In order to be eligible for our services you and your family must be in need by virtue of: bereavement, physical or mental injuries, financial need, or having been separated for long periods of time due to deployment, or a combination of the above.

As our charity offers time away to reconnect, we will also consider the last time you and your family have been on holiday. If you have already been on a holiday the year prior to that in which you want to register for our services, we will not be able to assist you unless there are exceptional circumstances: we try to prioritise those families who have never had a family holiday or had one more than one year before registering.

We support serving personnel as well as veterans. We are a tri-service charity.

As we rely on donation of accommodation, we had to put restrictions on the number of breaks a family has with Give Us Time. This is due to the fact that at the moment we do not receive enough donations to match the requests from our families and we therefore need to prioritise those families who never benefited from our services.

If you have already benefitted from our services you cannot book another holiday through our website or any other holiday offered by Give Us Time for 3 years, unless there are exceptional circumstances. That said, we do not want any donation we generously receive to go un-booked and if we have spare capacity and there is an established need, we may be able to make an exception. If 6 weeks prior to the holiday start date the break is not booked we will contact you and offer you the possibility to book the break.

Give Us Time holidays are usually accommodation only, so you will be responsible for all other costs, including travel, taxes, insurance, food and activities. In exceptional circumstances we may be able to provide assistance. To discuss this with us, please get in touch.

Some hosts require a deposit which will be reimburse at the end of the respite break. In some limited cases a small fee to cover cleaning costs might be required.

These details are listed on the information provided for each break. Just click on the picture of the break you are interested in to read the whole description.

Usually our breaks are 7 nights long, but some hosts donate shorter breaks. At present, breaks are not longer than 7 nights.

Details of the length of a break are listed on the information provided for each break. Just click on the picture of the break you are interested in to read the whole description.

Give Us Time holidays are generously donated by companies and individuals who respect and admire the role that our Armed Service personnel do in safeguarding our country. As we rely on donations of properties, we cannot choose in which location a property will be donated nor in which dates. Our generous donors do their best to offer an amazing respite break, however we understand there are limited to the dates and location they can offer.

We therefore require our families to have some flexibility when looking for a break. At the end of the day, it is about quality family time!

So, if you are looking to go to Florida on Christmas Day: we cannot do that. However, we are confident you will find equally stunning breaks on our website!

For exceptional circumstances, please get in touch: [email protected]

Some of our properties are dog friendly. Information on dog friendly properties are listed on the information provided for each break. Just click on the picture of the break you are interested in to read the whole description.

Please make sure to let us know you would like to bring a dog when enquiring about a break or when provisionally booking a break. If you arrive at the property with a dog without having let us or the host know, you will not be able to stay at the property.

Some donors have limited pet friendly accommodation and they must know in advance which property to allocate.

Give Us Time supports family units and do not sends friends on respite breaks together. This said, we consider family units in their broader sense. Please get in touch to let us know who you are taking on a respite break with you and the reasons why it is important for you to enjoy this time with them.

Once you find a break suitable for your family, you can provisionally book it. You simply need to click on the booking button which appears when you select the property you like.

After provisionally booking a break, you will receive an automatic email from our system with the information of your provisional booking. The donor will also receive a copy of the automatic email. The email also contains your Family Handbook with all terms and conditions for a break with Give Us Time. Please make sure to read it and get in touch if you have any question. At this stage, your holiday is not confirmed as Give Us Time needs to make sure every information is correct, all the names and ages of those attending the break are listed as well as ensuring the family provisionally booking the break hasn’t already had a break with the charity. During this time, we also check with the donor that everything is in order and they are happy to go ahead with the booking. This process can take a couple of days. Once everything has been checked, you will receive an automatic email from our system with confirmation of your break: you are ready to go!

We understand sometimes a cancel needs to be cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances. However, when making a holiday booking, please make sure that you have researched all the necessary arrangements for finance, personal insurance, travel and time off work. Please only book a holiday once you know that you can go.

If you cannot attend your holiday, for any reason, it is important that you let us and your Host know as soon as possible via phone or email. It often costs our Hosts a considerable amount of money in lost custom and time if you do not show up or cancel last minute. It can also deter the Host from donating their property again and, as a result, may prevent another military person from being able to benefit from time away with their family.

If we receive a cancellation notification without any explanation it may result in Give Us Time deactivating your account which will prevent you from booking other holidays. There is usually a good reason for a cancellation, so please just let us know.

When booking accommodation through Give Us Time, it is imperative that you and your family have all necessary travel insurance. Please do make sure that you have researched and confirmed your own travel insurance policy. We cannot take responsibility for missed flights, medical bills, loss or damage caused by yourselves or any other mishaps or accidents on your holiday.

Some of our donors prefer to donate their property on specific dates, while others list properties with FLEXIBLE DATES. This means they donate a 7- or 4-nights break WITHIN the time frame listed. In this case, you need to get in touch with us letting us know a few options of dates that suit you and we will check availability with the donor. There might be restrictions on the number of peak season and holiday season breaks donated to Give Us Time. We will do our best to find available dates for you, but please keep in mind this process can be longer than the usual one. Bear with us!

We ask that when you return from your holiday, you thank your Hosts for your holiday. This can be in the form of a written letter, email or a card: please take the time to show your appreciation for their donation to Give Us Time. Without the hosts, our charity would not exist and it is the experiences that you and your family share with them that keep them engaged and donating to us year after year.

When you have returned from your holiday, you need to send us a feedback about your break. Providing feedback is a CONDITION of your holiday with Give Us Time.

Give Us Time relies on families who have benefited from our holidays, telling us how they went. We often, with your permission, write up your stories and publish them on our website and social media, or use them in other promotional material. Your stories help us secure holiday and financial donations from the public enabling us to send more service families on the much-needed breaks that they deserve. Please, at the end of your holiday, remember to send us some pictures and a note by email. Let us know if you are happy for us to use your story and pictures on our media channels. This is very important to us and a condition of your holiday with Give Us Time. If you prefer, we can publish the edited story in an anonymous way and pictures do not need to show faces.

We do ask for the contact details and name of a Welfare Officer (or equivalent) or another charity that is supporting your family. This is necessary to validate your need and the information provided. We can, however, accept self-referrals, but we will ask to provide the contact details of someone who can validate your situation.

If you have any doubt, please do get in touch: [email protected]

Some of our breaks may not be uploaded on our website. This is either due to a request from our donor or because the charity runs separate selection processes to match specific breaks with families in need. In the past, we were lucky enough to receive donations from Center Parcs. Due to the high demand for these breaks, limited spaces and need to prioritise those who never benefited from one of Give Us Time respite breaks, Center Parcs breaks will not be advertised on our website.

We ask for referrals to suggest a family for the selection. We cannot accept self-referrals unless there are exceptional circumstances.

If you would like to know if there are additional breaks available, but not advertised on the website, please do get in touch: [email protected]

PLEASE NOTE we do not have any news at the moment for Center Parcs breaks for the year 2019.

PLEASE NOTE at the moment the only breaks available but not uploaded on our website are all located in Scotland.