Spring Retreat 2027

We are gathering again, and will celebrate Shabbat, and the return of Spring! We will make ceremony, sing songs, share meals, learn folklore and ritual, and enjoy being in the presence of each other. We will also learn some ritual skills to take home and make our own. We welcome Jewish folk and allies of all genders.

The retreat will begin with lunch on Friday 24 April 2026, with an option to arrive on Thursday 23 April and will end after lunch on Sunday 26 April 2026.

We encourage participants to attend for the whole retreat, but:

• If you have to arrive a little after lunch on Friday 24 April, we will save you a plate - please arrive by 1.45pm latest, as our first session begins at 2pm.
• If you need to take your lunch away with you for your journey homewards on Sunday 26 April, that will be fine.
• Please let us know if you want to arrive on the 23 April, as we can arrange bed and breakfast accommodation at the farm, and there is a guest kitchen where you can prepare other meals during the day.

Most rooms will be shared between 2-3 people. Before assigning you a room, we will check on any preferences you have, so that you are matched with a room-mate that suits your needs.

There are a few single rooms available, as well as rooms with double beds, and you will be able to request these. Cots are available for babies.
There is a supplemental charge for requesting a single room for yourself, and there are limited numbers available.

*SINGLE ROOMS ARE CURRENTLY FULLY BOOKED*

We will let you know if we have not been able to arrange your room as requested.

You can also stay off-site, and will be responsible for any transport to and from the Farm.

When you book the retreat, we ask only for your payment towards the farm's accommodation and catering.

After you fill in the sign-up form, we will send you details for how to pay us.

Your place on the retreat is confirmed when we have recevied that payment.

This payment is refundable at the discretion of Lower Shaw Farm, who depend on this income, and will be ordering food in advance of the start date.

This advance fee does not cover any of Yelala's time, accommodation, or labour, which we will request from you after the retreat has ended.

We hope that splitting up the payments makes it a little more manageable for you to join us.

At any time, Yelala and Lower Shaw Farm both reserve the right to right to refuse admission to the retreat to anyone who registers for the retreat. If this is done after a participant has made a payment, you will be refunded in full.

*2027 costs have not yet been released by the farm, so here are the 2026 costs as a guide*

2026 Costs For Staying On-Site:

• In 2026 standard rate for food and accommodation for one person was around £205
• An additional Thursday night at the farm is £35 per person, which includes bedding, so the bedding charge above would be removed from your total cost.

There is an additional supplement for:

• Requesting a private room (subject to availability): cost TBC
• Additional adults who are not participating in the retreat (e.g. co-parents, carers, or dependents) will need pay the same fees, since this rate is for accommodation and food only.

Costs if you are Staying Off-Site:

The total cost from the farm for joining us Friday-Sunday staying off-site was £140, to cover food and some care of the farm. If you need to stay off-site for accessibility reasons, please contact us directly and we will help with costs if we are able.

Payments for Yelala are made after the retreat:

After the retreat, we will send you a link to make a contribution towards the cost of Rachel and Yael's work organising, designing and holding the retreat. Below is a suggested guideline. Please note that if even the lowest supported rate is a struggle, you can be in touch with us to arrange a payment plan spread out over time. Here are the 2025 rates.

Supported: £160-225

Standard: £225-350

Abundant: £350-550 (or more!)

The meals provided by our venue are vegetarian (and delicious!)
We are also able to offer vegan, dairy free and gluten free options.
If you have more complex dietary requirements, let us know and we'll find out if / how the farm can accommodate your needs.

There is a kitchen you can use if you need to prepare some foods yourself.

Pets and informal support animals are not permitted at the farm.

Trained guide dogs, hearing dogs, and medical alert dogs are permitted.

Babes-in-arms can join retreat sessions, but we encourage you to bring an additional adult with you, so that you can have some time to yourself.

Children and other adults can join us for kabbalat shabbat, havdalah, meals, tea breaks, and social time.

We are keen to be accessible for those with dependents

On request, we and the farm can help parents and carers to find a local, qualified childcare professional, in order to share some childcare support, so that you can enjoy the retreat and trust that your children are well-cared for. Please contact us directly if you are interested in this.

All additional adults who are staying on-site will need to pay the standard rate of accommodation to the farm.

The farm's rate for children aged three and over is 50% the standard adult rate.

Families will not have to pay any additional supplement for having a room to themselves!

All additional adults who are staying off-site will need to let us know in advance which meals they will eat on-site and make a payment towards the farm costs, which the farm will calculate for us.
Children aged 2 and under stay on-site at no cost.

Our venue has an accessible toilet and shower, and accessible dining room / room for gathering, and some bedrooms that are wheelchair accessible, but no 'changing places' toilets, or beds with hoists or other adaptations for disabled users.

If this means that you need to stay offsite please speak with us so that we can contribute towards your costs if we are able to.

We will arrange all activities to take place at groundfloor level if participants' needs require this.

There are local cab firms with wheelchair accessible cabs available and we can help you to book them.

If you need to stay off-site