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The 46th International Psychoanalytic Child Psychotherapy Colloquium (Online)

Join the online event for the 46th International Psychoanalytic Child Psychotherapy Colloquium on 12 and 13 September 2025.

Online bookings only

This page is for online bookings. If you'd like to attend in-person, click here.

Early bird rate

Book by 30 June to be eligible for the reduced early bird rate of £225, rather than the full price of £250. Enter code EARLYBIRDONLINE for your discount.

Please note there are a limited number of concessionary rate online places at a cost of £175 for this conference. Concessionary places are reserved for trainees and those who have qualified in past 6 months.

If you are interested in attending this conference at the concessionary rate, please email training@annafreud.org for details. You need to provide proof you are a trainee or have qualified in the last 6 months to be eligible.

About this online event

The 46th International Psychoanalytic Child Psychotherapy Colloquium: ‘In the Best Interests of the Child’ – Contemporary Psychoanalytic Approaches to Assessment and Formulation in work with Children and Families is taking place this September.

Contemporary psychoanalysis might best be defined as the science of subjectivity. Here the psychoanalytic practitioner’s ability to empathically imagine, to feel the presence of the person asking for help, is the primary tool for investigation. When combined with accumulated knowledge from the field of developmental psychopathology, clinical knowledge made from the subjective perspective has the potential to offer a deep and grounded experience of being seen and understood, actively engaging a child and family in the assessment process.

This two-day online event will focus on contemporary approaches to assessment and formulation in psychoanalytic psychotherapy with children and families, seeking to explore the balance between the science and art of assessment, case formulation and treatment planning.

Presentations will build on Anna Freud’s seminal concepts of developmental lines and the Diagnostic Profile as frameworks for assessing and studying a child’s development and will link these to current tools and contemporary frameworks such as The Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual (PDM). Empirical research in developmental psychopathology will be explored and considered in relation to the individual child. Particular attention will be paid to how clinicians and families can co-create areas of focus for treatment guiding the work and supporting a child or young person’s agency and decision-making regarding treatment.

Psychoanalytic assessment and case formulation will be considered through a variety of settings, including:

  • parent infant observation

  • individual psychotherapy

  • the process of assessing children and parents presenting with risk.

Please note that the main sessions will be recorded, small group discussions will not be recorded. The recording will be shared with all registered attendees after the event, and you will have access to watch it back for thirty days. You will not be able to download or share the recording.

Aims of this event

  • To enhance understanding of child and adolescent psychoanalytic psychotherapists’ practice in assessment, case formulation and treatment planning.

  • To support understanding of how collaborative assessment and case formulation can support children, young people, families and the wider network to develop a shared understanding of a child’s needs, enhancing treatment engagement and positive outcomes.

  • To develop an awareness of a range of risk factors contributing to psychopathology which can inform assessment and treatment planning, including decision making in child protection contexts.

  • To create an opportunity for psychoanalytic practitioners to share practice.

Who is this event for?

This event is for psychoanalytic or psychodynamic practitioners who provide assessment and treatment for children, young people and families.

It will also be of interest to those who want to learn more about contemporary approaches to assessment and formulation in work with children and families. This includes:

  • therapists

  • counsellors

  • academics

  • researchers.

Only the main sessions will be live streamed to the online delegates. The small group discussions at this conference will be for in-person delegates only.

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