Our monastery stands near Coalville, Leicestershire, nestled at the foot of Charnwood Forest. As one of the few monasteries revived in England after the Reformation, it serves as a simple yet practical testament to modern monastic life – a place for work, reflection, prayer, and peace.

Founded in 1835 on donated land, Mount St Bernard Abbey began humbly with a half-ruined cottage on a barren field. The first monks cultivated the land and surrounding areas. Later, the 16th Earl of Shrewsbury funded a permanent monastery beside this field. Augustus Welby Pugin, the renowned Gothic Revival architect, designed it pro bono. The new monastery opened in 1844, and in 1848, it gained Abbey status, overseen by England’s first mitred abbot since the Reformation.

Mount St Bernard experiences four distinct seasons. The landscape moves from winter’s hard frosts to the vibrant colours of spring, inspiring us and symbolising the continuous cycles of birth and renewal.