The ESO's History

The European School of Osteopathy has its origins in Paris where, in 1951, Paul Geny founded the Ecole Française d'Ostéopathie.  The School was strengthened, over the years, by a number of British osteopaths joining its faculty, including Tom Dummer, who became very active in the development of its curriculum.

For legal reasons, the School transferred to the United Kingdom in 1965.  It rented rooms at the British College of Naturopathy & Osteopathy at Frazer House, London.  Tom Dummer took over as Principal for the School.  By 1971 the School had transferred to Maidstone and in 1974 opened its full-time English speaking course. 

The ESO has been associated with Maidstone since this time.  In 1981, it took over its own premises at 104 Tonbridge Road.  The teaching clinic is still located here.  In 1996, the main teaching and administrative elements of the School relocated to Boxley House.

In 2006, the School validated both its full-time undergraduate programme (BSc) and its part-time MSc Osteopathy programme with the University of Greenwich.

Those interested in a detailed history of the origins of the School are referred to Margery Bloomfield's book, The Tree of Life, which chronicles the origins of the School in a very readable format.

Philosophy of Osteopathy at the ESO

The ESO has always had a broad approach to osteopathic education, covering a wide range of osteopathic modalities and concepts at undergraduate level.  This includes a full range of structural osteopathic techniques, General Osteopathic Treatment (GOT), studies in the cranial field (Involuntary Mechanism studies), Balanced Ligamentous Tension techniques, Muscle Energy Technique (MET) and Visceral osteopathy.  Students receive a good grounding in obstetric and paediatric osteopathic care and are able to see a wide range of patients within the teaching clinic, including some time spent in the specialist Maternity and Children's clinics.

Traditional osteopathic concepts are presented in the context of contemporary research and students are encouraged to develop a critically evaluative and reflective approach to both their studies and their clinical practice.

By being exposed to a wide range of osteopathic concepts, students are well placed to make informed choices about which models of practice will suit them as a practitioner and how they wish to develop as an osteopath once they have graduated.