Bob Chase: founder and mindfulness teacher

I am certified as a "Practising (mindfulness) Teacher" by Bangor University & The Mindfulness Network. A qualification recognised by the British Association of Mindfulness-based Approaches

I began teaching meditation whilst working for the charity "Arthritis Care" in 2007. This was at the request of staff, many of whom suffered from Arthritis in different forms. The response from my colleagues inspired me to seek teacher training in MBSR, (Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction) something still new in the UK at that time.

In 2014 I participated in an 8 week MBSR course led by Susann Hermann at London Meditation. Susann trained with Jon Kabatt-Zinn the creator of MBSR in the US.

In November 2014 I attended a mindfulness teacher training retreat (TTR1) run by Bangor University Centre for Mindfulness Research and Practice. This was specifically to support teaching  8 week MBSR courses. The teachers were Vanessa Hope, Pamela Duckerin and David Shannon.

It was on this retreat that I met Dr Laura Madeley and where we decided to work together and set up Mindful in the City. Together we taught several MBSR courses in London for people working in the UK health and charity sectors. Laura is no longer involved with MITC.

Workplace mindfulness is now a key focus for me. I regularly offer taster sessions to organisations and have developed a custom 4 week course currently delivered in person and online. Recent clients include: ORBIS UK, Barts Charity and the Paul Hamlyn Foundation.

Since 2019 I have have been running a programme of Mindfulness Training for staff and students at Queen Mary University London. This is delivered in partnership with, and is sponsored by, St Benet's Chaplaincy. Courses are tailored to the needs of students and include the course "Stress-less Study with Mindfulness"

Personal and Professional  development

I continue to attend retreats, seminars and workshops including seminars at the London Mindful Practitioners Group, Master Classes and retreats at Amaravati. These include: a masterclass on group work with Trish Bartley (2014), five day retreats with Ajahn Anando at Amaravati.(2014) and Martin Evans & Annmarie McKay (2016) and attending the Mindfulness Symposium at the Wellcome Trust (2016). In 2021 I completed my MBSR training with Bangor/MN on the Teacher Training Pathway (TTP)

I maintain my own regular practice of meditation and mindfulness. I have regular supervision, for our MBSR courses, and adhere to the British Association for Mindfulness-based Approaches (BAMBA)- Good Practice Guidelines

Buddhist interests

Although I don't describe myself as a Buddhist, it is via this tradition I first learned about meditation and mindfulness. I have a long connection with the Hertfordshire monastery, Amaravati, and the teachers there, especially Ajahn Sumedho, Ajahn Sucitto and the current Abbot Ajahn Amaro. The monks and nuns have a profound understanding of meditation and mindfulness and are always inspirational. They are guided by the teachings of  Venerable Ajahn Chah  a master of the Thai forest tradition.

I first learned to meditate with the Friends of the Western Buddhist order (now the Triratna Buddhist Order) in the early 1980s and attended several retreats during that time. A few years later I spent some time on retreat in Thailand and stayed at Wat Suan Mokkh where I was taught by Ajahn Po and attended talks by Ajahn Buddhadasa. Buddhadasa was a venerable monk who was instrumental in reintroducing the Thai “forest tradition” of practice into main stream Buddhism.

My personal practice is a mix of Buddhist/Dharma practices and contemporary mindfulness practices

BC  2024