An exciting and life enhancing opportunity

I've been thinking for a while (and may have mentioned it before) that there are many similarities between dementia and autism.  There is the same need for routine, the possible triggers for anxiety are endless and unpredictable, the need to be within a comfort zone is inescapable and, most importantly, every single person with either dementia or autism is unique.  I also know that holidays with either group can be fraught.  All of this then led me to the recollection of a family run holiday complex not far from where we live which has been designed especially for families of children with autism.  The idea is that the whole family can stay in a cottage alongside but independent from others in a similar situation.  As they say in the brochure 'There is just one rule; no need to apologise, no need to explain'.  Anyway today I went to have a look and it is truly wonderful.  There is an indoor heated swimming pool which families book for private use, there are woodland walks, there is a playground with adult size equipment but best of all the cottages and houses are beautifully designed, are light and airy, decorated in calm colours and furnished with comfy sofas, flat screen tvs and everything else you could possibly want.  Why am I telling you all of this?  Well I have noticed from comments in emails and on various forums that sometimes families struggle when holidaying with loved ones who have dementia and it occurred to me that this holiday complex might be just the thing for those families so I went to talk to Richard and Jan Creane who created the centre.  They were more than willing to listen and the upshot is that they feel, as a trial, for one week next year the whole complex will be reserved solely for families affected by dementia.  As they said this afternoon if, as a family, you are still able to negotiate an airport to go abroad or can manage a long weekend at Center Parcs then The Thomas Centre in Lincolnshire probably isn't the place for you but if you would like a holiday where you can be independent, go off and do your own thing when you want to but stay put in beautiful surroundings if you're having a bad day and be surrounded by other families going through something similar then this might fit the bill.  The dates they can do this are 26th April - 3rd May 2019 and weekend or midweek breaks are available.  If you would like to know more about The Thomas Centre itself then you can look at the website
https://thethomascentre.co.uk/holidaysforfamilieswithautisticchildren.php.  if you would like to discuss a dementia friendly holiday with them then just give them a call on 01507 363463.  Just to re-iterate, this one week the Centre will be reserved entirely for families affected by dementia.  At least one person in the group must have dementia but the rest of your bunch can be made up of friends, relatives and other waifs and strays.

I am really excited by this idea and would love to know what you think so please get in touch with your comments.  Also please feel free to tell anyone you think might be interested.