HUNDREDS of mourners are expected to gather today to say goodbye to murdered horse sanctuary worker Laura Davies.

Laura, 21, was stabbed a number of times outside the Essex Horse and Pony Protection Society centre on Friday, July 3.

Family, friends and colleagues will gather outside the sanctuary, in Pitsea Hall Lane, Pitsea, before a procession makes its way to Basildon Crematorium for a service at 11.30am.

Two of Laura’s favourite rescued foals, Oreo and Basil, will lead the group.

Sue Allery, manager of the sanctuary, said: “It’s still very, very raw.

“It’s going to be a very difficult day, but we’re going to do her so proud.

“Laura is never going to be forgotten. We’re a very close team, we’re like a family. If someone hurts one of us, they hurt all of us.

“She was a one-off girl, she was brilliant. We couldn’t have asked for a better colleague.

“Laura loved her horses, so we wanted them to become a part of her funeral.”

Mourners have been asked to bring flowers or make a donation to the Laura Davies Fund, which was set up by her colleagues and family.

More than £1,000 has already been donated, which will be used to help the animals Laura cared for.

A number of fundraising events are being organised, including a sponsored horse ride at One Tree Hill, in Langdon Hills. Laura, of Churchill Avenue, Basildon, a stable groom who joined the sanctuary as an apprentice in January 2013, leaves behind her heartbroken mum, older brother and sister, and three young nieces.

Her boyfriend, Jordan Taylor, 22, from Basildon, has been charged with killing her.

To donate to the Laura Davies Fund, go to gofundme.com/xh96m2g