School of Philosophy Kingston

Start with a choice of 10-week courses in Practical Philosophy in Kingston

Curious about life? - So are we!

Unlock your inner wisdom, true potential and happiness
with Practical Philosophy and meditation

A Course of practical wisdom and inspiration for living your best life.

DOWNLOAD THE PROSPECTUS

Practical Philosophy aims to set you free. Free from pressures and worries, free from limiting ways of thinking, free to grow and be yourself.
It can provide a profound perspective, simplifying, clarifying, and enriching your life. Meditation complements this to reduce stress and enhance sleep, mood, and memory.

Take your first steps to freedom with our ten-week course.

Themes Covered in the Wisdom Course
Special Offer £50
Themes Covered in the Happiness Course
Enrol Now
Practical Philosophy Course find wisdom within Kingston

Local Course

Local face-to-face evening courses available in Kingston upon Thames. Meet with like-minded people.

Peace of Mind

A safe space with experienced & supportive tutors. Find peace of mind and discern wisdom even in a world in turmoil.

Practical Wisdom

Courses in practical wisdom for everyday living. Let the great philosophers re-awaken you to the wonder of being alive.

Offer only £50

Introductory Half-price offer – Our 10 week course is only £50.  Limited spaces – apply early to avoid disappointment. 

A practical and experiential course rather than academic drawing on sources of wisdom from both East and West, past and present.

Check course dates
Special Offer £50
DOWNLOAD THE PROSPECTUS
Enrol Now

10-week Kingston in-person course

Practical Philosophy

from both East & West

Designed to be practical, the course encourages students to apply wisdom in everyday life.

Through discussions, exercises, and reflections, philosophical insights are revealed through experience, promoting personal growth, awareness, and ethical living.

The course conducted in a nurturing, collaborative environment, is open to all, and no previous knowledge is needed. Great philosophers can re-awaken our sense of wonder and bring wisdom, harmony, and peace into our lives.

Course Dates
DOWNLOAD THE PROSPECTUS
theres no greater journey
Special Offer £50
philosophy course reviews
“...I am benefiting greatly ..."

“...I am benefiting greatly from the content and the practical nature of it. Thank you, it is enriching my life.”

Enrol Now
wisdom within with practical philosophy
philosophy course reviews
“Absolutely loving the course!!"

“Absolutely loving the course!! …Really changing how I think about things and life in general.”

Next Kingston Introductory Course

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, you will have

  • developed a deeper understanding of yourself and the world around you.
  • You will learn to approach life’s challenges with new-found calm and clarity, bringing about a more harmonious, purposeful, and joy-filled life.

This course promises not just intellectual stimulation, but a transformative journey that can lead to personal growth, improved mental well-being, and a richer experience of life.

DOWNLOAD THE PROSPECTUS

About the Tutors

Our tutors are not just teachers but passionate students of practical philosophy themselves. They come from various walks of life, bringing diverse experiences and insights into the classroom.

Through question and answer philosophical insights are shared with joy, keeping it practical and relevant to everyone.

philosophy course reviews
“I feel more relaxed...”

“The daily awareness exercises … have changed my thinking and I feel more relaxed about situations in the media and other aspects of my daily life.”

Check Our Reviews
DOWNLOAD THE PROSPECTUS

Location

  • Kingston Quaker Centre, Fairfield East, Kingston KT1 2PT
Philosophy course kingston1
Philosophy course kingston4
Philosophy course kingston
Philosophy course kingston2
COURSE LOCATION MAP
Enrol Now

Course dates & times

1. Wednesday Practical Philosophy Part 1 'Wisdom':

  • Wednesday 7th May 2025
  • Time: 10.45am- 1pm
  • Course runs for 10 weeks
Themes Covered in
the Wisdom Course
ENROL: Wed 7th May 10:45am:
Wisdom Course

2. Monday Practical Philosophy Part 2 'Happiness':

  • Monday 5th May 2025
  • Time: 7pm- 9:15pm
  • Course runs for 10 weeks
Themes Covered in
the Happiness Course
ENROL: Mon 5th May 7pm:
Happiness Course
  • There will be a mid-session refreshment break
  • Limited Spaces so apply early
  • Introductory Offer is heavily discounted to £50
    Open to new students - no prior knowledge needed
  • We have a 'no-quibble' refund policy if anyone wants a full refund in the first two weeks.
Special Offer £50

Explore and Inquire

Each week, we will explore a different theme, enriching your understanding and practice of timeless philosophical teachings.

Unlock your innate inner wisdom in everyday activities and discover a source of resilience or creativity you didn’t know you had.

Our course provides an engaging journey of self-discovery and personal transformation. Through inquiry you may find invaluable insights into life and you may come to see yourself, your situation and the world around you with fresh eyes. 

Course dates

Any questions email: PhilosophyKingston@fses.org

DOWNLOAD THE PROSPECTUS
Practical Philosophy Course find wisdom within Kingston
philosophy course reviews
"...helped me..."

"The knowledge and experience that I have gained from the philosophy classes has helped me to discover more about myself and better prepare for dealing with life's daily surprises and challenges."

Check Our Reviews
Enrol Now

Refund policy

We have a ‘No Quibble’ Refund Policy so if, in the first two weeks, you decide that you don’t want to continue the course, just let us know and we will refund your course fee.

DOWNLOAD THE PROSPECTUS
Enrol Now
Practical Philosophy Course find wisdom within Kingston

Frequently asked questions

The course is practical in the sense that it takes philosophical ideas and shows how they can be of direct use in our everyday lives. The intention is to stimulate enquiry and through this expand the way we look at the world and ourselves.

Online or by calling 0777 9036 111 during office hours.

If you register online, you will receive a confirmation email with your day of attendance. If you register by any means other than online, you will receive a receipt confirming your registration.

Yes, we have a local Kingston venue where you can attend the course face-to-face.

No, all you need is an open and enquiring mind. The course is intended for everyone, regardless of education, occupation, race, political or religious belief.

Yes, we also offer the course as an online course via Zoom, ask for details.

If you have any questions simply call us on 0777 9036 111 or by emailing PhilosophyKingston@fses.org

Course Dates
Special Offer £50
Practical Philosophy Course FAQs Kingston
Enrol Now

What some of our students say...

"Lovely people with a strong sense of why learning is valuable at any stage in life."
philosophy course reviews
"I started off with the Introduction to Practical Philosophy during the first lockdown and can honestly say it was a lifesaver."
philosophy course reviews
"Have thoroughly enjoyed the introductory course and the daily awareness exercise practice. "
philosophy course reviews

How the course works

A tutor presents philosophical ideas or questions, and leads a discussion based on what arises in the group. Profound teachings of the wise may be considered and being practical rather than academic, the emphasis is on experience. Students are encouraged neither to accept nor reject the ideas put forward, but to test the veracity of them in practice for themselves, in the light of their own experience. Students bring their observations and questions to the group and everyone learns through such sharing of experience.

Enrol on the next Practical Philosophy Course in Kingston below

UK LOCATIONS

We have local face-to-face courses available across the UK. Our introductory courses can be attended online or at the following locations: London, Guildford, Midlands (Birmingham & Welshpool), SE London (Croydon), North East (Brighouse, Doncaster, Huddersfield, Leeds, Loughborough, Nottingham, Saltaire, Sheffield, York), North West (Stockport, Chorley, Wirral), St Albans, Scotland (Glasgow, Edinburgh), Peterborough, Cambridge, Oxford, Sussex, Wessex, Berkshire, East Anglia, Kingston, Kent, Bath & Bristol
Copyright © 2025 The School of Philosophy and Economic Science

Course Prospectus: A breakdown of the 10 week course

And 12 transformational practical philosophy quotes and insights. Enter the details of where you want us to send the prospectus & quotes to.

P1 Prospectus

*By signing up you agree to receive the prospectus, the 12 practical philosophy quotation emails and updates. See our Privacy Policy.

CloseMenu

Practical Philosophy: Wisdom Course

click each title below for more details

These opening sessions consider how philosophy can help us enjoy richer, less stressful lives.


What is practical philosophy?

‘What would a wise person do here?’

Philosophy means the love of wisdom. Our course is intended to show how philosophy can help us enjoy richer, less stressful and more useful lives. This opening two sessions consider these aims, and introduces simple exercises in mindfulness and the application of wisdom you can practise in daily life.

You can download or listen to the Awareness Exercise, introduced in week one here. To download, right-click, choose ‘Save link as…’ and save the MP3 wherever you want.

Who or what am I?

What is my potential?

Who am I, really? My body? My emotions? My strongly held beliefs? My soul? Possibly all of these? Possibly none?

Such questions have preoccupied philosophers down the ages. We look at practical ways to explore who we really are and how to tap our true potential.

What is our state of awareness?

Why does it fluctuate during the day?

Often the most notable quality of wise people is their alertness to the subtleties of a situation. They are awake, perceptive and curious.

We look at deeper levels of awareness, and consider how we may become more awake to ourselves, our surroundings, and the events we meet.

Living in the now, mindfulness.

What is the potential of the present moment?

We review our own experience of attention through a model featuring attention centred, captured, open and scattered, and how these each relate to the past, present and future.

We examine the extraordinary brightness and freedom naturally available in the present moment. A straightforward practice is introduced.

 

Plato’s views on justice.

What does it mean to live justly?

According to Plato, justice and injustice do not start ‘out there’. They begin within us. For justice to prevail, Plato suggests that we must learn to avoid being ‘tyrannised’ by our passions and fears to the extent they overrule our reason.

We discuss the practicality of Plato’s ideas on justice in our daily lives.

The Vedic model of three fundamental energies.

Sometimes we seem not to have enough energy, or the wrong kind. A wise person can act consistently despite these varying conditions.

We consider how to recognise differing energies, how to gain and conserve them and how to use them wisely.

What is reason? How can it enrich our lives? We look at guidelines for Socratic dialogue and how to use them. Developing reason in decision-making and action are also discussed, with practical applications. Obstacles to reason are considered. Everyone has the faculty of reason and we can all use it and develop it. 

What is beauty?

Is there such a thing as absolute beauty?

Beauty has the capacity to open the heart and bring delight. In this session we discuss our direct experience of beauty in its different form: of the sensory world, of thought, of feelings, of the inner nature, and of conduct.

We consider Plato’s idea of there being ultimately one beauty – beauty absolute – ‘not knowing birth or death, growth or decay’.

 

Looking for the common thread in life.

What is the effect of finding unity?

When we look around, we see enormous diversity in nature. The wise person looks for the unifying factor: that which allows all this apparent diversity to be seen as part of a single whole.

Seen in this way, life then has the best chance of being led freshly and openly.

 

What is truth?

How does the desire for truth show itself?

Practical philosophy is about discovering the truth of things – not theoretically, but in our own experience.

In this final session we look back and ask ourselves how our search for truth has fared as the term has progressed. We discuss what has been discovered and how, in our own way, we may continue to develop it in our daily lives.

A TRANSFORMATIONAL COURSE

Many of our students tell us how our courses continue to transform their lives.

  • ONLY £50 for the full 10-week
    Practical Philosophy Course

We are a Charity and we want to make our Practical Philosophy Course affordable for as many people as possible. 

So we are offering the ‘FULL 10-week Introductory Course’ for half the usual fee.

 

i.e. £50, nothing more to pay!

Please note: This offer gives you the opportunity to try it out for yourself at minimal cost.

Please book early to avoid disappointment as places are limited. We look forward to meeting you.

CloseMenu

Practical Philosophy: Happiness Course

click each title below for more details

How do we seek happiness? True happiness and unity: ‘May all be happy’ as an intent. Tolstoy: happiness through serving one’s neighbour. Observation, the conscious perceiver and the present moment.

Is happiness natural?  Analogy of light bulbs.  Relationship between happiness and law.

Bentham, Mill. Gandhi’s criticism and an alternative view to utilitarianism.  The art of listening: practical exercise

Hedonism, Epicurus and Plato. Plato suggests two categories, necessary and unnecessary pleasures. Introduction to the Upanishads: finding satisfaction in oneself.

Divine goods: wisdom, self-control, justice and courage. Human goods: health, beauty, strength and wealth. Are these the way to happiness?

Introduction to Marsilio Ficino, renaissance philosopher.  Key phrases inscribed on academy walls. Rejoice in the present. Richard Jefferies

Introduction to Lao Tzu: Tao Te Ching. Tea ceremony.  Exploring effortless action. 

Introduction to Patanjali and the 8-fold system of yoga, meditation, contentment.  What about ambition? Finding happiness in work: 2 principles for finding happiness in work.

Two more principles for finding happiness in work. Practical exercise to discover more about the principles of work in action.

The connection between wisdom and happiness. Marcus Aurelius; you don’t need much to live happily. Review of the term.

Kingston course location

Kingston Quaker Centre, Fairfield East, Kingston KT1 2PT