Can the AFC survive without 21 of its most popular tutors.

OUTSIDER HAS CREATED A GREAT POST ON A TOPIC WHICH IS VERY IMPORTANT BUT DESERVES A PLACE WITH THE OTHER SIMILAR TOPICS SO I AM MOVING IT ACCROSS TO ATTRACT MORE COMMENTS

I have opened this topic separately because it deviates from the main thread about the 20 tutors and I know admin like to keep on topic. I don’t personally wish to enter any debate but I would be so interested to read other views about possible alternatives for the college.

In his will, Arthur Findlay left Stansted Hall to the Spiritualists' National Union as a college for the advancement of Psychic Science, which was named the Arthur Findlay College of Psychic Science after him.

The College has become a place mainly dedicated to mediumship training but could it (or should it) be more?

I can see that mediumship training has always drawn revenue into the college but could that be achieved in other ways?

“Advancement of Psychic Science” suggests exploration but I have personally seen very little of that at the college. There have been some very interesting science weeks over the years but very few.

It was bequeathed as a college for the advancement of Psychic Science but it has always seemed to be mainly for the advancement of evidential mediumship. There has always been a reluctance to deviate from “evidential” which, in itself, limits further exploration.

Good evidence is vital for acceptance of the possibility of life after death, without that everything becomes conjecture so clearly it has to remain the mainstay of the college, I would never argue with that.

However this leaves those who no longer need to seek evidence, or do not desire mediumship training, without reason to attend the college. This applies particularly at this specific period of time with the departure of 20 favourite tutors who kept people returning. Therefore, would this be a good time to open it up to encompass much more  “Advancement of Psychic Science”?

Speaking for myself I would love to attend the college to listen to people who have studied other aspects of spiritual research outside of mediumship. I love the place and I love good talks but I want to listen and learn from those who are scientifically minded as well as those who are open minded…… either way, not exclusively focused on mediumship. I do not think I am alone in this.

I think it *can survive, but it won’t be easy. Those tutors were crowd favorites, and it can be assumed most of their fan base left with them. As a person who has studied there, the issue I faced was that it wasn’t just mediumship that was taught, but mediumship within the confines if the Spiritualist definition. I didn’t go there to learn Spiritualism. I agree that evidence is vital for credibility; but to say that other information either doesn’t exist, or is worthless, does a disservice to Spirit who is relaying it. I would also welcome more psychic development, so long as there is a standard of learning, and it doesn’t degrade the catalogue with frivolous items like “building fairy houses,” as I have seen at other schools. Not to raise controversy, but I believe that the SNU may have bitten their noses to spite their face on this issue. It will take years to potentially rebuild what they have dismissed overnight, and it is a shame that religious leadership could not find compromise (on both sides).

Findlay left Stansted Hall to the SNU so they could a turn it into a training college for people to learn about the movement and the development of mediumship, including physical mediumship. But who at the college today is qualified to encourage these gifts?

Philosophy to be taught the correct way to speak for spirit being Able to attune to Spirit In the correct way to give pure spirit philosophy. To be helped with the presentation of Working on platform such as Brenda lawrence taught To learn the history of spiritualism such as the Arthur Conan Doyle History of spiritualism through the ages both modern day and Olden spiritualism. Learn what can be achieved such as Jean Bassett Her remarkable philosophy, we don’t find many like her nowadays The qualities at the old Mediums And how they can help us in these modern times Battling Bertha for instance Like a dog to a bone, she made sure the unbeliever of the mock king person would soon believe. Maybe we are subtle nowadays, but her energy never giving up just a few things in my thoughts that need to be taught And the college was a place where it could be taught Moving on with the times, many things can happen that Are from spirit it is our lack of imagination as it were because spirit will find a way to work through almost everything. The experiments that Libby Clarke carried out with photography The wax drawings by another tutor that I can say personally were brilliant I tried at the college and got a very nice picture at the time with some things on it that I never paid too much attention to but within A year showed to me that it was true there was a baby on the picture and a great big initial eye. My daughter had a baby 10 months later after I done the picture. It was a little boy and they called him Asa. On the photograph from Libby‘s class was a young man in a visor looks like he was in a plane. I only knew one American person and I asked her had there been a bereavement lately and she said yes a young boy or man in an aeroplane he was In The air force. Just a couple of experiments Perhaps we need more of that now As I said, if we use our imagination and our spirit if they can cooperate with us, who knows what can be achieved I really don’t have too much faith in the way that the college is going at the moment I have been privileged To see the best and be taught by the best I loved the college. I could feel its energy every time we just came down the pathway when you went into reception. It was so strong it was a magical place. I hope one day it will be there again.

I have just moved this across to joins it fellow topics because it is such a valid subject.

Can it actually survive and attract enough people with less than 30 fully trained tutors

Can it cope with the competition which it has created for itself. With the 20 ex tutors, joined potentially by others, finding some brilliant venues , equally as attractive and easy to get to and setting up their own series of courses.

Does the college have any idea of the revenue it needs to break even, whilst maintaining the fabric of the building. Does it have the managements and marketing skills to sell it without compromising the entire SNU organisation.

Could it actually get down to proper research.

In honesty having Paul Jacobs as the key figure amongst the Tutors (and Jackie Wight) a negative. I have a long list of people who have tried PJ and not enjoyed the experince so would not want to be near him at the college.

I should also say the Charities Commission hate seeing a charity running something at a loss. The SNU annual accounts always manage to show a loss on the college.

This has always been an unreal loss because of the way they share all of the SNU costs over the revenue earned by its operation. If the college was, as it was intended to be in the bequest, a stand alone operation, open to all Spiritualists with its own accounting and management, I am very sure it would have been showing a fairly healthy profit...up until it forced the 20 tutors to leave.

That open to all Spiritualists also crosses over into retaining accreditation, awards earned here should really be fully accredited, like those Martin Colclough suggested with his initial TS Fellowship. https://www.facebook.com/tsfellowshiptraining

Let us add some pictorial bits from the past to liven this up


Arthur Findlay bequeaths Stansted Hall as Spiritualist College, Substantially endowed, Hetrfordshire MercuryJul 31 1964


Spiritualist College to Open Sep 17 Saffron Walden Weekly News Sept 2 1966


64000 Pound Overdraft But College not in danger Herts and Essex Observer Fri Aug 22 1969
Only 3 years later (I wonder what happened to the Endowment and how much it was)

Bit of fun this is the last one,great piece to.



Saffron Walden Weekly News 1971 07 15 p3

Very interesting to see in that article about those people who could attend the college in those days just for “rest and recreation”. I have longed for that. To just go there to chill out, meet like minded people, enjoy good discussion, listen to some interesting talks, learn about different Spiritual modalities, listen to mediums talk about their experiences, see some good demonstrations of mediumship, have a reading or two, pop into London or Cambridge if I feel so inclined. Alternatively, Some people would enjoy a full week of meditation and philosophy though I am not one of them. The point is, I would be tempted back if it did not entail me having to be a full on student in order to do so. I think there are more like me.
Years ago they offered two day sample mid week breaks with full board, a holistic therapy, some healing and a sitting. That was OK but not enough for an inquisitive mind. Sad they did not extend that into something more.  
Janet Harrison (outsider).