Eight-year-old Charlie meets his new namesake at Tysoe holiday retreat

Alpacas Geoff, Charlie and Big Bad Barry are the latest animals to move in at Winchcombe Farm, joining ponies Stan and Queenie on the site, run by Jo Carroll and Steve Taylor.

Now guests are being offered the chance to take them on a guided walk as part of their stay in any of the four luxury lodges on site.

Jo said: “Pets fit in with our ethos here as they are proven to help beat stress, reduce blood pressure and lower your heart rate. Plus they are just lovely animals to have around the place and get on well with our ponies.

“We brought them from a local campsite owner so they are used to being around lots of different people and this is a big plus for us. Guests absolutely love them and turn up with bags of apples to chop and feed to them."

One of the trio has even been named after a regular customer to the farm who took a shine to the animals, eight-year-old Charlie Hiner from Sheffield.

Winchcombe is a favourite destination for Charlie and his family - mum Amy, dad Kyle and four-year-old sister Evie who have visited several times.

Amy said: “We are regulars at Winchcombe Farm and that’s the one place we save up to go on our holidays. It’s our special little place. Jo mentioned she was going to name one of the alpacas after our Charlie and we finally got to meet him at Christmas. He thought it was great and goes around telling everybody. It’s his claim to fame.

“I like the fact that at Winchcombe you know the children are really safe and they can go off and play, getting down and dirty with nature and exploring. They just don’t want to leave.”

The alpacas will eventually also be enjoyed by guests indoors as Jo and Steve have arranged for their fleeces to be turned into rugs for the lodges.

Winchcombe Farm signed up for the Karcher Accumulator Challenge to raise funds for the Banbury-based Katharine House Hospice. They were given a £50 ‘seed fund’ and five months to see how much they could make it grow. The total now stands at around £800.

Jo said: “Thank you to our guests, followers on social media and local people who joined us by donating £2 to be entered into a draw to win a beautiful alpaca footstool, a trek out with our three boys, an overnight stay in Will’s Tree House and an alpaca- themed welcome pack on arrival.”

For more information about Katharine House Hospice, visit: https://www.khh.org.uk/For more details about Winchcombe Farm visit: www.winchcombefarm.co.uk or call 01295 680190 for details.

Winchcombe Farm is home to four bespoke luxury holiday homes in the rolling Warwickshire countryside on the North East tip of The Cotswolds, and lies beneath the famous landmark battleground of Edgehill.

Will’s Tree House (sleeps four), (Bob’s Lodge (sleeps eight), the Chicken Shed (sleeps five) and their new George’s Getaway (sleeps eight), all with private hot tubs, barbecues, pizza ovens and hammocks – and three with geodesic domes with circular bed for stargazing.