Teenage sweethearts who met at an animal sanctuary and now live with five of their own rescue horses have wed.

Charlie and Pash Smith, née Gilham, were both 16 when they were introduced as volunteers at The Retreat Animal Rescue Farm Sanctuary, and bonded over their love of furry creatures.

Charlie, 21, whose uncle Billy runs the High Halden sanctuary and has grown up helping at the farm, says: "When Pash started volunteering we were both still at school.

“So we spent every weekend together in the first couple of years with all of the animals, especially the equines.

“When we were working together on the horse team we enjoyed mucking out the stables and taking the horses on walks down the lane in winter.

"Initially, it was our shared interest in animals and the retreat which bonded us.

"It was from this that our love for each other grew.”

Pash, now 22, first visited the retreat, on the outskirts of Ashford, when her horse died of old age in 2019. She then adopted Celia, a 15-year-old mare, from the sanctuary.

Within a year, the youngster, who attended Highsted Grammar School in Sittingbourne, was leading the site’s horse team and met Charlie, who attended Orchards Academy in Swanley.

He then proposed to Pash on a family holiday in the Dominican Republic in July 2022.

Less than two years later, the pair tied the knot at The Orangery in Maidstone on July 27 and jetted off for their honeymoon in Antigua.

Charlie now works for his family business and Pash is employed in the motor industry, but both still make time to visit the sanctuary and help with the rescue animals.

They also have their own horses at home, all from the retreat, including a thoroughbred, an Arabian, two falabellas called Pip and Pepperpot, as well as Celia.

The pair work long hours, so Pash’s mum helps with the horses in the mornings, but the couple spend their evenings and weekends with them.

Charlie says and he and Pash both have high standards, and make a partnership.

He explains: "Some people may feel like we are high maintenance, but we like to complete things to a high standard.

"This is a trait we both admired in each other and we knew we would make a great team.”

Speaking prior to their honeymoon, the farm’s Billy Thompson said: "Charlie Smith and Pash Gilham met and fell in love on our horse team.

"We are so happy and proud for both of them."