Welcome to Sycamores
Sycamores Christian Retreat
This is a place of rest and renewal for all who want to live an authentic life. For us that has been through faith in Jesus Christ. The house is intended to be warm, welcoming and safe and allow people space to reflect and draw inspiration from nature, scripture and each other.
Sycamores - The Accommodation
Sycamores is a relatively small retreat house with residential space for up to 10 people; five bedrooms, 3 double and 2 twin. It can accommodate up to 14 for day retreats . Contact us if you are interested in any of the listed retreats on this website or in discussing using Sycamores for a small group retreat, either residential or for a day.
Why Sycamores?
At one level this is very easy, there’s a Sycamore tree in the corner of the garden and several further up the valley. However, at another level it has a deep resonance with the experience of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-10) and the change that Jesus brings as we spend time in His presence.
What is a Retreat?
According to the Northumbria Community, 'In its simplest form ‘Retreat’, means ‘to withdraw, to drawback.’ Throughout the ages, the Christian tradition has understood Retreat to be an important part of spiritual formation. That is, time consciously set aside for God, a change of focus, a deliberate act of stepping outside of normal routine by withdrawing (not running away) from the noise and pressures; the immediate and insistent claims of our social, domestic and workaday responsibilities in order to be in a quiet place where all our senses are open and ready to listen to God.'
About Us
Liz Bryan
Liz is a palliative care nurse and palliative and end-of-life care educationalist. Qualified also as a counselling psychotherapist, Liz is interested in how adults use experience to raise self-awareness and consciously change behaviours that might have been damaging to themselves and others. Liz has worked as a lecturer for Macmillan Cancer Support and in the Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Palliative Care at Kings College London. From 2013 to 2019 she was Director of Education and Training at St Christopher's Hospice in London. Liz now works mainly from home delivering online training for end-of-life care practitioners around the world.
Liz is married to Tim. She became a Christian when she was training to be a nurse in the late 70s. It hasn't always been plain sailing but without her faith in God, through Jesus Christ, Liz admits her life would have been without meaning or purpose.
Tim Bryan
Tim was ordained in 1996 at Southwark Cathedral, whilst employed as a detective inspector for the Met Police. During a police career of 27yrs he undertook significant roles running a large child protection team in South London and then later on secondment to the National Probation Service designed and implemented MAPPA, the national system for the management of high-risk offenders in the community. In 2006, having held honorary curacy roles in local churches within Southwark Diocese he became a prison chaplain in response to God’s prompting. He was the lead chaplain at HMP Wandsworth for over 10years before becoming a senior chaplain for the Prison Service and overseeing several chaplaincy teams across the North of England, Midlands and Wales. He retired from the Prison Service in 2020 but maintains his involvement with prison chaplaincy and resettlement by being an Adviser to the Bishop of Southwark on Prison Chaplaincy, a trustee for the local charity Yellow Ribbon, and chairing the working group for Prisons Week. He holds a Permission to Officiate for Hereford Diocese and is part of the ministry team in Church Stretton.
Tim is married to Liz. They have three adult children. They moved to Church Stretton five years ago with the intention of using their new home to welcome friends and others for refreshment and retreat. Although delayed by full-time work and the impact of COVID they have begun this year to invite people to participate in short retreats.
What to Expect
Initial Contact
Preparation for Retreat
Preparation for Retreat
Once you have made initial contact by email, we will ask for a call, preferably on ZOOM so we can check out your expectations and that Sycamores is the right fit for you. If it is, we will ask you to complete an application form and will begin to plan with you how your time at Sycamores might be best spent.
Preparation for Retreat
Preparation for Retreat
Preparation for Retreat
Prior to arriving on retreat, it will be important to begin to consider your priorities, for example, do you need rest and relaxation, space to just be with God, or do you need something more directive? Are you looking for specific answers to prayer and need time away from the business of life, to listen?
Living in Community
Preparation for Retreat
Living in Community
Whether you choose to come on a themed or an open retreat, you will be sharing the house with others who you may not have met before. Tim and Liz will remain in the house throughout and will endeavour to put everyone at ease, respecting privacy and confidentiality at all times. However, in our experience, we can be richly blessed through encounters with new, fellow travellers.