Review: First in: Combe Grove Centre of Health & Wellbeing, Bath

Set the scene

The sun is slanting through the trees and the birdsong is operatic. Mornings at Combe Grove start with a walk in the estate’s 70 acres of woodland and meadow – resetting Circadian rhythms while waking up the body. This brand new centre for health and wellbeing, set outside Bath, has an ambitious and heartfelt purpose. It’s not a spa; it’s not really even a retreat – it’s more akin to a School of Health, empowering guests with the information, tools and encouragement to make seismic changes to their health. Its heartbeat is metabolic health – the “engine of life” Sort this out and the vast majority of illnesses right themselves. Weight automatically balances to a healthy level. Skin glows. Mood lifts. 

Mornings revolve around talks on nutrition and the other roots of metabolic health (movement, sleep, mindset, and environment). Afternoons are set aside for movement, relaxing, or treatments. Combe nods at the European medispas but, despite having two GPs on board, it coaches and signposts rather than diagnosing and prescribing.  

What’s the backstory?

It reads like the most inspirational TED talk. Helen Aylward Smith is a formidably successful businesswoman who built up a company, sold it, and decided she wanted to create something that would make a difference. Health was an obvious choice. She “wanted to be helpful to the NHS” so looked for something that would have the largest impact. She had spent time exploring Ayurveda, went on 14 silent meditation retreats and ended up at Buchinger on a three-week fast. “I felt amazing, but it was important our charity had gravitas with the NHS and fasting isn’t advocated by it,” she says. So her interest turned to metabolic health, sparked by conversations with local GP and metabolic health expert Dr Campbell Murdoch.

Aylward Smith bought Combe Grove partly because of its idyllic nature setting (forest bathing is part of the cure) but also because, with its listed building and large estate, it offered the perfect training ground for her other passion: a massive apprenticeship academy (moving towards 90 apprenticeships, covering everything from business and marketing to land and listed building disciplines).  

What’s the wellness concept?

Kickstarting metabolic health is the aim and the programme has been devised in consultation with leading medical and nutritional experts. “Metabolic health affects us all,” says Dr Campbell Murdoch, consultant GP to Combe. “We can measure it and we can always improve it, sometimes very swiftly and sometimes radically.” Some conditions can be reversed, others could be slowed down. Nutrition is key – the body’s engine can’t run smoothly on the wrong fuel. So the gospel is: eat real food, high in good quality protein, and balanced healthy fats. Carbs are reduced and sugar is limited to a little (mainly low FODMAP) fruit. Time-restricted eating (TRE) concertinas food into an eight-hour window, allowing the body more time in repair mode, reducing blood pressure and improving insulin sensitivity. 

The programme also stresses the importance of movement, mindset, sleep, and environment with sessions on all four. Everything comes with a barrage of research references. You can’t argue with science. The signature programme is the general Metabolic Health Retreat, the starting point for anyone wanting to improve their general health. There are also specialist programmes aimed at prediabetes, menopause, fertility, gut health, and pre-op preparation.

What are the signature treatments?

This isn’t the place for fancy facials, envelopments or spa journeys, although you can get a mean massage (ask for Oscar who brings his osteopathic skills to the table). The emphasis is on complementary therapies that will enhance your healing. Bodywork encompasses osteopathy, shiatsu, reflexology and structural integration (myofascial release). Energywork includes Emotional Freedom Technique, Kinesiology and Reiki. There are also practitioners in Naturopathy and Herbal Medicine. 

Which therapists should I book?

The practitioners are truly world-class – it’s hard to pick out one – but Nicki O’Clarey is a structural integration magician (far more subtle and body-kind than old-school Rolfing). Oscar Marcus reads bodies via osteopathy, shiatsu and massage. Bryan Melville combines TCM and Five Elements acupuncture. Rosalind Oxenford takes not just your feet but your soul in her hands with her reflexology.  

What makes it different?

It’s unique in the length and commitment of its programme. Each retreat includes a three-week preparation phase followed by a week-long residential programme. Afterwards, there are 48 weeks of expert guidance, support and health checks (including six blood tests so you can see your chemistry change). There’s a chance to come back at a greatly reduced rate for a returners’ break (partners can come too). A year’s membership of the Health Club is also included (an incredible deal if you live near Bath). 

What else do they offer? 

Combe Grove has had a health club for 40 years (it was the country outpost of Cannons gyms). Members come here to work out, play tennis, walk their dogs and have lunch at the Map Room. Sometimes the juxtaposition of club and retreat feels just a tad bristly. The Coach House bustles with a programme of 65 timetabled weekly classes (from spin and circuits to body pump and aqua). The gym is large and airy with Sports Art equipment that harvests your own kinetic energy to power the equipment, alongside free weights. There are two swimming pools (one inside, one outdoors, both heated), sauna, steam room and hydro-therapy beds. A plunge pool, hot tubs and yoga deck are planned. Two astroturf tennis courts are housed in slightly incongruous bubbles and there’s an outside hard court.  

Where do you stay?

The house, a mellow 18th-century manor, is a work in progress. Everything is being painstakingly restored, so the full vision won’t be revealed for some years.

Bohemian exuberance (Timorous Beasties wallpaper and ombre sofas) linger from its previous iteration, standing in stark contrast to the newly revisioned nature-chic treatment rooms. At present, all accommodation is on three levels in the fully refurbished Barn. All have a soothing natural palette, repurposed Ercol furniture, and Woolroom bedding. The first floor ‘Grove’ rooms are the nicest, with large private balconies and deep Japanese baths). The Map Room café has a Northern Californian hippy vibe, dispensing protein brownies and turmeric lattes for those in fear of fading. 

Anything else to mention?

Bursaries will be launched in the future and the plan is that doctors will refer. Combe Grove is a business held within a charitable trust, safeguarding it from buy-outs or sale, and keeping its heart and purpose pure. The UK hasn’t seen anything like this since Tyringham Hall naturopathic clinic closed its doors in 1999. The commitment to sustainability would take pages. From no-dig field-to-fork farming to boosting wildlife habits; from upcycling furniture to commissioning mugs made from recycled paper cups, the list is endless.

Final word

Aylward Smith has a huge vision and Combe Grove is just the start. It’s a total game-changer. 

From £2,600 for the introductory week-long retreat; year-long online programme, and year’s membership of the Health Club