Families and residents have marked a special milestone at a unique care facility for young adults in Oxford.

Douglas House, the only respite hospice in the world for young adults, turned five today. The facility in Magdalen Road cares for people aged 16-35 with life-shortening conditions and was opened by the Queen in 2004.

Families and guests gathered for a blessing ceremony at the front of the building before going inside to tuck into cake, listen to live music and take part in a quiz.

James Lewis, 21, from Farmoor, has muscular dystrophy and has been visiting Douglas House since he was 18, following time at next-door Helen House, a children’s hospice.

He said: “There are all sorts of different things to do here. I volunteer upstairs in the fundraising office.

“One of my favourite parts is the Jacuzzi room and the music room. I like making electronic music on the Kaoss Pad and remixing songs. “The staff here have a good sense of humour and I’ve met some friends while I’ve been here.”

His mother Lynn Lewis said: “James absolutely loves it, and we love it. It’s our lifeline — there’s nobody else who could have him for us.

“When we first heard about the hospice we thought it was for someone who couldn’t do anything, but it’s not.

“It’s for James and for us and that made us look at it differently. It’s good for him to be out with other young people.”

June Craig’s 23-year-old son Ally, who is a keen singer-songwriter from Grove, near Wantage, has been at Douglas House since it opened.

She said: “It’s a place where we can leave Ally and where he can be with friends. He invites friends to come here, it’s like a home from home.

“We can go away and have some respite knowing he is being well looked after. We couldn’t live without it.”

Sister Frances Dominica, who founded both Helen and Douglas House, said: “We are thrilled with our first five years. I remember taking families around when it was first built and I remember the relief the parents expressed that at last there was provision for young adults.

“That transition between childhood and adulthood can be very hard for anyone with disabilities and their families.

“It can be exhausting and lonely, it’s a tough old road, so for us to to be able to say ‘we are here, come when you want’ is great.

“Helen House is like home, but this is like a five-star hotel. We try to enable the guests to live as fully as they can and give long-term support. “In the next five years we want to carry on listening and learning.”

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