Description

 
Join us for a day of inspiration and connection at the BWY South Yoga Festival

Set just outside Winchester in the beautiful village of Itchen Abbas, this year’s festival invites you to explore the theme “Yoga and Life Change.” Discover how yoga supports us through transition, challenge, and growth — helping us stay grounded while moving forward with balance and resilience.

Our venue, a charming barn-style space, offers a spacious main hall for practice and teaching, plus a cosy second hall for lunch, conversation, or quiet reflection. If the weather smiles on us, we’ll also take our mats onto the lawn to enjoy the warmth of the May sunshine.

A Festival for Everyone
Whether you’re new to yoga or a long-time practitioner, all are welcome to join this inclusive celebration. We’re delighted to welcome yogis from the BWY and beyond. In keeping with our commitment to sustainability, all teachers are local to the region, and we encourage car sharing wherever possible.

A Day of Connection and Community
The Southern Region Yoga Festival is a wonderful opportunity to meet like-minded people, deepen your practice, try something new, and feel part of a supportive yoga community.

Check your calendar and book your space today — we look forward to sharing a nourishing day of movement, reflection, and joy with you.

Additional Information

09:50 - Tamsin Kelly - Standing balances

Tamsin struggled with standing balances and had to teach herself how to hold balances. This clearly made an impression as she is passionate about the subject. 

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11:30 - Lorna Chapman - Hips for Life

Lorna Chapman is going to go through the importance of Hip mobility,flexibility,stability & strength throughout life. Discussing the anatomy of the hips along with cultural implications, emotional links and release.

Lorna is based in nearby Kings Worthy. She set up Luna Yoga & Health in 2003 and is a BWY Teacher and Foundation Course Tutor.

Lorna teaches people of all ages adapting to their individual needs accordingly. Alongside general classes, she also teaches Yoga For Specific Groups, including people struggling with mental health desk workers, cyclists, and for people with restricted mobility, she offers gentle chair-based yoga.

Yoga Holidays: Lorna has been leading yoga holidays abroad for 12 years, taking groups to Italy, Spain, Turkey, Crete, and India.

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13:30 - Mark Robinson - Modifications for a healthy yoga practise

This post lunch class is a group discussion with the opportunity to join in with postures or simply suggest what you might do.

Mark is an experienced yoga teacher in Basingstoke with a quirky sense of humour and passion for yoga. Modifying postures for students has been an interest for many years. 

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14:45 Tabitha Evans & Larysa Minihane - Cosmic connection meditation

Tabitha started training as an Ayurvedic yoga teacher with the BWY nine years ago when her beloved teacher retired. In three years she built a teaching career and has just started teaching full time in her own little studio!   After training in Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction she combines mindfulness into her teaching and practice.

She incorporates a wide range of traditions into her meditation practice. She is currently studying breathing techniques, the philosophy of quantum physics and the gnostic gospels. Each is a rich source of fresh perspective.

Larysa Minihane is originally from Ukraine and relocated to the UK in 2016.  As a (UK) qualified Sound Healing Practitioner Larysa hosts monthly Sound Healing Bath sessions in Gosport and Fareham.

She plays Tibetan singing bowls, various gongs, crystal singing bowls, chimes, and a shamanic drum. You don’t need to do anything—just lie down, relax, and allow your body to absorb the magic of healing vibrations and frequencies.

Tabitha created a ‘cosmic connection’ meditation as an alternative to the scientific materialist viewpoint. Yoga and numerous other ancient traditions hold the view that consciousness is primary and the entire Universe is one, and participants get an experience of that during the practice. It also introduces prana as something relatable and useful. Tabitha and Larysa were inspired to combine the amazing sounds of gong and singing bowls with the living Universe perspective. It allows participants to understand the sound in a new way at the same time as they feel it. They are guided to allow themselves to become part of All That Is once more and know that their experience of life is important because they are a facet of the divine.

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15.45 - 5 Tibetans and closing with Janine Du Plessis

The 5 Tibetans are a series of ancient yoga-like movements sometimes called the  "Fountain of Youth." Taking about 10–15 minutes, they aim to boost energy, improve flexibility, strengthen muscles, and balance the body's seven chakras.  Perfect 

Janine has been teaching yoga since 2010. Janine moved to England from South Africa in 2014 and has been teaching mixed ability Hatha Yoga in Berkshire, since 2016. She is teaches a staged approach to poses and encourages having fun in our practice.

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About the venue

There is free parking at the venue, but do car share if you can. 

What to Bring

Yoga mat, blanket, cushion/blocks for comfort. Pen and paper if you wish to take notes.

Do bring a friend or student who might like to experience the BWY and our full day of yoga.

Refreshments are provided, but please bring your own mug/thermos cup to make life easier.

Bring Lunch to share (please label food contents)