Private Stays, Retreats, Study Breaks in Cathedral Close

Home Learning Private Stays, Retreats, Study Breaks and Sabbaticals

Personalised stays

You can visit Sarum for a self-guided break, or plan a more structured programme to include study, spiritual direction, mentoring, or a course.

Enjoy use of the library and its reading rooms, an ensuite bedroom and freshly prepared food by our onsite catering team. You can choose to participate in the community life of a thriving college as much or as little as you wish.

You may wish to include one or more additional elements, depending on the purpose of your visit

One of our team will discuss your visit and help you to include the resources you are looking for. You may be able to plan your visit to include an event already scheduled in our programme.

Browse the course & event calendar

Need financial assistance? We are grateful to the Community of St Denys for their contribution to financial support programmes. See our page on bursaries available.

Wellness and Study Break Opportunities for Clergy and Ordinands

Ministry is deeply rewarding, but it can sometimes also be physically, emotionally, and spiritually demanding.

Whether you need quiet space to focus on study, time to recover, or simply a peaceful place to rest, Sarum College invite those in ministry to step away from daily routine and find sanctuary.

Sarum offers Bed & Breakfast stays designed to give you the space and quiet you need. Bursaries of up to 100% are available for eligible lay or ordained ministers who would otherwise be unable to afford a break. Ordinands may also apply.

Staying at the college

Historic Grounds: Set within the tranquil, 80-acre Salisbury Cathedral Close, Sarum College offers a unique blend of warm hospitality, peaceful surroundings, and historic charm.
Comfortable Accommodation: Enjoy a peaceful stay in their guest bedrooms (many en-suite), offering tea and coffee-making facilities and views of the medieval Cathedral or the rooftops of the Close.
Freshly Prepared Breakfast: A hot breakfast, cooked fresh each morning, is included with your stay.
Space for Study & Reflection: Guests enjoy access to Sarum’s specialist theological library and quiet reading rooms, perfect for dedicated study or sabbatical planning.
Peace & Quiet: With no televisions in guest rooms and the medieval gates locked to the public at night, you can enjoy absolute peace, quiet, and security. However, they are not a retreat house, so you can also chat over breakfast to those staying with them from all over the world, who may just be visiting Salisbury as tourists.
Ideal Location: Take walks around the Close, pray in the Cathedral or College Chapel, or explore Salisbury’s vibrant city centre, located just a five-minute walk away.

Bursaries and Eligibility

Sarum College believe that financial constraints should never stand in the way of essential rest and renewal. Bursaries covering up to 100% of the cost of a 1 to 3-night stay are available.

To qualify for bursary funding, you must meet both of the following criteria.

1. You are experiencing at least one of the following circumstances:

– Experiencing burnout or fatigue
– Facing a pivotal life change
– Recently bereaved
– Needing space to explore the path ahead
– Needing space to have focused study time
– Recovering from illness or relationship breakdown

2. Financial Need

You are currently unable to fund a wellness or study break yourself. We do not means test, but rely on the honesty of the applicant to say that this can only happen with a bursary. All applications for bursary funding are handled with strict confidentiality and care.

Spiritual Accompaniment

For those seeking extra spiritual support during their stay, Optional Spiritual Accompaniment is available on request for a small charge.

How to apply

If you would like to inquire about booking a wellness or study break, or if you wish to apply for bursary support, please get in touch with Sarum College’s helpful team.

Email: Louisa Mason (lmason@sarum.ac.uk)
Telephone: 01722 424812

Called to the ministry of spiritual direction?

Consider the Sarum Course in Spiritual Direction

What do you need?

Retreats

You can arrange a private retreat, to include Cathedral services, or prayers at one of the many places of worship in Salisbury. There are many local walks, and access to the library in College. Spiritual direction or accompaniment can be arranged to suit you.

View our course calendar to check dates

Find out why Salisbury is called the City in the Countryside

Pastoral supervision

Pastoral supervision is available to support ordained and lay ministers in a wide variety of contexts, subject to availability.

Individual or group supervision is available for those engaged in spiritual direction. Supervision is also available for those engaged in pastoral ministries of accompaniment or care.

Spiritual Direction

Spiritual Direction can be booked as part of your stay, subject to availability. This might be one or more conversations depending on the length and focus of your time here.

Contact Clair James cjames@sarum.ac.uk to organise possible dates/times for this.

Mentoring

‘Mentoring is a social relationship one person shares with others so they flourish with well-being and success.’

– Walter Brueggemann

Mentoring is available to support you during times of challenge in your ministry and/or discernment for work role changes.

Subject to availability, we offer consultation with an experienced mentor who will help you reflect about your ministry and vocation. The mentor may also suggest readings to help define the structure and purpose of your stay.

Guided study leave and sabbaticals

You may wish to visit Sarum before or during your sabbatical or study leave. Subject to availability, we offer mentoring to support your planning, progress and review, and/or help you develop a focused area of study.

You can explore whether you want this to lead to credit-rated postgraduate study or to enrolment on one of our master’s degree programmes. Sarum College has experienced tutors in the fields of spiritual direction, spirituality, liturgy, ministry, leadership, doctrine and the Bible.

How to arrange a personalised stay

If you have a particular date in mind, you can check availability online or contact a member of hospitality to enquire. Alternatively, if you wish to discuss then please contact Clair James cjames@sarum.ac.uk who will help you explore options.

If you would like accompaniment, mention this and your email will be passed to the team. We will then contact you to confirm whether or not we have the availability, and if so you can then discuss your visit directly and make arrangements for meeting times.

Cost

Please contact us to discuss current costs.

The most usual patterns for a stay are:

A 24-hour visit including lunch, supper, bed and breakfast in a single ensuite room with one hour of accompaniment or mentoring;

A 24 hour visit as above but with an additional lunch;

A 48-hour visit with two lunches, two suppers, two nights bed and breakfast in a single en-suite room and an hour of accompaniment or mentoring.

You may wish to additional nights, meals and accompaniment sessions. We can discuss this with you.

A wonderful opportunity for peaceful reflection and deeper knowledge

Praying the Psalms of the Passion Course

It was a wonderful opportunity for peaceful reflection and deeper knowledge at the start of one of the busiest weeks of the year. It made all the difference.

Absolutely loved it and learned a lot.

Spiritual Landscapes Course

It was a thoroughly enjoyable well put together experience. Absolutely loved it and learned a lot.

The course provided space for personal reflection

Theology Catch-Up Course

It supported my learning and helped me to think about my faith. The course provided space for personal reflection which I greatly appreciated.

Riveting!

Book of Revelation course

Someone on the course said it was ‘riveting!’ This was exactly what I felt. The course was a total joy because of the tutor’s handouts, excellence and Sarum College hospitality.

Faith is an imaginative adventure

The Very Revd Dr Mark Oakley

I admire the work and tone of Sarum College very deeply. It is a community that takes theology and spirituality seriously, not as hobbies but as pursuits into understanding, and engaging in, a complex world.

Sarum College reminds us that faith is an imaginative adventure and that it is shaped by a questioning joy.

Vibrant approach to theology

Fr Azariah France-Williams

I’ve been particularly struck by the refreshing approach to theological education here. In a world, and indeed within parts of the church, where faith can sometimes feel stagnant or out of touch, Sarum offers a vibrant and relevant alternative. The courses encourage a bold exploration of profound ideas, connecting with truths that lie beneath the surface and fostering genuine personal growth, which feels particularly significant as I approach my 50th year. This counter-cultural spirit, which embraces depth and challenges ageism and fear, is truly remarkable. Sarum is a place where individuals can be transformed by engaging with a living and breathing faith.

Private Stays, Retreats, Study Breaks