ONGOING FORMATION

If you are new to contemplation, consider the (Primer) Contemplative School. We can also help you find a spiritual director if you are looking for one.

If you are a bit further along in your exploration, and are searching out new formation opportunities, consider making the 18th or 19th Annotation of the Ignatian Exercises. On this page, you will also find upcoming retreats and pilgrimages for 2025-2026.

If you are a spiritual director that has trained in one of our schools, don’t miss out on our regional gatherings or monthly online trainings on pertinent topics.

More details below:

THE (PRIMER) CONTEMPLATIVE SCHOOL

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This online cohort will provide a chance to experience the formation of the contemplative path and it is a great preparation for our two-year certificate programme in spiritual direction, if you wish to take it further. First, we link you with a qualified spiritual director so you have nine to twelve invaluable months of receiving direction. Second, we guide you monthly in a small group setting online through foundational aspects of the contemplative tradition via teaching, practice, debriefings and short readings.

Each monthly meeting lasts about three hours and follows the same format: welcome, a prayer exercise, interactive teaching, a guided practice, a time to debrief the practice, and time to comment and reflect on whatever readings were assigned in the prior month. (The readings typically consist of two-three chapters).

THE NINE MODULES

  1. Presence Over Performance

  2. Desire Over Duty

  3. (Inter) Dependence Over Self-Sufficiency

  4. Vulnerability Over Self-Protection

  5. Gratitude Over Entitlement

  6. Embodied Over Fragmented

  7. Mercy Over Judgement

  8. Mystery Over Certainty

  9. Consent Over Control

Cost and Dates

The cost for the SSD Primer is £600 total for the 2025-2026 school year. There will be a £100 non-refundable deposit with nine monthly payments of about £56 over the course of nine consecutive months.

Other cost information: Books (which are minimal) and monthly spiritual direction are not included.

DATES TBC: Now accepting applications for our next Contemplative School!



If you’d like to find out more information before applying, please get in touch via our Contact Page.

Apply ⟶

FINDING A SPIRITUAL DIRECTOR

Spiritual direction is an ancient form of pastoral care with a very tight focus: it examines the substance, nature, and actual experience of the God-human relationship. In spiritual direction, the director comes alongside the directee for the primary purpose of focusing on the presence and activity of God in the directee’s life. In a word, spiritual direction is co-discernment. We learn to “see what the Father is doing” (John 5:19), - not just in that moment, but over the months and seasons of a person’s life. The goal is to deepen the relationship with God by growing in attentiveness.

We have trained dozens of spiritual directors across Europe, the UK and beyond. If you need help finding one, just reach out. We would be happy to assist you.

find a director

THE IGNATIAN EXERCISES

→ We can connect you with an Ignatian-trained director to meet weekly or bi-weekly for the 18th or 19th Annotation. Contact us if you want to sign up.

→ The 19th Annotation is a nine-month journey that aligns with the church calendar and typically begins in the autumn to coincide with Advent and Lent.

→ The 18th Annotation is an abbreviated version that will give you a ten-week taste of this journey.

→ Each annotation has a component of daily practices (consisting of Ignatian Contemplation of the Gospels, Ignatian Meditations, and forms of prayer).

SIGN UP ⟶

WHAT’S INCLUDED

MONTHLY TRAININGS

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  • If you are a spiritual director that has trained in one of our schools, and you are longing for more training, consider our monthly online trainings. They are typically midweek on Wednesday evening 6-8 UK / 7-9 Central Europe Time. If you sign up for the year, you have access to all recordings, whether you can attend or not. If you’d like to sign up, please click here.

  • Monthly Training 25-26.

    22.10.25 - The Theology of Beauty & Vision Divina with Sandra Innes & Sara Carlisle

    26.11.25 - Breathwork with Caroline Gibson

    3.12.25 - Spiritual Direction & Attachment with Erin Zappin

    28.1.26 - Ignatian Discernment & Decision-Making with Natalie Baxter-Strange

    18.2.26 (Ash Wednesday Special Gathering) - Spiritual Direction and Accompaniment through Darkness with Sara Carlisle

    18.3.26 - Theosis: Participation in Love with Kris Miller

    +and more to come for April, May and June!

    Monthly Trainings from 2024-25.
    If you trained in one of our schools, and you weren’t able to join us this last year, you can still pay to access these previous sessions. This can be either a single session or the whole year. You can contact us here. We covered:

    +Spiritual Direction and Trauma I with Erin Zappin
    +Spiritual Direction and Somatic Body Awareness I with Hope Stockman
    +Spiritual Direction and Suffering with Sara Carlisle
    +Spiritual Direction and Ignatian Rules of Discernment I with Natalie Baxter Strange
    +Spiritual Direction and Desire with Sara Carlisle
    +Spiritual Direction and Ignatian Rules of Discernment II with Natalie Baxter Strange
    +Spiritual Direction and Interior Movements with Helen Vince
    +Spiritual Direction and the Enneagram with Sara Carlisle
    +Spiritual Direction and Somatic Body Awareness II with Susan Powell

    Still to come:
    +Spiritual Direction and Trauma II (Attachment) with Erin Zappin

  • We are about to start our Monthly Training 25-26 series on October 22nd 2025 on the Theology of Beauty and Visio Divina. This initial training session of the year will explore the theology of beauty, history of icons and how we might incorporate them into our own prayer and worship practices, and practice of spiritual direction. We will also be engaging with the contemplative practice of Visio Divina as a way to integrate these concepts together. We will seek to understand how we can use art and beauty to deepen our communion with God, self and others.

    If you are a student that has trained in one of our schools and would like to sign up, please click here.

  • You can sign up for a single training for £30, or you can sign up for the whole year of 9 trainings for only £235. You can sign up here.

Sign up