Give back to The Barn - a work retreat
Sanjay Soni
Jeanie Bags
Clara Wood
Heather Stark
Jenny Chamarette
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Help us nurture The Barn for the future - and get a less expensive retreat at the same time.
Join us for practising and working in community.
Have you been to at least one Barn retreat in the past, and you would like to join us in painting and home repairs? There will be a variety of work involved, including some physically strenuous work. You will need to be of or above average physical ability in order to participate. If this sounds like you, please come and join our community in work and practice.
We will keep some of the same Barn schedule of meditating and listening to teachings, but with longer work periods to prepare The Barn for future retreats.
Read on for more details on this retreat and click the Schedules and Venue & Directions tabs above for further information.
Giving back to The Barn
This retreat is for you if you:
- Have been to The Barn on retreat before
- Have skills in painting, maintenance and home repairs
- Of average or above average physical ability
- Are prepared to live and work in community, preparing meals together and working in the gardens
- are aged 18 and above
Our work retreats
Our work retreats are similar to the usual Barn Retreat.
There will be a maximum of 8 participants on this retreat.
There are periods of silence on each of our retreats.
Our programme of standard 5-night retreats at The Barn can be viewed and booked here
Daily meditations
There are two 40-minute meditation sittings each day, and it's important that you commit to them to deepen your practice and connect to the community here.
Working on the land
It is important that you are willing to participate in working on the land as part of your mindfulness practice (we can easily find suitable tasks for people with health difficulties) and that you can commit to all the scheduled activities during the week.
What you’ll experience on this retreat
During this retreat you’ll:
- be living in community with like-minded people, sharing experiences and tasks, including the making of meals and taking care of the house
- experience guided meditations and periods of silence and quiet contemplation
- have a single-occupancy room and your own space in which to rejuvenate, with free time to deeply rest and reconnect with yourself
- have access to 24-hour hot teas, coffee & infusions in the kitchen
- be able to explore the beautiful Sharpham Estate, set within a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty close to nature, amid breath-taking scenery on the banks of the River Dart
What's the difference between retreats at The Barn and in Sharpham House?
Costs are kept lower at The Barn because gardening, cooking and household tasks are shared in community by volunteer coordinators and retreatants.
Retreats at Sharpham House are fully catered and staff. Also, Sharpham House is a large Grade 1-listed building with far higher overheads.
Mindfulness in nature at Sharpham
When you experience Sharpham's inspiring and nourishing environment, we hope you'll connect spiritually with the natural world, so you’ll:
- become aware of how we are all part of nature - not artificially separate from it
- pay attention to and appreciate the natural world surrounding us
- explore nature through your senses and your natural creativity
- Tread more lightly on our finite planet, developing a respect and reverence for all living things
Click here to read our ethos and principles
What you need to know
If you decide to stay with us, we’ll send you a list of what you need to bring for this retreat in your Welcome Letter that we send out after you've booked.
You can also find out more about staying with us on our Frequently Asked Questions page, including
- accessibility information
- why we encourage you to come on your own and not with partners or friends
- what the difference is between our retreats
Food & your dietary needs
We have a fully stocked organic and vegetarian kitchen. The main meal is at lunch time.
We can accommodate gluten-free and/or vegan dietary needs. However, our kitchen is not gluten, dairy nor nut-free. We do not provide gluten-free bread, but you are welcome to bring your own.
Due to the nature of the kitchens at the Barn with food being prepared by participants and no dedicated chef, we are not able to accommodate guests who have anaphylaxis. If you have anaphylaxis we recommend you book on to one of our other retreat venues - Sharpham House, The Coach House or our Woodland Retreats.
Please make sure you include dietary restrictions and any food allergies on your Booking Form. We may need to communicate further with you about specifics. The booking form is sent as a link once you have booked and paid for a retreat.
Our water is provided from our own spring, UV treated and filtered.
Your physical and mental health
This retreat is suitable for you if you have some meditation experience, or you are seeking to renew or reconnect with your practice.
Although meditation and mindfulness can be helpful in managing stress, depression and anxiety our retreats might not be suitable if you are experiencing major depression or other clinically diagnosed psychiatric illness such as bipolar disorder, psychosis or current self-harming. Click here for more information and for our booking process
If you have a medical condition that requires you to have a room close to a toilet, please contact The Barn team on the number below and we'll try to help.
The Barn draws me back year after year. The experience of working and sharing in mindful work and living is very special and never fails to deepen and enhance my practice.
Barn Work Retreat Schedule
It is important that you are willing to participate in working on the land and in the house as part of your mindfulness practice and that you can commit to all the scheduled activities during the week. This includes two 40-minute formal meditation periods each day.
Note that we hold silence from 8.30pm to 9.00am each day. On the Work Retreat there will be no silent day.
Sunday
Afternoon |
---|
2.00pm to 4.00pm – Your arrival |
5.00pm – Welcome talk, introductions and tour |
6.30pm – Light evening meal. Then settling in |
8.20pm – Meditation |
The Barn goes into silence until 9.00am the next day |
Monday to Friday:
Mornings | Afternoons |
---|---|
6.20am – wake up | 1.30pm – lunch |
6.50am – meditation | 2.30pm – personal practive |
7.30am – household tasks | 5.00pm – teaching by visiting teachers |
8.00am – breakfast | 6.30pm – supper |
9.00am – house meeting | 8.20pm – meditation |
9.30am – mindful work | 9.00pm – silence until 9.00am the next day |
Saturday:
As above until 8.00am. Silence ends at breakfast. Then it's time to clear your room and depart between 9.00am and 10.00am.
A beautiful way to slow down, listen in and be in a welcoming and loving community. This has been an enriching week - stunning surroundings, lovely people, delicious food, very skilled and compassionate facilitators, and wise teachers.
This week at The Barn has been food for my heart. I feel calmer and more connected. The kindness of all the people here, the healthy food, the chance to be in nature were so helpful.
This experience was a long overdue gift to myself. It felt both restorative and gently transformative--a very special week.
Coming to the Barn is an opportunity to reconnect with yourself, with your body and mind in the context of wonderful nature. It is immersive, and helps to blur the lines between body/mind, self/other, and human/nature.
This retreat takes place at The Barn, with superb views over the River Dart.
Click here for our How to Find Us page on this website.
Click here to view and download directions and a map to The Barn
Click here view and download walking/cycling directions to The Barn
If you have a medical condition that requires you to have a room close to a toilet, please contact The Barn team on the number below and we'll try to help.
Phones and laptops
We ask all participants to turn off mobile phones and electronic devices for the whole of your retreat. This helps you and everyone else to disengage from daily life and live fully in the simplicity and quietude of a Buddhist retreat.
Where we are
We are 3 miles from Totnes – famous for its Transition Town movement
We are in a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
Sustainability
We take sustainability seriously.
Heating and hot water in The Barn is run from our log furnace and solar thermal panels. We supply as much food as possible from our organic gardens; the rest comes from Riverford Organic Farms and Essential Trading Cooperative. We also have two large photovoltaic solar panel arrays on the Estate and use biodegradable cleaning products wherever possible.
£100 - Supported rate
The Sharpham Trust is committed to ensuring that retreats at The Barn are accessible to all - regardless if income. The Supported Rate is for those unable to pay the Standard or Benefactor Rate.
£150 - Standard rate
Paying the Standard Rate means you will be contributing towards our running costs, supporting the work of The Barn and helping retreatants of lower incomes to access our retreats.
£200 - Benefactor rate
If you are able to pay the Benefactor Rate, that means that you'll be supporting others who cannot afford to benefit from a Barn retreat on The Sharpham Estate. Your choice to pay this rate will help us with the running costs of The Barn, enabling us to continue our charitable work connecting people to nature and fostering mindfulness and wellbeing, as well as caring for the land, wildlife and wider estate.
Room types
All rooms are comfortable single rooms, with a shared bathroom.
Hot drinks are available 24 hours for you to get for yourself in the kitchen.
Bursaries
Limited bursaries are available for those experiencing financial hardship. Contact the Barn team on the number or email below at least 4 weeks in advance if you wish to apply.
Our bursary fund relies on donations. If you’d like to help another to go on retreat here through our bursary scheme, you can give online quickly and easily by clicking here
All rooms are single occupancy.
How to book easily and securely:
- online on this page
- by phoning 01803 732542
If you've got any questions about this retreat, call The Barn team on 01803 732661 or email [email protected]
We’re not always in the office, so be prepared to leave a message saying when we could call you back.
Do check our Calendar to see and book for our events - or join our mailing list by clicking here to be kept in touch about Sharpham Trust news, retreats & events.