Therapist Retreat

Reconnect to Self, Practice and Community

Step out of the therapist role for a restorative, attachment-informed retreat combining thoughtful CPD, embodied experiences and genuine connection.

8–9 July 2027 · The Odney Club, Berkshire · Only 26 places

Reserve Your Place

Attend the full two-day retreat or book either day separately.

This retreat is for you if…

You give a great deal of yourself through your work

You would like time to think without needing to produce an outcome

You miss being with other therapists face to face

You want CPD that feels engaging, experiential and personally meaningful

You are curious about how your attachment experiences enter the work

You need rest but do not want a retreat that feels disconnected from your professional life

You want connection without forced networking

You would value permission to slow down

You sometimes feel as though you are working in “battery saver mode”

You do not have to be exhausted, burnt out or at breaking point to benefit.

The retreat is also for therapists who are doing well but recognise that replenishment, reflection and professional community should not be reserved for moments of crisis.

Coming alone? Most guests do. The retreat is designed to help connection develop naturally, without forced networking.

Explore the Programme

Meet the People Welcoming You

Led by Jo, founder of Optima Attachment Training, psychotherapeutic counsellor, supervisor and trainer.
With more than 35 years’ experience in teaching and tutoring, Jo brings warmth, clinical experience and down-to-earth honesty to attachment learning. She will be joined by Optima tutor Gav McKee and Kiah King, who will help support the retreat across the two days.

Optima Retreat Hosts
Connection with therapists

Connection through mind, body and professional community

The 2027 retreat has been shaped by what therapists told us they most needed: more space, more embodied experience and more time for meaningful connection.

Mind

Explore how attachment experiences, protective strategies and relational expectations may shape the way you experience yourself, others and the therapeutic relationship.

You’ll leave with:

  • Greater awareness of your own patterns
  • A richer understanding of your clinical responses
  • New ways to think about the personal within the professional

Body

Step out of constant thinking and reconnect with pace, sensation, movement, rest and presence through gentle, choice-led embodied experiences.

You’ll leave with:

  • A stronger sense of what grounds you
  • Greater awareness of your nervous system
  • A felt experience of slowing down

Professional community

Spend time with therapists who understand the work, without needing to explain its emotional demands.

You‘ll leave with:

  • New professional connections
  • A sense of belonging
  • People and conversations you continue to draw upon afterwards

Two days created for the therapist as a whole person

The programme combines attachment-informed learning, creative exploration, embodied experience, reflective conversation and genuine time to pause.

There will be structure, but the retreat will not feel crammed.

Following feedback from our first retreat, we have deliberately protected more time for rest, informal conversation, movement and integration.

A clear programme. Spacious pacing. The freedom to participate in your own way.

Guest Speaker:

Linda Cundy

We are delighted to welcome Linda Cundy back to the retreat for a special talk inspired by her new book, Attachment, Climate Crisis and the Natural World.


Drawing on Bowlby’s ideas of attachment, separation, loss and mourning, Linda will explore our relationship with the natural world as a source of refuge, belonging and healing, while also considering the emotional impact of climate anxiety, grief and disconnection.

This thoughtful and hopeful session will invite us to consider what it might mean, personally and professionally, to rebuild a more secure relationship with Nature

Reserve Your Place
Linda Cundy - Guest Speaker for Optima Retreat

Day 1

Arrive, settle in, and step into a day designed to restore and inspire. Begin with tea and coffee from 9:00am in beautiful surroundings before we start at 10:00am.

You’ll set your intentions, enjoy a mix of reflective and practical workshops, enjoy a buffet-style lunch and connect with other therapists in a warm, supportive environment.

For overnight guests, we’ll round off the day with an informal dinner and relaxed networking.

Workshops:

  • Welcome and creating our secure base
  • Connection with ourselves: attachment, protection and what lies beneath
  • Creative exploration: beyond words
  • Walk and talk
  • Talk by guest speaker, Linda Cundy
Explore the Programme

Day 2

Day 2 is where the retreat settles in. Through experiential learning, restorative practice and thoughtful integration, you’ll have space to reflect more deeply, restore your nervous system, and begin weaving what you have gained back into your work and everyday life.

Start the day slowly with a relaxed breakfast and fresh coffee, taking time to enjoy the surroundings and connect with others before we begin at 9:30am.

At midday, we will share a buffet-style lunch.

Workshops:

  • Beginning through the body
  • The therapist within the relationship
  • Shared reflection and professional community
  • Sound Bathing
  • Closing and carrying the secure base forward
Reserve Your Place

Reflective does not mean exposing

Our work is grounded in attachment, so some sessions will invite you to consider your patterns, responses and ways of relating.

But the retreat is not personal therapy.

You will not be expected to reveal personal experiences, share your creative work or contribute to every discussion.

Every activity is voluntary.

You may participate fully, observe, adapt an exercise, take time out or choose not to take part.

We believe emotional safety is supported through clear boundaries, predictable information, respectful facilitation and genuine choice – not by asking people to trust the process before the process has earned their trust.

Everything you need to step out of everyday life for two days:

  • Overnight accommodation included with your booking package
  • Meals and refreshments included within your booking package
  • Attachment-informed workshops
  • Creative materials
  • Gentle embodied practice
  • Access to the beautiful grounds of The Odney Club
  • Restorative sound experience
  • Facilitated walk-and-talk
  • Retreat journal and welcome pack
  • Reflective resources
  • Private pre-retreat WhatsApp group
  • CPD certificate
  • Post-retreat reflection material
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The Odney Club in Berkshire

The retreat takes place at The Odney Club in Berkshire, a calm and peaceful setting on the Thames, chosen to support reflection, restoration and meaningful connection. The environment offers space not only for workshops, but also for fresh air, informal conversation, walking, quiet thought, and genuine pause.

Design Your Retreat:

Create the retreat experience that works best for you. Join us for the full two-day therapist retreat or choose a one-day pass.

Option

Includes

Price

Full retreat: single room

Day 1 & Day 2, overnight stay, meals, workshops,
sound bath, venue access

£425

Full retreat: twin/shared
room

Day 1 & Day 2, overnight stay, meals, workshops,
sound bath, venue access

£365

Day 1 pass

Day 1 workshops, Linda Cundy talk, lunch, venue
access

£150

Day 2 pass

Day 2 workshops, sound bath, lunch, venue access

£140

Interest Free Payment Plan

Available for full retreat option. Your deposit secures your place followed by 5 monthly payments which must be made on the agreed date. Full payment terms will be shared before your place is confirmed.

Option

Deposit

Installments

Total Cost

Full retreat: single room

£75

£70 × 5 Monthly payments

£425

Full retreat: twin/shared
room

£75

£58 x 5 Monthly payments

£365

Important: The payment plan shown is based on there being at least five months remaining before the retreat. When booking within five months of the retreat start date, the number and value of the remaining payments will be adjusted according to the time available before the final balance is due. Deposit is non-refundable.

Refer a Friend – and You Could Attend for Free

Receive £50 off your retreat cost for every friend who books using your referral. Refer enough friends and your own retreat place could be completely free.

Reserve Your Place

What therapists told us after the first retreat

“I left with more knowledge about attachment and a whole lot of great memories with other lovely therapists.
I came open-minded and curious and left feeling like my cup had been filled back up.”
Priscilla2026 Retreat Guest
“It was incredible on a personal and professional level.”
Sam2026 Retreat Guest
“A wonderful mix of relaxation, education, conversation and support in a fabulous setting.”
Anonymous retreat guest2026 Retreat Guest
“This is a great opportunity to connect and reflect with yourself and other like-minded therapists.”
Donna-Maria2026 Retreat Guest
“A warm, thoughtful and enriching experience that offered space to slow down, reflect and connect.”
Lu2026 Retreat Guest
CPD hours delivered across two structured days, with certificate provided.
Places limited to practising therapists to maintain a contained and focused group.
Years of attachment-informed practice and teaching from guest speaker Linda Cundy.

Frequently Asked Questions

The retreat is for qualified counsellors and psychotherapists. You do not have to be an existing Optima student or graduate.
No. The retreat is suitable for therapists with an interest in attachment and relational practice, including those who are new to the subject.
No. The retreat includes personal and professional reflection but is not a substitute for therapy or clinical supervision.
No. Sharing is always voluntary.
Yes. The focus is exploration, not producing artwork.
The session will be gentle and choice-led, with alternatives offered. Guests will receive further information before attending.
Yes. Most guests attend alone.
Yes. Following feedback from our first retreat, the programme includes deliberately protected time for rest and informal connection.
Yes. Details will be shown during booking.
Shared-room options will be available, subject to availability.

Are you ready to invest in yourself?

Attachment-informed workshops
Residential experience
CPD certificate included
All activities voluntary
Only 26 places

Thursday 8th July & Friday 9th July 2027
The Odney Club, Berkshire

Reserve Your Place
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