Sanctuary is not simply a physical place of safety. It is a state of mind. Since its foundation in 1979, the Arbours Association has been providing sanctuary for people in great emotional turmoil, without their having to be seen, called or treated as 'mentally ill'. It has grown to include three residential communities, a crisis centre, a psychotherapy service and a psychotherapy training programme. This collection commemorates 25 years of work of the Arbours. It includes historical accounts, and reflections by therapists, students and residents about this highly original approach to providing refuge within specialised therapeutic communities for people in severe distress.

The Arbours have often intervened on behalf of the most disturbed, the most chaotic, the most self-destructive individuals. They are often labeled 'borderline' or 'psychotic' in conventional psychiatric classifications, people who other psychotherapists and facilities would not approach psychotherapeutically. One of the most striking features of this book is the detailed descriptions of the individual, group and institutional dynamics that prove the foundation of the Arbours' practical and theoretical accomplishments.

The distinguished psychoanalyst, Dr Nina Coltart, who contributes the concluding chapter, has written, 'I continue to observe the growth of Arbours with great admiration. They built a thorough analytic training for their students, created a low fee clinic for patients, established and nurtured their community houses, run the Crisis Centre and earned themselves a unique and respected place on the London therapy scene.'

SANCTUARY ISBN 0-899209-10-8Pp 212

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