PENNINGHAME HOUSE


WORDS: GARY ATKINSON PHOTOS: GARY ATKINSON AND FRANK TAYLOR


A welcome retreat


In the serene surroundings of Penninghame House, visitors are helped to transform their lives


O


n entering the grounds of Penninghame House, the first hint that this is no ordinary estate is a small


stone buddha greeting you from a grass verge. For the past 10 years, the 90 acres have been the home of Ray and Marie Butler and their young son, as well as the Penninghame Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation which they established to provide self-awareness and self- development courses.


It was in 1998 that Marie and Ray decided they wanted to up sticks in London and find a place in the country that would give them


the rural lifestyle they craved and a base to provide courses on the subjects they are passionate about. Ray’s property company, now of 25 years, was a success, as was the couple’s integrated health clinic combining conventional with holistic medicine, which they later sold. But they wanted a change. Ray explained: “We wanted to have a home in the country that was big enough not just for us, but also to run residential courses. We had a passion and a longing to do something that was useful and good for people.”


It took two years of looking at LANDBUSINESS ISSUE 36 JUNE-JULY 2010


properties across Britain, including in Gloucester and Wiltshire, before they found Penninghame, in Dumfries and Galloway, in 2000.


Originally a family home, then an open prison to integrate people back to everyday life, the estate ticked all the boxes for the Butlers. As well as the manicured grounds, the picturesque turreted house and the River Cree which runs through the land, the location, beside Newton Stewart, was another big advantage. “It’s only an hour’s drive to Prestwick Airport and two hours to Glasgow – close enough for access, but far enough away that you feel that you are getting an experience,” explained Ray. “There’s even a direct bus


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