Retreat to Whalley Abbey 2019

Whalley Abbey Retreat

On Wednesday 3rd July, the Year 6 children of St Peter’s Church of England Primary School went on the annual end of year retreat to Whalley Abbey, set in the stunning grounds and ruins of a 14th Century Cistercian Abbey, in the beautiful countryside of the Ribble Valley, Clitheroe.

This was a wonderful day where the children were able to look back and reflect on their time at St Peter’s and think about their journey as they left to go to their new high schools. The senior leaders really wanted the children to have a fun-filled day with activities to get them to really think about their journey through primary school and the years ahead in their futures; as well as thinking about their time as friends, working and playing together. This tied in with what the children were focusing on in their RE lessons - 'Life as a Journey'.

The day started with a lovely sermon led by Rev. Steven Watkinson from St Peter’s Church, Newbold where the children and staff reflected on the events throughout their time in school and looking towards their future journeys and the paths they may follow in the years ahead. Following this, the children participated in activities all around the abbey and found themselves actively engaging.  Some of their favourite activities included the ‘Treasure Hunt Prayer Walk’, in which the children read prayers and passages from the Bible that were around the grounds of the abbey and found clues to reveal a special message; the ‘Team Building Games’ where the children were put in ‘unexpected’ teams and had to solve problems; and the ‘Line Continuum’  (led by Karen Beal Diocesan Children’s Officer, from Manchester Diocese) in which the children thought about their worries and concerns about high school and had to rank them in order of how these can be overcome, leading to wonderful discussions and support from one another.

Quiet reflection time at the end of the day.

Thinking about how we apply the Christian Values in our daily
lives, and how we will use them in the next stage of our journey.

Working through worries and challenges in a line continuum with K. Beal
from Manchester Diocese.

       
Participating in the Prayer Walk to solve a cryptic message from the teachers at school.

A service delivered by Rev. S. Watkison, giving the opportunity to reflect on times at St Peter's.

A lovely, reflective day was had by all.