Rory really was a wonderful trainer, at no point over the three online days did I feel he lost me. The use of real cases was very helpful in seeing how MBT concepts and techniques which feel quite abstract are actually applied.
Mentalization-Based Treatment (MBT): Basic Training
Discover Mentalization-Based Treatment (MBT) and explore innate mentalizing skills for diverse disorders, from BPD to families and adolescents.
About this training
This is a knowledge- and skills-based course in Mentalization-Based Treatment (MBT) for adults. It provides participants with a solid conceptual understanding of mentalizing, its relevance to clinical problems associated with EUPD, BPD, ASPD, complex trauma and other mental health difficulties, alongside the clinical skills required to deliver MBT to a defined standard of competency.
MBT is an evidence-based therapy for BPD and offers a stepped training pathway, progressing from basic training to practitioner and supervisor levels. There are three core training components:
Basic Training Course
Supervision with an MBT Supervisor
Certificate Course at Practitioner Level
Further details about these components can be found on our programme page.
This course consists of 18 hours of live training delivered over three days. Participants are also expected to undertake independent study and prepare materials for discussion during the online sessions. Please allow time for these requirements in your timetable - approximately 21 hours of preparatory study is required prior to the live training days.
Aims of this training
By the end of the MBT Basic Training course, participants will be able to:
Understand the developmental origins of mentalizing, its research base, and its relevance to personality and psychological functioning within higher-order social cognition.
Apply mentalizing concepts in clinical practice to support further skill development.
Develop the skills needed to implement an MBT programme programme, informed by its underlying research evidence.
Who is this training for?
This training is suitable for mental health and allied professionals with an interest in the treatment of personality disorder. Personal experience of psychotherapy or counselling is desirable.
Applicants mist also meet the following criteria:
Hold a qualification as a mental health professional (e.g. mental health nurses, occupational therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists or social workers) .
Have completed relevant studies, such as KUF for personality disorder, demonstrating a solid understanding of psychodynamic, cognitive-behavioural, biological, systemic and social theories.
Have a minimum of one year's therapeutic experience working with individuals with personality disorder in team-based, individual, or group settings.
Already engaged in supervised practice and a commitment to ethical standards.
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The workshop was excellent and very helpful in identifying how to use MBT skills when engaging in treatment with patients.
Participant, March 2026 -
Overall, it was an excellent training that helped me to understand how to use some quite abstract concepts in clinical practice.
Participant, November 2025 -
Thank you so much for this. The training was accessible and made a complex programme and treatment model accessible and digestible. I felt there was a good balance between taught work and practice.
Participant, November 2025 -
Anthony and Rory delivered in an eloquent and very competent manner, and it felt safe to bring questions for discussion.
Participant, November 2023 -
Course was as expected, very informative and insightful.
Participant, March 2023
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Professor Anthony W. Bateman consults with Anna Freud on MBT training. He is a Visiting Professor at University College London and an Honorary Professor in Psychotherapy at the University of Copenhagen.
Alongside Peter Fonagy, he developed MBT for borderline personality disorder and co-authored the manual on Structured Clinical Management of Personality Disorder for mental health professionals.
His contributions to the field have been widely recognised, including the Senior Scientist Award from the British and Irish Group for the Study of Personality Disorder (2012), the BPDRC Award for Achievement in the Field of Severe Personality Disorders (2015, USA), and the Gunderson Distinguished Career Contribution Award from the International Society for the Study of Personality Disorder (2023).
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All participants must complete the Mentalizing and Mentalization Based Treatment with Adults (MBT Adult) – An Introduction’ online course prior to attending the training. This four-hour course covers essential theoretical foundations and provides the necessary baseline knowledge.
Full payment is required to confirm a training place and grants access to the online course. Early access can be arranged on request. Completion of the online course is essential to ensure optimal engagement with the live training.
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All bookings must be made online; we do not accept phone reservations.
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£1,000 – includes access to MBT Adult: An Introduction Online training
£900 – for those who have already completed MBT Adult: An Introduction Online Training
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This MBT Basic equivalent training introduces clinicians to a streamlined, common-sense treatment approach to treating these patients: mentalization based treatment for pathological narcissism, or MBT-N. The training reviews the deficits in mentalizing associated with pathological narcissism, describes how to give the diagnosis of narcissism to patients, outlines how to structure therapy sessions, and offers step-by-step techniques about “what to do and say” when sitting with these patients.
MBT has been adapted for the treatment of people with antisocial personality disorder (MBT-ASPD). This MBT Basic equivalent training will be useful for participants wishing to gain insights into ASPD as a mentalizing disorder and acquire practical clinical skills for effective application in healthcare and criminal justice settings. Join us to articulate ASPD as a mentalizing disorder, discuss developmental insights, clinically formulate ASPD clients, and deliver basic mentalizing interventions.
The new MBT Certificate course - practitioner level one-month course is made up of two days of live, instructor-led content (10am-4pm, with breaks) and 21 hours of self-guided content. You will also be required to do various tasks before, in-between and after the live, instructor-led sessions. This may require you to demonstrate your own use of basic MBT interventions via video/audio and other role play exercises.
The Families and Carers Training and Support Programme (FACTS)
FACTS is a short course designed to support the friends and families of people with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) or Emerging/Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder (EUPD).
Structured Clinical Management (SCM) - Basic
SCM is an evidence-based approach that enables generalist mental health practitioners to work effectively with people with borderline personality disorder.
SCM provides generalist mental staff with a coherent systematic approach to working with people with borderline personality disorder. It is based on a supportive approach with case management and advocacy support. There is an emphasis on problem-solving, effective crisis planning, medication review and assertive follow-up if appointments are missed.
The new SCM Basic Training consists of 18 hours of instructor-led content over 3 days, and 21 hours of self-guided content.
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If you are interested in this training but no dates are available, please complete this expression of interest form: https://forms.office.com/e/MsA6TPZSYN. Once dates become available, we will contact you with more information and a booking link.
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The online platform Zoom will be used to deliver this training. Prior to booking on, please ensure you meet the system requirements so you're able to join this training. Before the training, please test your equipment is working by going to Zoom.us/test and follow the instructions.
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Upon booking, you will be asked to confirm that you have read and accept our terms and conditions and our privacy notice. Please read these documents before booking:
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