About Us

The Wellspring

For years, Joe and Cathy Silmon had dreamed of running a retreat and events centre where they could offer a range of spaces and activities to help people grow in their walk with Jesus.

In 2022, as they planned a move from Hertfordshire up to the Malvern Hills area, the couple had all but forgotten their dream - until they were shown a Farm nestling on the southern edge of the Malvern Hills!

Woolpits Farm is a 200 year-old property situated on a couple of acres of land. In addition to the main five-bedroom residence, an old barn attached to the house has been converted into a self-contained cottage, plus two large meeting rooms above. The property has other spaces and outbuildings with potential for use.

A month after their arrival on the farm, Joe discovered an old well and a vision for The Wellspring started to emerge...

Vision

The story in John's Gospel of a Samaritan woman's encounter with Jesus at a well near the ancient town of Sychar (John 4:4-42) is a special one.

Jesus lovingly reproaches the woman for a string of failed relationships, before revealing Himself as the Messiah and teaching her about the true nature of worship. Overcome with joy, the woman unashamedly returns to Sychar and effectively sets in motion a chain of events that will lead to a revival in the town.

We see The Wellspring much like the well at Sychar...

A place where people might encounter God in a new way, be equipped to know and journey with the Lord more closely, and to then engage the world around them with His love, grace, and life-giving message.

Mission

Our Mission serves the Vision principally by our use of the spaces available to us to support and resource the Body of Christ across the Three Counties of Herefordshire, Worcestershire, and Gloucestershire.

We achieve this in three distinct ways:
  1. We rent out the Cottage for overnight use to those seeking retreat and solitude. We also hire out this space for daytime/evening use or as part of a wider venue hire arrangement.
  2. We organise and host a range of Events that may focus on one or more pillars of our vision: Encounter. Equip. Engage.
  3. We Hire Out one or more of our spaces to churches or other Christian groups seeking to deepen their relationship with Jesus or encounter Him for the first time.

Activities

Our events comprise a range of activities which fall within four broad categories: 
  1. Spiritual Retreats - these could include quiet days, guided retreats, and silent retreats.
  2. Prayer and Worship - as part of the Local Houses of Prayer (LHoP) we hold a regular Thursday evening prayer meeting.
  3. Creative Arts - we regularly organise and host creative arts workshops and seminars to help equip and bless the Church.
  4. Discipleship and Mission - we want to help equip the believers to grow in their walk with God and interact effectively with the changing culture around them.
We will also host a range of special events that may fall outside the scope of the above.

Wardens

As Wardens, Cathy and Joe manage the day-to-day running of The Wellspring.

Cathy runs front of house, organising and hosting events, booking course/event leaders, managing attendees, and handling catering requirements. She's a Buckinghamshire girl with over 30 years' experience in primary education and heritage sectors. Cath has also served in the church as a worship leader, prophetic singer/songwriter, and prayer minister.

Joe runs The Wellspring's back office, managing IT and operations, finance and admin, legal and compliance, and marketing. He's a Londoner with over 30 years' experience in business management and finance sectors. Joe has also served in the church as a youth leader, evangelist, and pastoral worker.

Cathy and Joe have been married for 27 years and worship together at St. Andrew's CofE in Malvern. They have two grown up children - Josh and Sarah.

Breath of Life - Soundcloud Playlist By Cathy Silmon

Who Is This Man?

Despite such a promising offer, we often approach Jesus a bit like the Samaritan woman; with defences up and hearts guarded, we wonder to ourselves: 'Who is this man?'


But as Jesus' divine nature and amazing grace are revealed to us, we begin to understand that this offer is underwritten by a truth that is far more precious or powerful than any cost we could ever pay - we are truly loved and accepted by God, just as we are.


Cathy wrote a song about the Samaritan woman some years ago, and her surprise that someone she had never met before could know all about her past mistakes and yet still love her.

Listen to: 'Who is this Man?' on Soundcloud

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"God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth."
- Jesus -

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