGarrigle of Bala Drive, Newport, wrote: "There has been a great deal of support for the sanctuary appeal, but I am concerned that this support will very rapidly disappear if the supporters feel that the money we worked so hard to raise isn't used for the purpose intended."

Richard Trense, from Hertfordshire, warned: "We are still raising money for the upkeep of the sanctuary ... but if this continues I can see the support dropping off."

Trustee Lynne Wilkins said: "We are stuck in a chain, as he is buying another property and we cannot evict him as, technically, he still part-owns the farm. We want to get this sorted out as soon as possible, but legally, we have taken it as far as we can go."

Viv Harris said: "We can understand why people are worried, but we are not ripping them off. The paperwork is taking time and there is a bit of red tape we did not expect. But we hope to have it all done and dusted by the New Year."

The money is now in the bank account of the sanctuary's solicitors, Le Brasseur Davis, of Newport, to be paid on completion of the sale - expected to be December 14. If Mr Savini fails to find anywhere else to live by that date, he will be given 28 days to move, and charged £600 rent.

If completion fails, trustees say they will look for another site. Otherwise, Viv Harris will apply for a licence to stay at the farm, as it will be the property of the All Creatures charity.