St Ambrose College’s first-year boys got in touch both with God and each other at a recent full-year retreat at Savio House. All 150 boys in Year 7 enjoyed a 24-hour retreat at the rural centre in Bollington in the heart of Cheshire. They were guided and inspired by clergy of the Salesians of Don Bosco, and a team of lay volunteers who devote an entire year to working with young people. The retreat, organised by the Catholic grammar school’s head of Religious Education, Matthew O’Neill, is seen as an essential element of life in a contemporary Catholic school. Mr O’Neill said: “The retreat is an important part of the induction programme for our First Year boys. It is hoped that boys will receive both spiritual and social benefits from their experience. “Taking time away from the business of everyday school life to spend periods of reflection and prayer, helps boys to develop an awareness of their inner, spiritual life and their relationship with God.”