The Foundation
Being a man can be a lonely experience. We can have friends, partners, families and colleagues around us and still have very few places where we speak honestly about what is happening in our lives.
We learn ways of being men that can make it difficult to show vulnerability, ask for help or say what we really feel. We can become disconnected from parts of ourselves, lose ourselves in work, relationships, addiction or achievement, and sometimes struggle to know what we actually want.
The Foundation is an ongoing men’s group where we explore these things together.
Why a group?
I don’t believe we come to understand ourselves entirely on our own. Much of who we are has been formed through our relationships, with our parents, partners, families, friends and other men. Being in relationship also gives us the opportunity to discover something different.
The group is a place to know ourselves and one another more deeply. We talk about relationships, fathers, partners, sex, shame, anger, addiction, purpose, work, family and what it means to be a man. It is also a place to explore the things we might find difficult to say elsewhere.
Sometimes the work is serious, sometimes uncomfortable and sometimes very funny. There is room for all of it.
The group
The Foundation is limited to twelve men. Keeping the group consistent allows trust and relationships to develop over time. This isn’t a drop-in group. Men make a commitment to one another and to the process, because what becomes possible in the room depends partly on who keeps showing up.
We meet fortnightly for three hours across three terms each year. We also spend longer periods together, including an annual residential in Wales, giving us the opportunity to take the work further than we can in an evening.
Joining The Foundation
New members can join when a space becomes available. You don’t need any previous experience of men’s work or group work. You might simply be curious about yourself, going through a difficult period or wanting more honest and meaningful relationships with other men.
If you’re interested, get in touch and we can have an initial conversation about the group, what brings you to it and whether The Foundation feels right for you.