A FUTURE

BEYOND RESPITE

OUR VISION FOR A FUTURE BEYOND RESPITE

INTRODUCING THE REVITALISE CAPITAL CAMPAIGN
The future of respite
starts here
We want to create a magical place for disabled people and
carers who need the security of 24-hour, nurse-led care to
be able to take a break.

A place beyond respite; a place
where relationships come alive,
where stories and gifts are shared,
all within an historic setting that
reimagines accessibility.
We very much hope you will support
our vision or join this dedicated team
as we pool our talents to create a
new global standard for disabled
people and carers.

In the pages that follow you will

find an overview of this exceptional For the full project
project and some information about
prospectus, our Annual
Revitalise.
Reports, or to discuss this
We are already very fortunate to opportunity further, please
count on the support of Samantha contact:
Cameron as our Patron, along with
Vice-Presidents Dame Judi Dench
Chris Simmonds, CEO:
CH DBE, Dame Esther Rantzen
csimmonds@revitalise.org.uk
DBE and Arthur Smith. We are also
delighted to have the advice and Or call: 0303 303 0147
support of renowned architect Piers
Gough CBE RIBA RA and Stuart www.revitalise.org.uk
Corbyn, former Chief Executive of the
Cadogan Estate.
Relationships beyond respite
When Joan Brander founded Revitalise over 50 years ago in
1963, she and her fellow volunteers revolutionised the quality
and accessibility of respite care for disabled people and carers.

They were driven by one simple
belief – everybody needs a break.
Today, driven by that same belief,
Revitalise provides 5,000 breaks
each year at three holiday centres.
Our goal is to provide a break that
feels like a real holiday, offering great
hospitality with 24-hour, nurse-led
care for people living with a wide
range of conditions including MS,
cerebral palsy, Parkinson’s and
dementia.
We are blessed with an army of
volunteers and operate the largest
residential volunteering programme
in the country. Revitalise’s nearly
2,000 volunteers come from all
backgrounds and range in age from
their teens right up to their 90s, with
most aged 18-25.
Each year volunteers donate over
3,500 weeks of their time, and
working with them we are able not
just to keep our guests safe, but
to take them where they want to
go. Our guests choose day trips to
the Isle of Wight and to France, ice
skating and flying lessons, visits to
historic homes, and evenings out at
shows or nightclubbing.
Carers can join the person they care
for or take their own break, free
from guilt or worry, secure in the
knowledge that their loved ones are
safe and having a really good time.
This combination has proved critical
to carers who often struggle with
guilt - one in three of the UK’s 6.8
million carers never takes even a
single day off from their caring role.
Our centres are open 51 weeks of the
year, including Christmas and New
Year, and they are full year round.
Revitalise is the only provider of such
a service at scale.
The main alternative to a break with
us is a spare bed in a residential care
home - yet independent research care, leisure and hospitality into an
confirms there are around 540,000 invitation to disabled people, carers
people living with the same levels of and volunteers to rediscover and
disability as our current guests and share the gifts and stories that enrich
this number is growing. every human being.
We now have the opportunity Mindy Sawhney
to increase our capacity by over
40% and create a new standard, a
place beyond a care home, beyond
respite, beyond a hotel. A place
that puts into bricks and mortar the Chairman
magic of Revitalise, blending social
A game-changing
destination
The Elms sits in nine acres of grounds, nestled within the breathtaking Malvern Hills, near
the picturesque village of Abberley in Worcestershire. At the heart of the site lies an elegant
Grade II listed mansion in the Queen Anne style, dating back to 1710. The site has been
extensively remodelled and has been used most recently as a luxury spa hotel.

Revitalise has recently entered into
partnership with Gemini Properties
to acquire and convert this beautiful
hotel into the charity’s fourth centre.
The talented design team at One
Creative, under the watchful eye of
visionary architect Piers Gough CBE
RIBA RA, has begun drafting plans to
convert The Elms into a truly ground- complemented by cutting edge
breaking nurse-supported holiday assistive technology that hotel
centre, preserving both its historic guests experience as beautiful,
character and its connection to this intelligent design.
quintessentially English setting.  
We plan to create a showcase
for ‘invisible accessibility’ - state
of the art accessible facilities,
 “a place beyond respite;
a place where relationships
come alive, where stories
and gifts are shared”
Help us build the future
Revitalise needs capital funds to bring The Elms project to
fruition and has set about this task secure in the knowledge
that the charity has achieved a sound financial footing and
established a compelling case for growth.

We are highly appreciative of the With extensive senior experience

contributions made by many of our
supporters, including Piers Gough
CBE RIBA RA, Stuart Corbyn, the
late Lord and Lady Sandys and the
Newlands Trust.
in the charitable and commercial
sectors, the Revitalise Executive and
Board very much look forward to
exploring how you too might become
part of this great endeavour.

The help and advice of these We are delighted to report that

supporters over the last five years fundraising to deliver the project is
has enabled the charity to lay the already underway and proceeding
foundations for this expansion. well.

The estimated cost to secure the hotel and

finance the development is £10.7 million.

We have already raised £4 million towards

this total.
 Courtesy of One Creative Environments Ltd.

Our plans for The Elms:

Accommodation for 50 guests and 50 volunteers;
State of the art accessible facilities promoting independence;
A fully accessible spa and swimming pool;
Accessible grounds and gardens, shared with the community;
High quality, guest-centred nursing and personal care;
Cutting edge assistive technologies;
Preservation of historic setting at the heart of our plans;
Environmentally sound and sustainable development;
Value and cost-effectiveness a priority.
 97%
of our guests described
Invisible accessibility their holidays with us
as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’
All too often, disabled accommodation in mainstream hotels
is described by its users as clinical, sacrificing aesthetics for
mediocre functionality.

Revitalise aims to weave accessibility
into the very fabric of the building,
delivering personalised guest hotel
rooms that can be adapted to the
individual’s needs through integrated
and flexible design.
We are researching the best assistive 75%
technology innovations and design
approaches from around the world to
inform the design and specification
process. of Revitalise guests have
returned to us for breaks
We fully intend to set a new global

£ 000
We will have succeeded if our standard in accessibility and, through

580
guests never give a moment’s the tangible demonstration of the
thought to accessibility, only to the guest experience at Revitalise The
beauty, thoughtfulness and care of Elms, to inspire mainstream hoteliers
everything they see, touch and use. to create environments that serve
and delight everyone.
of hardship funding
was distributed by
Revitalise in 2016-17

94%
of Revitalise
guests would
recommend
us to others
Courtesy of One Creative Environments Ltd.
“There are very few options for disabled
travellers - the mainstream players don’t
know how to serve this market.”
Julian Kemp, Senior Director, CBRE Hotels
Meeting the challenge of a growing need
Revitalise sustains and enriches the lives and relationships of thousands of disabled
people and the loved ones who care for them each year. Nearly 5,000 guest breaks and
3,500 volunteering opportunities mark us out as the only provider of such a service at
scale. But we are only scratching the surface.

Our research has already established
the potential number of beneficiaries
of our services. Conservatively,
there are around 540,000 people
in the UK who could benefit from a
Revitalise respite holiday.
This excludes the growing number of
people living with dementia, although
Revitalise is rare in providing
exclusive breaks for people with this
condition.
No wonder our three current centres
are close to capacity all year round.
The population is ageing; age-related
disability is on the increase, as is the
invisible, selfless army of people who
provide unpaid care to their loved
ones day in, day out. The demand for
our services will only increase.
The Elms now offers Revitalise
the opportunity, not just to take a
quantum leap forward in the way
respite care is delivered, but also to
increase our total capacity by over
40%, enabling us to reach out to
even more people in urgent need of
our support.

6.8m 540,000 40%

6,000

There are
6.8m unpaid
carers in the
UK and this
number is increasing There are upwards of 540,000 The total capacity of Revitalise
people in the UK who could
by 6,000 every day benefit from a Revitalise break
will go up by over 40% with the
Carers UK
purchase of The Elms complex
 “When I visited Revitalise for the
first time it became apparent just
how much of a difference Revitalise
is making to the quality of life of the
people it supports. I hope that in the
years and decades to come Revitalise
will be able to grow and support more
people than ever before.”
Samantha Cameron, Patron of Revitalise
The key players

“It's a formidable project that will have a

game-changing outcome for perceptions
of Revitalise’s guests and volunteers and
the sector at large.”
Architect Piers Gough CBE RIBA RA,
member of Beyond Respite Campaign Board

Our Patron Our celebrity VPs Chief Executive

Dame
Judi Dench CH DBE

Dame
Esther Rantzen DBE
Chris Simmonds
Arthur Smith Chairman
Samantha Cameron

The Revitalise Board of Trustees

Mindy Sawhney (Chairman) Lesley Lindberg Mike Ashton
Linda Beaney (Vice Chairman) Richard Poxton Peter Cheer
Philip White (Vice Chairman) Victoria Schneider Simon Law Mindy Sawhney
Gavin Wright (Vice Chairman)
 “Carers go through many negative
emotions when they hand over a loved
one to someone else’s care. I know this
because I am a carer myself, for my mum
who has dementia. My abiding memory
was of a big group of people having a
whole lot of fun. Everyone was happy,
everyone was laughing. As a carer you
couldn’t ask for better than that.”
Arthur Smith
Writer, Broadcaster and Revitalise Vice President
EVERYBODY NEEDS A BREAK