A man standing on the left has his arm around the shoulder of a woman standing on the right. Both are smiling at the camera, wearing white helmets and in between them is a young boy wearing a green helmet looking at the camera.

Edward’s story

When Edward visited in 2019, his parents cherished every moment and wrote to us to tell us how significant this break had been for them...

Edward, who has autism and Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA), first visited Calvert Exmoor with Martha (Mum) and Rob (Dad), back in 2019 when Edward was 5 years old.

During this initial stay, the family enjoyed some exciting activities together including canoeing and the Zip Wire, with Edward’s confidence and enthusiasm growing by the day.

Shortly after their visit, Martha got in touch to share her thanks and explain just how much this cherished time away together as a family had meant to them all…

A person in a red coat is abseiling down a wall, suspended by ropes and in front of this person is a child wearing a green helmet abseiling in front.

Why Calvert Exmoor?

"Up until last week, we have never managed to have a successful holiday with my 5-year-old. The fact that everyone was so welcoming and patient meant that not only was he able to enjoy himself, but my husband and I were – almost(!) – able to relax!"

What was Edward's favourite aspect?

"Our instructor, Harry, was incredible. He gave Edward the confidence to do every single activity, even the zip wire which from our arrival, Edward was determined he wouldn’t be confident enough to do.

Harry was kind and patient and the fact that he could provide hot chocolate in a canoe I think makes him some sort of superhero in Edward’s eyes!

Our only difficulty now is trying to explain to Edward that Harry won’t be there on our next visit! Please pass on our heartfelt thanks."

What did this mean to you as a family?

"Despite our restricted diet, the food provided was delicious – it was lovely to have a real variety and it showed that we weren’t just an afterthought – thank you.

We left feeling a mixture of relief that everything went so smoothly, joy that Edward was able to find a place where he could truly be himself and gratefulness for how thoughtful everyone was. I can’t thank every single person enough for enabling us as a family to find a place we really felt welcome.

We are so looking forward to our next visit already!”

Since then, we’re delighted to say that Martha, Rob, and Edward have become regular guests to Calvert Exmoor and it has been an absolute pleasure watching Edward’s self-confidence blossom as the family have taken on exciting new challenges, made new friends, and above all, created some truly special memories to treasure.

After their most recent visit in April this year, Martha got in touch once again to share just a few of the standout moments from their break and how much of a positive impact one activity, in particular, had made on Edward…

An update…

“Edward was so proud of himself for the horse riding – here he is riding Henry, and leading Ellie.

He wanted me to share that since our trip to you, he has started at a local Riding for the Disabled Association (RDA) and last week, got his Riding Proficiency 1 and this week, got his Horse Care grade 1! He’s really loving it.

As always we had the best time and we want to thank every single person for making it such an amazing experience. I am running out of words to express our thanks!”