Welcome to the BSConcern Conference 2025!

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1. Finding Your Voice Workshop – led by Rose Sawkins (with Charlotte Sharpe)
In a safe and supported space, participants are invited to partake in a two-part exercise before giving voice to a short in-action-created piece of life writing. Sharing work with the group will be voluntary. Rose is the founder of Physical Voice: coaching, training, consultancy, co-writing and editing.

2. Intimate Relationships Groups (2) – facilitated by Joanna Meynell & Rosie Hodgson and by Colette Dunford & Veda Tester
Having clarified the group’s understanding of the term “intimate relationships”, there will be a discussion on how boarding might have influenced these bonds. Exploring issues such as self image, how this is impacted by spending adolescence in an institution and single sex schools, together with attachment and the survival personality.

3. Relationships with Parents Group – facilitated by Rosemary Lamaison and Gordon Knott
This group will be looking at your relationship with your parents at different stages: before being sent away; during your time at school; when you come home; and as an adult. It would help if those choosing this group could give some thought to summarising the headline feelings and headline impact of their relationship – sharing in a short phrase, or with a couple of words, without getting into too much detail.

4. Co-Educational Boarding Group
Group withdrawn due to insufficient demand – replaced by an additional Group 2.

5. Creativity in Action Workshop – led by Marcus Pollett (with Pippa Palmer)
An opportunity to explore safely how creative performance (eg: theatre, poetry, spoken work, stand-up comedy) can bring about tangible healing form boarding-related trauma. Marcus is the creator of Mummified, the acclaimed play about a former boarder coming to terms with the devastation of his mother sending him to boarding school.

6. Returning Home to Self – led by Carolyn Wood (with Caroline Rollings)
Want to express what is trapped inside? Does your body need/want to move? This is an introduction to embodiment. Through music and movement, we will actively engage with the elements: Earth, Fire, Water, Air, and Ether. We’ll explore how these elements move inside: feeling the ground in your bones, accessing your inner fire, letting go into your natural flow, and letting your breath shape and guide you. We will play with this elemental synergy to unlock a deeper sense of self. This is about reclaiming your power, releasing stagnant movement, and returning home in your body. No dance moves required! Carolyn is a Movement Medicine professional teacher and facilitator.

7. Boarding on Insanity – Piers Cross
A showing of the ground-breaking new documentary by Piers Cross followed by a Q&A