Young peoples retreat
Young person's meditation retreat at Sharpham
Nicky Reed
Sharpham Trust Coach House Retreat
Sharpham House near the River Dart
Coach House retreat

Mindfulness & Nature Connection for Young People: 4-night Coach House Retreat

Summary

4 nights - Annually
Any
Single
Short Periods
Max. Spaces: 18

Overview

A retreat for people aged 18-30 offering nature connection and mindfulness practices.

 

"I have no doubt you can help to create a better world, as I have no doubt about the immeasurable potential of youth"

  - Thich Nhat Hanh, peace and mindfulness activist in his Message to the Youth

The Coach House is offering young people a safe space to come together to share the retreat experience and nurture our capacity for joy, compassion and connection.   

You'll be cared for full-board, with plenty of time for rest, reflection and nature connection in the very special location of the Sharpham Estate.

"Fantastic experience and game-changer for seeing the world and yourself in a different perspective. Will come back again!"

              - Coach House retreatant giving us a 5-star Google Review

This retreat is for you if:

  • you want to explore the benefits of nature-based mindfulness and mindfulness meditation
  • you will benefit from spending time in our wonderful heritage gardens
  • you need to rest and rejuvenate
  • you want to deepen your connection with nature and learn about Rewilding
  • you want to experience periods of silence
  • are aged between 18 and 30
What is Mindfulness?

What you'll experience on this retreat:

  • be living in community with like-minded people, sharing experiences and tasks
  • experience guided meditations, relaxation sessions and periods of silence and quiet contemplation, amid breath-taking scenery on the banks of the River Dart
  • four mornings learning about and helping in our ornamental and kitchen gardens
  • a chance to learn about & witness our efforts to re-wild the Sharpham Estate 
  • full-board accommodation in a Grade II-listed Georgian Coach House set within Capability Brownian parkland, with Grade 2*-listed gardens designed by Percy Cane in a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty close to nature, amid breath-taking scenery on the banks of the River Dart
  • a single-occupancy room and your own space in which to rejuvenate, with free time to deeply rest and reconnect with yourself, far from the busy-ness of daily life. 
  • a safe and supportive community with like-minded people, sharing experiences in the kitchen gardens and on the wider Estate
  • delicious, healthy, home-cooked vegetarian food that regularly receives rave reviews
Gardens at Sharpham

Getting your hands in the earth:

This Coach House retreat features morning sessions helping in our ornamental and Walled Garden in the grounds of Sharpham House, alongside our experienced staff Frances, Bryony and Amy.

We manage the gardens organically and the produce we grow supplies the kitchens in Sharpham House and the Coach House.

There are a mixture of tasks on our nature-mindfulness retreats, depending on the season. We invite you to bring your awareness to the land, plants and the nature surrounding you at Sharpham.

You don't need to know anything about gardening to participate - our team will support and assist you.

Rewilding:

This retreat includes the opportunity to learn more about our Rewilding efforts with a morning session led by an Ambios Team member who look after our rewilding project and deliver conservation training on the estate.

Find Out More

What you'll 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
View our FAQs

Schedule

If you're coming to stay with us on retreat, it is important to make a commitment to arrive in time for the first group meeting and to attend all the days.

This ensures you experience the retreat programme from start to finish and helps your group of participants to gel.


Silence

All our retreats include periods of silence as a way of deepening into mindful awareness.

If you are new to spending time in silence in the company of other people, it can feel awkward to begin with. But we encourage you to explore the silent periods with a spirit of openness and curiosity - people usually find it to be a positive experience. 

The retreats typically move into silence each evening from 9pm - 9/9.30am the following day


Typical Schedule

Day 1: Arrive between 3 - 5pm for welcome meeting and settling in

Mornings Afternoons
6.45am - wake up  1.00pm - meditation
7.00am – morning movement/meditation 1.30pm - lunch
8.00am - household tasks 3.00pm – free time or group walk
8.30am – breakfast 6.00pm – supper
9.30am – Home Group (silence ends)  8.00pm - meditation and deep rest
10.30am - gardening 9.00pm – Personal time (Coach House moves into silence until 9.30am the next day)

Final day: depart by 11am

The retreat will move into silence each evening from 9pm – 9/9.30am and on one full day in each retreat.

The Coach House nature mindfulness retreat centre at The Sharpham Trust

The Coach House

When you stay at The Coach House, you'll be in comfy, single rooms in a beautifully converted 18th century stable block, set in the stunning scenery of Sharpham's grounds. You'll experience daily meditation and movement sessions, time in our gardens and on the land and you'll eat delicious and homegrown vegetarian and vegan meals.

Coach House retreats focus on nature connection through a varied programme of retreats designed to connect you to Sharpham's flora and fauna, with plenty of time for you to rest and reflect.

Get Directions View Venue

Leaders

Coach House Coordinators
Coach House Coordinators Read more +

Costs

Places on The Coach House Retreat for young people are offered at a reduced rate because we recognise that the majority of young people have less access to financial means than average. We want to be accessible to as many people as is feasible, and to encourage more young people to be able to come on retreat at The Coach House.

Supported Rate £195

The Sharpham Trust is committed to ensuring that retreats are accessible to all - regardless of income. The Trust therefore offers a heavily subsidised Supported Rate for those unable to pay the Standard or Benefactor Rate.

Standard Rate £300

Paying the Standard Rate means you will be contributing towards our running costs, supporting the work of The Coach House and helping retreatants on lower incomes to access our retreats.

Benefactor Rate £495

If you are able to pay the Benefactor Rate, that means that you'll be supporting others who cannot afford to benefit from a retreat on The Sharpham Estate. Your choice to pay this rate will help us with the running costs of The Coach House, 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.

There will be a maximum of 18 guests on this retreat.

All rooms are single occupancy, giving you your own space in which to relax.

If you have a medical condition that requires you to have an en-suite room, please contact the Programme Administrator on the number below as these rooms are limited and are bookable on a first-come first-serve basis.

Book easily and securely online or by phoning 01803 732542

Terms & Conditions

Please click here to see our booking and cancellations policy

Room Types

Click here for more information on our types of bedrooms and facilities.

Bursaries

This retreat is already discounted but limited 50% bursaries offering reduced-price retreats are available for those experiencing financial hardship on our other retreats. Please contact the Programme Administrator 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

Available dates

We don't have any dates currently scheduled but subscribe to hear FIRST when dates become available