KEYS TO KNOW

The Ripple Retreat, a holiday home for young cancer patients and their families, is the Scottish Property Awards’ chosen charity. Sarah Devine reports on how the project will use the funds

More than £6,000 was raised at the Scottish Property Awards last week in support of It’s Good 2 Give, the charity which manages the Ripple Retreat on the banks of Loch Venachar.

The centre is a holiday home set up by the charity’s founders, Ian and Lynne Mcnicoll, and provides short holidays free of charge for families with children undergoing cancer treatment or those recently bereaved.

Over the years, the glittering annual awards ceremony has raised funds to build the retreat.

Lynne says she was “very pleased” with the amount raised on the night.

She says: “The night was superb. Our newest trustee Joanna Lamb spoke to begin with and she was amazing given that she is only 17.”

The pupil at Craigmount High School in Edinburgh had her leg amputated in February while fighting osteosarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer.

She gave an inspirational speech about how the charity’s Ripple Retreat has supported her and many other young people since it opened in May last year.

She says: “It’s just a place you can get away from being in the hospital because it’s so manic because all you think about is going into hospital, taking your pills, going to sleep and getting in for your chemo.

“The Ripple Retreat gives you a chance to get a wee bit of time to get back to normality and just spend time with your family.”

The building maximises its tranquil waterside setting, which is in a designated area of outstanding beauty.

It was designed by Edinburghbased Kettle Collective Architects and has recently been nominated for a Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland award.

The south-facing building has been created with close attention to detail to support all children, including those arriving straight from hospital.

Designed by Kitchens International, the kitchen is wheelchair-user friendly with The Ripple Retreat cost £2million to build.

It took 18 months to construct. It has 150 windows in varying sizes.

It opened in May 2017.

26 families have stayed. Awarded the 2017 Scottish Home Awards judge’s award of merit. The building is sustainable, naturally ventilated and does not require additional cooling. Provides free five-night retreats for patients up to the age of 18. adjustable worktops and in the bathroom, the carved wood handrails provide added décor and support. All three bedrooms are barrier-free and the single bedroom includes a wet room.

The Ripple Retreat’s spectacular design includes storey-high walls of glass connecting the inside of the building to the natural beauty surrounding it.

Parents can therefore look on as children play in the outdoor areas, which include Proludic play equipment.

The design has been inspired by the loch with its rippled pigmento blue zinc roof, capturing the changing light across the water and creating a relationship between the building and its site.

Last September the wooden pier stretching over the loch’s shore officially opened.

Lynne said: “The curved shelter at one end is made of glulam [glue laminated timber] beams that were made in Austria because no-one in the UK was able to bend the beams to the curve required.”

The money raised will help continue to provide free holidays to families with children affected by cancer.

Lynne adds: “The local support we have had is tremendous.

“The cycle hire centre support us, the local butcher helps and the award-winning Venachar Lochside restaurant gives every family who stays a lunch and treats them like VIPS.

“Blair Drummond Safari Park gives every family a voucher to visit, as does the steamship Sir Walter Scott on Loch Katrine.

“Our guest book has the loveliest messages from all the families.”