Facilitators Retreat

Take purposeful space to reset, refresh and reconnect – with yourself, your practice and a community of fellow facilitators.

As facilitators, we spend so much of our time holding space for others: supporting groups, navigating complexity and helping people move forward. The work is rewarding, but it also asks a lot of us.

Our annual Facilitators Retreat offers an opportunity to step away from the demands of facilitation work and create some purposeful space for yourself – to reflect, reconnect and refresh alongside others who understand the work we do.

What can I expect?

The retreat is intentionally spacious. There is no expectation to attend every activity or engage in a particular way. Instead, we invite you to gather with others, while also making space for your own needs.

It offers up space for you to enjoy:

• quiet time and reflection
• walking and talking in the woodland
• shared meals and conversations
• lightly facilitated group enquiry
• creative activities, bodywork and other reflective practices

Who should attend?

The Facilitators Retreat is for facilitators who would value time away from the everyday demands of their work to reconnect with themselves, their practice and a community of peers.

Whether you are an experienced facilitator, newer to the profession, or somewhere in between, this retreat offers a chance to:

• spend time with like-minded people who understand the realities of facilitation
• reflect on your practice in a supportive and nurturing environment
• explore different ways of learning, connecting and being together
• take time for yourself without the expectation of achieving or producing

The retreat is open to AoF members and friends of AoF. If you are new to AoF and interested in joining us, please do get in touch – we would love to hear from you and have a conversation about you joining us at this event (or another).

Our first Facilitators Retreat (June 2026)

In 2026, we ran our first ever Association of Facilitators Retreat in the beautiful woodlands of Hazel Hill Wood near Salisbury, Wiltshire.

Created as a space for facilitators to pause, restore and spend time together away from the usual pace of work, the retreat brought together AoF members, friends and facilitators from across our community (and beyond) for three days of connection, reflection and gentle enquiry.

Set within 70 acres of secluded woodland, we made space for solitude, walking and talking, shared meals, conversation and lightly facilitated group activities. Allowing each person to engage in the ways that felt most meaningful for them.

Reflections from our first retreat

“Such a brilliant 3 days of connection, reflection and just being with some amazing people. Practical and personal learning and development. Great food, Great conversations…”

“Loved the time spent on this retreat. The coziness of the wood burning stoves against the backdrop of rain was a great metaphor for the warmth provided by everyone there, against whatever internal “weather” we were brought with us.”

“Returning from a beautifully restorative few days at Hazel Hill Wood for the first-ever Association of Facilitators (AoF) Retreat. Immense gratitude to the AoF for hosting such a warm, vital, and thoughtful gathering.”

Take a look at photos from our first Facilitators Retreat and get a feel for the experience, the setting and the community that gathered together below.