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Widening Circles II: A Workshop Programme for Peer-Led Grief Tending

Saturday, 8 March '25   10:30am – 5:30pm GMT
Old Carrow House, 301 King Street, Norwich, NR1 2TG
Widening Circles II: A Workshop Programme for Peer-Led Grief Tending

Details

  • Have you taken part in a grief circle, and afterwards experienced a sense of how important and precious this work is?
  • Do you feel the need for something more ongoing?
  • Are you interested in learning how to set up your own group or in helping your community form a grief tending group?

If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, we would like to invite you to join us for a workshop programme to support you in taking steps towards forming a grief tending peer group.

We will look at how a self-facilitating group can create their own grief tending space, drawing on learnings from other peer-group models. We will explore the flow of the Grief Tending in Community journey, ethics and membership of the group as well as practical considerations including roles, finances, venues etc. You will be able to take away a handbook to supplement the group learning journey, which contains background notes and a template to help you design your group process.

Part one of the programme is on Saturday 8th March (10am-5pm) and part two of the programme is on Wednesday 19th March (6.30pm-8.30pm) for those who can make it. If you can't make it on 19th March, we encourage you to book for the Saturday session anyway.

We are offering this in the spirit of the gift: which means there's no financial barrier, pay what feels right for you.

Who Is It For?

You may be looking for others with whom to form a peer group with (grief tending speed dating!), or maybe interested in setting up a group in a different context. Perhaps you are motivated by your own personal need, or by a desire to meet a wider need in your community - or a combination of both. Or you may simply be curious about how to grow this grief tending movement in new ways. All of this and more is welcome.

It's open to anyone who has attended a grief tending in community one-day workshop, retreat or group journey with ourselves, Sophy Banks (Grief Tending in Community, Devon) or Sarah Pletts (Love and Loss, London).

The Programme

Our broad aim is to encourage ongoing connections and community outside of workshop spaces, calling forth the facilitator in us all and helping to build regenerative culture in all its forms. Building on the pilot workshop we ran last year with Sophy Banks and following on from the focus group that met last December, we have shaped a programme around the following elements.

Group Formation in the context of Grief Tending
We'll explore how groups form (including this one) and how we can create the kind of group culture that will support this work. We'll also look at the differences and overlaps between facilitated grief tending spaces and peer-led groups, and we'll begin exploring the key elements of the Grief Tending in Community approach.

The Flow of the Grief Tending Journey
We'll look in more detail at each element of the approach we're working with: from welcoming and framing, to building the banks and surfacing grief, to expressing our grief, soothing and integration.

Playtime!
This will be an opportunity for members of the group (those who wish to) to have a trial run of a peer group session using the template set out in the handbook. We'll reflect together on any learnings and questions arising. We'll also have a look at questions around ethics and membership of the group.

Nuts and Bolts
In this part of the programme we'll be looking at practical considerations around setting up a group, including rotating roles within the group, finances, venue, etc. We'll also celebrate the journey we have shared, and field any final questions and concerns.

Acknowledgements

With thanks to local artist Rob Barnes for our event images. You can look at his linocut creations here

Norfolk Grief Tending.

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Instructions

Further details will be sent on booking.

Tickets

Cost

Reserve your place.

We're offering this on a gift basis. Your initial £20 is to reserve your place, a kind of placeholder deposit, refundable on the day. Please get in touch if this is a problem for you as we don't want finances to be a barrier.
£20.00

Location

Old Carrow House
301 King Street
Norwich
NR1 2TG

Amenities

  • Toilets
  • Parking