Franciscan Centre Ladywell

11/09/2026

Celebrate What’s Right With the World

During Morning Prayer at Ladywell this week, we watched a film by former National Geographic photographer DeWitt Jones which left us with a simple but powerful question:

What’s right with the world?

At a time when we can so easily be surrounded by difficult news, uncertainty and negativity, perhaps it is more important than ever to pause and notice what is good.

The kindness of another person.
The beauty of creation.
A moment of peace.
A conversation that lifts us.
The people and places for which we are grateful.

Celebrating what is right does not mean ignoring what is wrong. It is about recognising the goodness, beauty and possibility that are still present around us – and allowing them to give us hope.

The film is a little longer than the videos we would normally share, but we think it is well worth taking the time to watch.

Perhaps today we might each ask ourselves:

What is there in my life, and in the world around me, that is worth celebrating?

Watch Celebrate What’s Right With the World by DeWitt Jones:

https://youtu.be/sF7KUaJw3hs

Franciscan Centre Ladywell
Open to all – all faiths and none.

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10/09/2026

A Little Space Before Christmas

December can so easily become one of the busiest months of the year.

Shopping, preparations, gatherings, lists of things still to be done… and sometimes, amid all the activity, we forget to make space for ourselves and for God.

This December, the Franciscan Centre Ladywell is offering something a little different.

From 6–20 December, come and spend a few peaceful days with us on a personal retreat, with a special December rate of just £75 per person, per night, full board.

Whether you spend your time in prayer, walking through the winter grounds, reading, reflecting or simply resting, the time is yours.

And if you’ve never experienced a personal retreat before, this could be a wonderful way to try one. There is no programme to follow and no expectation that you need to know what to do — simply the gift of time and space away from everyday life.

Your stay includes full board, from supper on the evening you arrive through to breakfast on the morning you leave, with a minimum stay of two nights.

6–20 December 2026
£75 per person, per night
Full board
Minimum two-night stay
Subject to availability and advance booking.

Perhaps the best preparation for Christmas isn’t doing more.

Perhaps it’s finding a little time to be still.

To enquire or book:
01483 675575
[email protected]

Franciscan Centre Ladywell
A place for reflection, prayer and peace.

09/09/2026

Celebrating Together

We couldn’t resist sharing another little moment from our celebrations!

The joy of our FMDM African Sisters sharing their music in the Chapel has been a wonderful part of this very special week at Ladywell.

Different voices, different cultures, one FMDM family.

09/09/2026

More Joy from Ladywell

Another joyful moment from our 70th Anniversary celebrations, as our FMDM African Sisters filled the Chapel with music and song.

A wonderful celebration of the different cultures, communities and traditions that make up the international FMDM family.

70 years at Ladywell — celebrating together in faith, joy and gratitude.

09/09/2026

A Joyful Sound at Ladywell

A very special moment from our 70th Anniversary celebrations at Ladywell.

The Chapel was filled with music and joy as some of our FMDM African Sisters shared their voices in song as part of the celebrations.

It was a beautiful reminder that the Franciscan Missionaries of the Divine Motherhood are an international family, with Sisters living and serving in different parts of the world, united by a shared faith and a mission inspired by St Francis and St Clare of Assisi.

For 70 years, prayer has been at the heart of life here at Ladywell, and hearing the Chapel filled with voices from across the FMDM family was a particularly joyful way to celebrate that continuing story.

Today, the Franciscan Centre Ladywell continues to share in that tradition of prayer and welcome, offering a place where people can come for retreat, reflection, spiritual renewal and peace.

Different countries. Different cultures. One FMDM family.

And on this special occasion, one Chapel filled with joyful song.

Happy 70th Anniversary, Ladywell.

08/09/2026

Remembering Those Who Have Gone Before Us

Yesterday, our 70th Anniversary celebrations at Ladywell began with a special Gathering Liturgy.

The Sisters gathered outside the main entrance before walking together into Ladywell — a symbolic journey remembering the many Sisters who have walked through these doors and shared in the life and mission of this special place over the past seventy years.

The gathering then continued at the cemetery, where flowers were laid in remembrance of the Sisters buried here at Ladywell, while prayers were also offered for FMDM Sisters across the world who have gone before us.

It was a beautiful and moving way to begin our celebrations — remembering with gratitude those whose lives, faith and service helped shape the FMDM story, while giving thanks for the community and mission that continue today.

Here at the Franciscan Centre Ladywell, we are privileged to share in that continuing story — welcoming people to a place that has been shaped by prayer, hospitality and Franciscan life for generations.

Seventy years at Ladywell — remembering the past, celebrating the present and looking with hope towards the future.

08/09/2026

Celebrating 70 Years at Ladywell

Today our 70th anniversary celebrations are well and truly underway, and it is wonderful to see Ladywell filled with people, conversation, memories and friendship.

Sisters, Mission Partners, colleagues, friends and guests have gathered together for a special celebration lunch, marking 70 years since the Franciscan Missionaries of the Divine Motherhood made Ladywell their home in 1956.

Today is an opportunity to give thanks for all those who have been part of the Ladywell story over those seven decades — those who have lived here, worked here, prayed here, visited, volunteered, supported the Sisters and shared in their mission.

And, of course, the story continues.

Today the Franciscan Centre Ladywell continues to be a place of welcome, prayer, reflection and hospitality — offering people the opportunity to step away from the demands of everyday life and find space for stillness, spiritual renewal and peace.

Inspired by St Francis and St Clare of Assisi, the FMDM Sisters continue their journey of faith and mission, seeking to recognise the dignity of every person and of all creation, and to share the joy and freedom of the Gospel.

As we celebrate today, we give thanks for 70 remarkable years, for the people who have shaped Ladywell and for all that is still to come.

Happy 70th Anniversary, Ladywell — 1956–2026.

A place of welcome, yesterday, today and tomorrow.

08/09/2026

70 Years at Ladywell — Almost Ready to Celebrate

The tables are laid, the flowers are in place, the cakes are ready… and we are almost ready to welcome everyone for a very special celebration lunch today.

This year marks 70 years since the Franciscan Missionaries of the Divine Motherhood made Ladywell their home in 1956.

Today is an opportunity to gather around the table and celebrate that remarkable journey.

For seven decades, Ladywell has been a place of prayer, community, hospitality and service. Generations of Sisters have lived and prayed here, while countless people have been welcomed through its doors.

There is something particularly fitting about marking this anniversary by sharing a meal together. The table has always been a place of encounter — a place where stories are shared, friendships are formed and community is strengthened.

And today, the mission of welcome continues here at the Franciscan Centre Ladywell, offering people a place to retreat from the busyness of life and find space for prayer, reflection, rest and renewal.

As we prepare to celebrate, we remember with gratitude all those who have been part of the Ladywell story over the past 70 years — the Sisters who have gone before us, those who continue the mission today, and the many friends, colleagues, guests and communities who have shared in the life of this special place.

And as FMDM looks towards the future at its Graced Crossroads, today is also about looking forward — continuing the journey together with faith, hope and trust.

70 years at Ladywell.
So many people. So many stories.
And the story continues.

06/09/2026

70 Years at Ladywell — And the Story Continues

Next week marks the beginning of a very special celebration as the Franciscan Missionaries of the Divine Motherhood celebrate 70 years at Ladywell.

In 1956, Ladywell became the Motherhouse and Novitiate of the FMDM Sisters. Since then, generations of Sisters have lived, prayed, served and been sent out on mission from this place.

These two photographs, taken many years apart, offer a wonderful glimpse of that journey.

The buildings and surroundings may have changed, but Ladywell continues to be a place rooted in the Franciscan spirit of St Francis and St Clare of Assisi — a place of prayer, welcome, service and encounter.

FMDM is an international Congregation of Catholic women, seeking to proclaim through their lives the joy and freedom of the Gospel and to share the lives of their brothers and sisters wherever they go.

Today, that spirit of welcome and prayer also continues through the Franciscan Centre Ladywell — offering a place where people can step away from the busyness of everyday life for prayer, reflection, retreat and spiritual renewal. People come here individually and in groups, some for a day and others for longer, finding space to be still, to encounter God and simply to rest.

As the Sisters look towards the future, they describe themselves as being at “Graced Crossroads” — a time of extraordinary change and continuing transformation. Their journey remains one of hope and trust, embracing partnership in mission and promoting the dignity of humanity and all creation.

So this 70th anniversary is not only an opportunity to look back with gratitude at all those who have shaped Ladywell.

It is also a time to celebrate the life and mission that continue here today — and to look forward with hope to what Ladywell may become in the years ahead.

Over the coming days, we’ll be sharing more from the celebrations and some of the people, places and stories that have made Ladywell what it is today.

70 years at Ladywell.
A remarkable story of faith, prayer, mission and service — and the story continues.

06/09/2026

Sunday Reflection — We Are More Connected Than We Think

Something extraordinary is happening thousands of miles from Ladywell.

Far away in the tropical Pacific Ocean, the waters are becoming unusually warm as a powerful El Niño develops.

It may seem distant and unrelated to life here at Ladywell in Surrey, yet changes in one part of our planet can influence weather patterns thousands of miles away — bringing drought to some places, heavier rainfall to others and potentially affecting the weather we experience here in the UK.

Perhaps there is something for us to reflect upon in that.

Creation is connected.

St Francis understood something of this interconnectedness centuries before we had the science to explain it. He looked upon the sun, water, wind, earth, plants, animals and humanity not as separate things, but as members of one family of creation.

And perhaps we are not so different.

Our actions, our words, our kindness — and sometimes our indifference — can travel further than we realise.

A small act of compassion may touch somebody who then carries that kindness to another.

A word spoken in anger can travel just as far.

What happens in one place can affect another.

What happens to one person can affect many.

This Sunday, perhaps we might ask ourselves:

What am I sending out into the world?

And how might one small act of kindness, care or compassion today create ripples far beyond what I will ever see?

Franciscan Centre Ladywell
A place for reflection, prayer and peace.