Duchally Estate

Carer stayed at Duchally Estate with her husband, son and parents – it was absolutely stunning and picturesque.  We had the most charming lodge right in-front of a pond and the leisure centre.

As a family we enjoyed a lot of laughs and shared experiences of cooking together, walks, swimming, relaxing and taking it really easy – I feel that I have been away and had a proper break and R+R!

My son has additional support needs and we were able create a calm atmosphere without rushing about, he loved the pool and splashing about and my husband and I enjoyed the Jacuzzi, steam room and sauna.

Our son loved spending time with his Granny and Granddad which has created special memories for him.   He baked with Granny, went to the park and fed the ducks at our door with Granddad which allowed my husband and I to take time out for ourselves and we went on a ‘date’ to a local restaurant!

We all had the time of our life in an idyllic setting and had shared experiences that we just would never have had had we not all taken time away together.  A lot of time has passed since my husband illness was diagnosed and we are on an equal footing again after this break.  We are still learning to work with our son’s additional support needs and although it is challenging it was fantastic to spend time together exploring and relaxing without the everyday pressures.

My greatest gratitude to everyone who made it possible, it was thoroughly appreciated and enjoyed – putting pause on it all for the week kept my sanity in check especially as we enter another stressful time with my husband returning to work, learning about our sons needs and lots of appointments.

I am so honoured that I was lucky to be gifted a break at Duchally Estate.  It would have taken a lot of saving for a very long time to have afforded a holiday like that and I am so grateful to receive this gift.  The Estate was breath-taking, the staff were amazing and the location is just stunning – the memories that we all share now will last a lifetime!

This break was gifted to VOCAL through Respitality which is a Scottish Government supported project coordinated nationally by Shared Care Scotland.