Summer Retreat, 12th-14th June 2026, East Sussex

Join us for a rural escape this summer, for some deep relaxation, nourishment and moments of wonder with a great group of folk, only a stone’s throw from London.

Our retreat home this June is Crafted at Powdermills, a gorgeous new country location set in 78 acres of lakeside woodland. It’s the perfect place to fill up on the good stuff - nature, food, wellbeing and people. Take time to unplug from the chaos of the world, and rest, reflect and re-energise, surrounded by a small group of kind-hearted people.

Running from Friday to Sunday, this two-night escape will include luxuriously comfortable accommodation, a craft workshop, yoga to soothe and stretch, and invigorating natural wellness experiences including a hot tub, cold plunge and sauna, as well as wild swims, paddle boarding and kayaking on the seven acre lake. There’ll also be time for strolls in nature, reading in cosy corners, spa treatments, or a padel game, for the more energetic.

Book your spot on our retreat now!

See below for more details on accommodation and pricing, and email info@forgather.com to book. We will allocate rooms and cottages to best suit everyone’s requirements, but do let us know if you have a particular request.

Crafted at Powdermills, East Sussex

Crafted at Powdermills is a newly opened hotel and members club, sat around a seven-acre lake with 78 acres of private ancient woodlands, streams, and old pastures that climb up a chalky hill. Our home for the weekend will be three wonderfully cosy cottages - Lake House, Oak Cottage and Ash Cottage - all designed with love and thoughtful artistic touches. Each cottage has its own lounge area and kitchen, and the Lake House - our main retreat hub - also offers a tiered garden, private swimming pool, fire pit and plenty of space for al fresco dining and sun salutations.

Accommodation and pricing:
Pricing: £1,000 pp for single occupancy, £850 pp for twin/shared. This includes two-nights accommodation, meals and drinks, yoga and lakeside wellness activities.

Lakehouse: 4 double bedrooms (2 with ensuite)

Oak Cottage: 3 double bedrooms (all ensuite), 1 twin with separate bathroom

Ash Cottage: 2 double bedrooms (each with private bathroom), 1 twin/double with private bathroom

Getting there

Train
Battle station, a 5-minute drive away, is on the Hastings line which is served by Southeastern trains. London Bridge to Battle is a 70-minute train (London Charing Cross and London Waterloo East are on the same line).

There is an electric shuttle service available upon request to pick you up / drop you off at Battle station.

Car
Traffic allowing: the venue is 15 minutes from Hastings and the East Sussex coast, an hour from Brighton, an hour and a half from Canterbury, and two hours from London.
Free guest parking, is available.

Plane
You can’t land on their lawn, but it’s a 45-minute drive from Gatwick Airport and a 90-minute drive from Heathrow Airport.

Praise for past retreats:

“Thank you so much for the wonderful experience. Your incredible organisation and kindness made the entire weekend truly enjoyable. Great location, delicious meals and above all a great group of people! The yoga sessions brought a sense of peace and relaxation that was much needed. Most of all the woodland walk was a magical experience that gave me a deep connection with nature that I will forever cherish.”

- Amber Vodegel, Digital Health Tech Entrepreneur

“As a retreat virgin, I didn’t know what to expect and some of the activities sounded a bit out of my comfort zone. But boy… how wrong was I? If you’re working crazy hard and need a break or thinking of a change and working out what to do next, I can’t think of a better way to spend a weekend. Thank you Forgather for organising and creating such a positive space filled with wonderful people and helping us explore what really matters.”

- Alex Eavis, CEO / CPO for Social Impact & Mission Driven Tech Businesses

“It’s the little things that make a trip away special. A personal touch, genuine warmth from your host, gorgeous location with treats in your room, attention to detail, accommodating of individual preferences, delicious food. This retreat had all that and more. I felt genuinely better and happier afterwards.”

- Jose Adams

“A peaceful and enriching pause from the hurly burly of life with wonderfully interesting people, excellent food, and thoughtful speaker guides. And of course managed beautifully, as you’d always expect from the Forgather team. I loved it.”

- Alice Lankester

“So nice to have a few quiet days in nature with good people, great food, traditional craft, and a bit of yoga and foraging. Perfect!”

- Celia Francis

 
 

Hosts & Contributors

(Click name to read bio)

  • Rachel is Events Director at Forgather, where she manages and delivers live, virtual and hybrid events for clients in the tech and innovation ecosystem. Whether it’s an intimate dinner for software founders, a large-scale conference or awards ceremony, or a CEO offsite in the countryside, community and connection is the thread that runs through all our events.

    Working with so many founders and CEOs, we often see people overstretched, exhausted and facing burnout – so wellness, and tools to tackle these problems is an important element of many of our events. Forgather’s retreat series was born out of a desire to explore this passion for wellbeing further, and bring together our community to find space to relax, decompress, embrace nature and find peace in simplicity.

    Rachel devotes her spare time to enjoying nature, hiking, travel and fitness. She lives in Clevedon, near Bristol with her husband and two small children, who she hopes will grow up with a love of camping and the great outdoors.

  • Belinda is the founder of Forgather. We’ve spent the last 15 years designing events for organisations championing business and innovation - from Balderton, Boardwave and Microsoft to The Times and Unilever.

    Much as we love working with clients, our favourite events have always been our own passion projects. Back before it was a ‘thing’, we co-hosted the Mindfulness Summit with Calm, whilst the annual Snowball ski retreat continues to forge new friendships and make a difference to a vibrant community spanning Europe.

    Engineering serendipity is a favourite phrase, so when Rachel started talking retreats, I was right behind her and have loved adding to the pot from my own experience. Whether on a yoga mat (ideally with a view of sea) or on nicely sprung dance floor, there’s nothing better than being in the ‘flow’.

  • Violet is a 550 hour trained yoga teacher, trained in Hatha, Yin, Advanced Vinyasa and teaching children. Her classes offer variations for those wanting to go deeper, or take a slightly lighter class. Whether it is a hot dynamic Vinyasa Flow or a deep Yin class, she loves to focus her classes around themes and a deep connection to the breath. She invites people to arrive on the mat, let go and surrender deep into their bodies.

 
 

  • Alice is a chef, home economist, recipe developer and food stylist.

    She began her career in food within the music industry, cooking and baking around the UK and Europe for the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Robbie Williams and Lorde. She founded plant-based bakery Lovely Buns in 2019 but has since focused her energy into evolving her food career into new avenues.

    Alice has catered retreats, supper clubs and events; styled on publications including Stylist Magazine and John and Lisa’s Kitchen and worked as a home economist on TV shows including John & Lisa’s Weekend Kitchen, Mary Berry’s Foolproof Dinners and Roux Down The River.

    Alice is at her happiest when cooking for people and loves working with seasonal ingredients to create flavour packed, veg-focussed menus.