A Year of Change, Community & Quiet Growth

Reflections as We Welcome the New Year

As we step into a new year, we invite a moment of pause—something gentle, reflective, and filled with gratitude. This past year has been one of meaningful service, deep community connection, and also thoughtful transition within the Anderida community. Much like the winter landscape, where life draws inward before the next season of renewal, we too have experienced a natural contraction that we believe will make room for future growth.

🌱 Continuing Our Support for Children & Families

Throughout the year, our Acorn Children’s Clinic continued to offer nurturing, accessible support to children and families in our local community. We were honoured to receive renewed funding from Wealden District Council and Forest Row Parish Council, enabling us to keep this valued service running.

We also received Co-op Local Community Fund support for the Acorn Clinic, further strengthening its foundations.

And we are delighted to share that our winter raffle raised over £1400 in support of the clinic. We extend our warmest thanks to everyone who took part and to the many local businesses who generously donated 47 incredible prizes. Your generosity directly supports families in our community and helps keep this vital service accessible and thriving.

Read more about the Acorn Children’s Clinic

🌞 Community at the Heart – Forest Row Festival

Summer brought the vibrant Forest Row Festival — always a highlight in our year. This time, we were delighted to offer taster sessions to the local community, giving people an opportunity to experience a range of therapies and meet some of our practitioners.

We are deeply grateful to the festival organisers for their generosity; a donation from the festival was given to support the Acorn Children’s Clinic, helping us continue offering accessible care to families who rely on this service.

The festival reminded us once again how strong and supportive our community truly is, and how much can grow when people gather with shared intention.

💚 Re-Opening the Community Pain Relief Clinic

A major highlight of the year was the re-opening of our Community Pain Relief Clinic in November. This clinic provides much-needed low-cost treatments for those experiencing chronic pain, and we are profoundly grateful for the support that made its return possible.

Our heartfelt thanks go to Forest Row Parish Council and Wealden District Council, whose generous funding has enabled us to continue offering this essential service. Their commitment to community wellbeing has ensured that residents can access support that might otherwise be out of reach.

The reopening stands as a beautiful example of what can happen when local organisations and community members work together with shared purpose.

Learn more about the Pain Relief Clinic & Register for an appointment:

🌳 Honouring Our Spaces & Making Room for Renewal

December marked a tender farewell to the Sweet Chestnut Studio and Silver Birch Treatment Room. These spaces have held years of healing work, creativity, classes, and workshops. The energy shaped there will always remain part of our community story.

Although we have now consolidated into two rooms, we view this shift not as a loss but as a drawing-in—a return to the core from which new possibilities can grow. Just as seeds draw inward through winter, we believe this contraction will allow new shoots of growth, new collaborations, and new community initiatives to emerge.

✨ Welcoming New Practitioners to Anderida

This year we were delighted to welcome several new practitioners into our community—each bringing fresh energy, expertise, and care to the practice.

New practitioners joining us recently include:

  • Hannah Jewel - Polarity Therapy, Craniosacral Therapy, Reiki and Sacred Movement

  • James Tinney - Spiritual Healing

  • Sophie Brown - Massage & Lymphatic Drainage

  • Elizabeth Andrews - Nutrition

  • Annette Gordon - Integrative Counsellor

  • Natalie Piper - Art Psychotherapist

  • Freya Holdsworth - Family Constellations

  • Emma Bradford - NLP, Hypnotherapy, Embodiment Coaching, Embodied Arts and Numerology

Their arrival has enriched our offering and broadened the range of therapeutic support available to the community.

🌿 Our Regular Practitioners & Weekly Clinic Rhythm

We are deeply grateful to the practitioners who have committed to regular weekly time slots within the practice timetable. Their consistency forms the heartbeat of Anderida, allowing patients and clients to feel supported, held, and able to plan their care reliably.

Regular weekly practitioners include:

You can now find a clear overview of who is working when, along with direct links to their booking pages.

See the weekly practice timetable:

💛 Gratitude for Our Community

To every practitioner who has offered their skills, presence, and compassion;

To every patient and community member who has trusted us on their healing journey;

To every supporter, volunteer, and council member who has helped keep our community projects alive— thank you.

Your generosity and commitment are what make Anderida the living, breathing community that it is.

🌟 Looking Ahead With Hope

As we move into the new year, we do so with gratitude, steadiness, and a deep sense of purpose. We may now inhabit a smaller physical footprint, but we feel the quiet potential of new growth beginning beneath the surface. We look forward to nurturing what is strong, welcoming what is new, and continuing to offer accessible, meaningful care to all who need it.

With warm wishes for the year ahead,

The Anderida Community

Articles, NewsLaura PopleNews