TG Escapes Blog

Granny annexe or care home?

by TG Escapes | Mar 24, 2014 | Blog, Residential

Be Nice To Your Childrenā€¦.

..because one day they will choose your care home.

Are you one of the growing number of people combining the demands of rearing a young family with the encroaching need to care for ageing parents? The chances are you are also trying to manage the task of parental role reversal remotely as so many of us raise our own families away from our childhood home towns. And Iā€™m sure it was no fun at all, negotiating the toing and froing in all the terrible travelling conditions we have endured in this stormiest of winters.

The myriad implications of taking care of elderly parents are practical, emotional and financial: negotiating a way through them all can feel overwhelming. Guilt, on the part of both the care givers and receivers. Resentment from spouses forced to take up the slack of caring for children, not to mention the nagging concern that your little ones are suffering the brunt of your stress. And thatā€™s all before the conflict with your siblingsā€¦at which juncture itā€™s probably worth mentioning the M word. Whether we like it or not money, and the thorny subject of inheritance, are inextricably bound within it all.

The pattern of care often starts almost imperceptibly, insidiously encroaching upon your limited resources of time and energy. Most people, as they age, are understandably reluctant to totally surrender their independence and it is usually, sadly, a crisis that propels the issue into the spotlight. Often, it will be the death or serious illness of one of your parents, or a sudden loss of mobility, that forces a decision. However, given the stress and emotion already inherent in these situations, it is hard to resolve them rationally in what will almost certainly be a limited period of time.

And let us not forget, when all is said and done about the hardship of caring for our oldies, we love them. We want them to be able to enjoy the security of maintaining their own routine in pleasant surroundings; to have company; to eat well and, perhaps most importantly, to feel loved. A Granny or Gramps annex is a very effective way to fulfil the wish list. Furthermore, it doesnā€™t have to be prohibitively expensive or require the upheaval of major building work to your own property.

A Garden Escape can be designed to fit any chosen location and accommodate any design features you and your parents would like. Our team will handle all aspects of the project, including the resolution of planning issues and ensuring that the building works take place with minimal disruption to your daily life, leaving you free to help your loved ones prepare for the move. Our use of environmentally efficient materials and methods will result in a building that is sustainable, beautiful, comfortable and inexpensive to run. And everyone gets to be nice to each other, with no need to pick a nursing home.

About the author

TG Escapes
Providing net-zero timber frame buildings since 2003. As a gold member of the Structural Timber Association we are fully compliant to design, manufacture and build giving us full control of the quality of all the timber components in our system.

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