Our internationally respected trainings and conferences team deliver practical and advanced training to allied mental health professionals.
We have also been hosting a range of UCL postgraduate programmes from certificate to doctoral level for over 20 years, attracting students from the UK and abroad who wish to advance their research and clinical understanding and skills.
Explore our courses
Training Courses
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CBT and Mentalization in work with children, young people and their families
This two day course is a dialogue between CBT and mentalization approaches to working with young people with significant mental health problems. While recognising the difference between the two approaches, the course leaders will aim to explore whether the two approaches may positively complement each other.
- 2 days
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CBT strategies for working with emotional regulation and self-harm
This workshop will offer strategies from both DBT and CBT perspectives, that can be used to work with children and young people who have problems with emotional regulation and self-harm.
- 1 day
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DIT & Long Covid: An evidence based dynamic approach to long term physical health conditions
This workshop is suitable for all DIT practitioners as well as those who are completing the eDIT course. While knowledge of the DIT model is important, the course may be helpful for other clinicians who are working with long-term health conditions.
- 1 day
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Dynamic Interpersonal Therapy (DIT) and Mentalization
This course is for DIT practitioners and supervisors to expand and consolidate mentalization techniques in DIT. This will be achieved through the use of teaching, clinical illustrations and demonstrations as well as role plays.
- 1 day
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Extended Dynamic Interpersonal Therapy (e-DIT)
DIT is designed to be implemented by therapists with an interest in and experience of psychoanalytic/dynamic psychotherapy. The workshop provides a basic introduction sufficient to enable participants to begin practicing this manualized treatment with supervision.
- 21 days
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Foundations in infant mental health: Parenting in the perinatal period
This course explores the foundations of infant mental health, through the parent-infant relationship during the perinatal period. We consider and discuss how parental childhood and perinatal experiences, mental health and identity inform the parent or carer’s relationship with the child aged 0-2. In particular, we focus on the impact of this on the infant’s mental health and development, applying a cultural, attachment-trauma-informed approach. We emphasise ways in which we can keep the baby’s experience and communications at the centre of our minds, as well as considering the parent’s or carer’s experience and the family around the child.
- 4 days
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Interpersonal Psychotherapy Training (IPT) Supervisor - Refresher day
This day will be run as an interactive workshop, with extensive focus on attendees' current supervisory work with trainees seeking IPT in IAPT or generic IPT practitioner accreditation with IPTUK. This day is aimed at all qualified IPT supervisors – the model was originally developed in IAPT but can be used by any IPT supervisor.
- 1 day
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Leading a Mentally Healthy School
Developed during the pandemic, ‘Leading a Mentally Healthy School’ is a new offer that combines the training expertise of Anna Freud Centre tutors with a knowledgeable community of practice, to support senior education leaders and designated mental health leads during the transition back to education, and beyond.
- 12 weeks; 6 sessions of live study (90 min); 6 sessions of self-study (90 min); 6 office hours with Anna Freud Centre tutors.
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Mentalization Based Treatment: Basic Training, Dublin Cohort (online)
Mentalizing lies at the very core of our humanity – it refers to our ability to attend to mental states in ourselves and in others as we attempt to understand our own actions and those of others on the basis of intentional mental states. A focus on this very human activity as a therapeutic intervention forms the core of mentalization based treatment (MBT). It was initially developed for the treatment of borderline personality disorder (BPD) although it is now being used on a wide range of disorders. This training programme focusses on MBT for BPD.
- 1 month programme (3 days live training and 21 hours self-guided content - online course)
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Mentalization-Based Treatment (MBT) for Reflective Fostering
MBT-Fostering aims to promote the quality of relationships, support effective and sensitive foster care, and help carers to help the child in their care understand and manage emotions better. The focus is on improving the core components of secure attachment, including collaboration, and parental (or carer) reflective capacity. The MBT-Fostering approach pays particular attention to developing reflective practice for all professionals working with LAC.
- 2 days
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Mentalization-Based Treatment for Adolescence (MBT-A) Training (West Coast USA): Pacific Standard Time (PST)
In this course people will be able to get an overview of MBT-A; an understanding of the specific complexities about working with adolescents; an understanding of the development of mentalization and the relevance of it in relationships and in the maintenance of a self esteem, affect regulation and impulse control. The course will also touch on issues such as working with self harm, working with trauma and family work.
- 2 days
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Mentalization-Based Treatment: Basic Training (Canada) - Eastern Standard Time (EST)
- 1 month programme (3 days live training and 21 hours self-guided content - online course)
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Mentalization-Based Treatment: Basic Training (East Coast USA) - Eastern Standard Time (EST)
- 1 month programme (3 days live training and 21 hours self-guided content - online course)
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Mentalization-Based Treatment: Basic Training (West Coast USA) - Pacific Standard Time (PST)
- 1 month programme (3 days live training and 21 hours self-guided content - online course)
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Mentalization-Based Treatment: Certificate course - practitioner level
This two-day workshop will expand on previous knowledge and embed the basic skills of mentalization based treatment (MBT) at practitioner level. Participants learn how to use the MBT adherence scale for individual therapy and hone their MBT skills through clinical demonstration, video ratings, and role plays.
- 2 days live training and 4 hours self-guided content - online course
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Mentalization-Based Treatment: Certificate course - practitioner level - Eastern Standard Time (EST)
- 2 days live training and 4 hours self-guided content - online course
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Motivational Interviewing and Mentalizing
How do you help people who aren’t sure they want help? How do you support people to make change when at times they are not sure they really want to change?
- 2 days
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Parent-Infant Psychotherapy: Specialist Training
The Anna Freud Centre (AFC) offers a 12-18 month training in parent infant psychotherapy. The training derives from the model developed at the AFC in which psychoanalysis, attachment theory and research, and infant developmental research provide relevant and necessary paradigms for the work.
- 2 years - Applications are required for this training. Details below.
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Parent-Infant Psychotherapy: Supervision for Practitioners
A supervision group for practitioners in the field of parent-infant psychotherapy. Group size will not exceed eight members. Each member will have the opportunity to present clinical material for peer supervision in a supportive and constructive milieu and to share in understanding the clinical work of others.
- 6 x 2hrs sessions
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Running groups for infants and parents, virtually and beyond
- 2 days & second day is divided across two mornings
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The Link Programme: working together for children and young people’s mental health
The free, online national event on 25th May 2021 will bring together participating local areas, schools, colleges, and mental health professionals to share their learning with each other and with those looking to find out more about the programme.
- 3 hours
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Trauma-Focussed Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (TF-CBT) for Children and Young People with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Trauma-Focussed Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (TF-CBT) is the only intervention recommended by NICE guidelines for Children and Young People with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) The cognitive model of PTSD in children and young people (Meiser-Stedman, 2002) will be presented and explained.
- 2 days
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Dynamic Interpersonal Therapy (DIT) for Complex Care (DITCC)
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 27th September 2021 - 28th September 2021
- 2 day
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Senior mental health lead training
The Anna Freud Centre’s Senior mental health lead offer is a 2-day online training course, combining the expertise of the Centre’s clinicians and tutors with a knowledgeable community of practice. The training will support senior education leaders and designated mental health leads and commences in Autumn 2021.
- Online - via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 27th September 2021
- 7 live modules over two training days and an optional 2 hour reflective session
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Mentalizing and Mentalization Based Treatments with Children, Young People and Families (MBT CYP) – An Introduction
- Online – self-directed learning
- 1st October 2021
- Online Training Programme - 6 hours learning content
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Family Ties: Therapeutic assessment and treatment of high conflict separated parents and their children
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 5th October 2021 - 9th November 2021
- 6 half days
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Developing a mentally healthy school - primary school training | Live 5 hours
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 8th October 2021
- 5 hours
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Dynamic Interpersonal Therapy (DIT) Supervisor training - Part 2
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 8th October 2021
- 1 day
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Traumatic bereavement: working therapeutically with children and young people
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 11th October 2021 - 18th October 2021
- 2 half days
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Assessment of children and families in care proceedings: an Anna Freud Centre approach
- Online (joining instructions will be shared with registrants close to the event)
- 12th October 2021 - 14th October 2021
- 3 days
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Developing a mentally healthy school - secondary and FE College training | Live 5 hours
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 12th October 2021
- 5 hours
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Principles & Practice of Psychoanalytic Parent-Infant Psychotherapy
The aim of this course is to extend the understanding and skills particular to therapeutically-based, early intervention with attachment disorders. The course will examine the complexity of the work.
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 12th October 2021 - 15th October 2021
- 3.5 days
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Mentalization-Based Treatment: Basic Training
Mentalizing refers to our ability to attend to mental states in ourselves and in others as we attempt to understand our own actions and those of others on the basis of intentional mental states. A focus on this very human activity as a therapeutic intervention forms the core of mentalization based treatment (MBT). MBT was initially developed for the treatment of borderline personality disorder (BPD) although it is now being used on a wide range of disorders.
- Online – live and self-directed learning (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 15th October 2021 - 12th November 2021
- 1 month programme (3 days live training and 21 hours self-guided content - online course)
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Interpersonal Psychotherapy Training (IPT) - Supervisor Training
The course aims to develop advanced skills in group and individual supervision of IPT practice. The course aims to provide participants with advanced knowledge and theoretical understanding of IPT, and will provide a competency based format for self assessment and clinical supervision.
- Online – live and self-directed learning (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 18th October 2021
- Five days (2 + 2 + 1)
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Mentalization-Based Treatment for Families (MBT-F)
The basic element of this course will cover the theory and research base of mentalization-based therapy with families, with an introduction to some of the core clinical skills used in MBT-F. The primary focus will be on the clinical practice of MBT-F.
- Online – live and self-directed learning (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 26th October 2021 - 15th December 2021
- 6 half days
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Story Stems Assessment Profile (SSAP) Refresher
The Anna Freud Centre runs a three-day training course teaching the administration, coding and application of the Story Stem Assessment Profile (SSAP) within both clinical and research domains. The Story Stem Assessment Profile (SSAP; Hodges and Hillman, 2004) asks the children to respond to a set of narrative story stems where they are given the beginning of a ‘story’ highlighting everyday scenarios with an inherent dilemma. Children are then asked to ‘show and tell me what happens next?’
- Online – live and self-directed learning (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 1st November 2021
- 1 day
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Managing anxiety in children and young people - training for schools
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 3rd November 2021
- 5 hours
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Mentalizing in practice: working with parents and infants
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 4th November 2021 - 11th November 2021
- 2 days
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AMBIT Multi-Team Training
AMBIT is a mentalization based team approach for teams working with young people with severe and multiple needs, who do not tend to access mainstream services. The AMBIT approach provides tools for putting mentalization to use in work with clients, team colleagues and wider inter-agency networks, and is designed to support the development of both local excellence and evidence-based practice.
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 5th November 2021 - 3rd December 2021
- 5 days
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Mentalization-Based Treatment: Reflective Parenting
This two-day training aims to introduce Reflective Parenting; a model of parenting based on theoretical ideas from mentalization and attachment theory.
- Online – live and self-directed learning (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 8th November 2021 - 15th November 2021
- 3 days
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Reflective Functioning Training on the Adult Attachment Interview
The Reflective Functioning on Adult Attachment Interviews course focuses on the coding of ‘reflective functioning’ of adult attachment interviews (AAI-RF). Coding of 'reflective functioning' is a way to operationalize the concept of mentalization, which Fonagy and colleagues have developed into a core theoretical concept in our model of normal and pathological emotional and self-development. The coding involves looking at thinking as revealed in interview narratives about important emotional attachment relationships, to see how far the person draws on a psychological model of motivation, of what happens in close relationships - to what extent they think in terms of their own and other people's minds, feelings, attitudes, intentions and so on, when they try to understand their experiences.
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 10th November 2021 - 12th November 2021
- 3 days
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Developing a mentally healthy school - primary school training | Live 2 hours
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 15th November 2021
- 2 hours
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Interpersonal Psychotherapy Training (IPT)
The five day course will provide experienced mental health professionals with an introduction to the IPT model. The course will cover the knowledge competencies for IPT with depression and an introduction to the skills competencies, which will be developed more fully in supervised clinical casework.
- Online – live and self-directed learning (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 15th November 2021 - 19th November 2021
- 6 days
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Engaging and supporting fathers in the perinatal period
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 18th November 2021
- 1 day
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Mentalization-Based Treatment for Adolescence (MBT-A)
In this course people will be able to get an overview of MBT-A; an understanding of the specific complexities about working with adolescents; an understanding of the development of mentalization and the relevance of it in relationships and in the maintenance of a self esteem, affect regulation and impulse control. The course will also touch on issues such as working with self harm, working with trauma and family work.
- Online – live and self-directed learning (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 18th November 2021 - 19th November 2021
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Mentalization-Based Treatment: Basic Training (Mexico, Spanish-speaking delegates only)
Mentalizing refers to our ability to attend to mental states in ourselves and in others as we attempt to understand our own actions and those of others on the basis of intentional mental states. A focus on this very human activity as a therapeutic intervention forms the core of mentalization based treatment (MBT). MBT was initially developed for the treatment of borderline personality disorder (BPD) although it is now being used on a wide range of disorders.
- Online – live and self-directed learning (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 18th November 2021 - 20th November 2021
- 1 month programme (3 days live training and 21 hours self-guided content - online course)
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Reflective Functioning Training on the Parent Development Interview
This three day course aims to provide an understanding of parental reflective functioning/mentalization and to become a reliable coder of RF of the Parent Development Interview.
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 22nd November 2021 - 26th November 2021
- One full day, four half days
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Interpersonal Psychotherapy Training refresher
The clinically focused workshop will provide a refresher for recently trained IPT therapists and will focus on how to implement the key objectives of the IPT model in routine practice. During this day we will give particular attention to key issues that are often difficult for therapists to feel confident in during initial casework, such as conducting a symptom review, finding a focus, negotiating useful and relevant goals, and maintaining links between the interpersonal context and symptoms across the session.
- Online - via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 23rd November 2021
- 1 day
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Mentalization Skills in Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT)
This workshop is aimed at IPT practitioners and supervisors with an interest in exploring and consolidating their use of Mentalization techniques in IPT and therapists using Mentalization based treatment who would like to know more about IPT. We aim to learn from each other! Knowledge of Mentalization or IPT techniques is not assumed and a concise introduction to the key ideas underpinning Mentalization and their relevance for IPT practice will be covered. This workshop will employ a combination of didactic teaching, discussion of clinical illustrations, demonstrations as well as participant and tutor led role-plays.
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 26th November 2021
- 1 day
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Dynamic Interpersonal Therapy (DIT) Supervisor training - Part 3
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 3rd December 2021
- 1 day
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Managing anxiety in children and young people - training for schools
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 13th December 2021
- 2 hours
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Story Stem Assessment Profile Training
This course teaches the administration, coding and application of the Story Stem Assessment Profile (SSAP) within both clinical and research domains. As part of SSAP, children are presented with the beginning of a ‘story’ highlighting everyday scenarios and asked to ‘show and tell what happens next.’
- Online – live and self-directed learning (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 17th January 2022 - 4th February 2022
- 4 days (with a break between all days)
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Mentalization-Based Treatment with Children (MBT-C): Working with trauma
This course is for those who have already attended an introductory course on mentalization-based therapy with children or families (MBT-C on MBT-F), and wish to further their learning in relation to the model.
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 19th January 2022 - 20th January 2022
- 2 days
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Mentalizing the Body in Research and Clinical Practice: Parental Embodied Mentalizing Assessment (PEMA™)
Intensive Clinical Training Program for Professionals Working with Infants and Parents
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 31st January 2022 - 4th February 2022
- 5 half days
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Parental Embodied Mentalizing Assessment (PEMA™): 8-week Reflective Practice
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 1st February 2022 - 31st December 2022
- 8 x 90-minute video-conference calls
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Mentalization-Based Treatment for Children (MBT-C): A time limited approach
The course will introduce an adaptation of Mentalization-Based Treatment for use in clinical work with children in middle childhood (5-12) and their parents.
- Online – live and self-directed learning (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 21st April 2022 - 26th May 2022
- Six afternoons (approximately 18 hours)
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CBT & Motivational Interviewing: Supporting children & young people to engage in CBT
Motivational Interviewing (MI) ideas have been applied very successfully across a range of presenting difficulties and with populations who at times find it difficult to engage with help. This course will provide an overview of MI theory and techniques, particularly highlighting and teaching skills in those techniques that might help a CBT therapist engage a young person in different stages of therapy.
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 10th May 2022
- One day
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Assessment of parental representations
The aim of this course will be to provide participants with a broader multidimensional view on some of the other current theoretical and empirical ideas around the assessment of parental representations.
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 11th May 2022 - 13th May 2022
- Two days spread over three days
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Dynamic Interpersonal Therapy
DIT is designed to be implemented by therapists with an interest in and experience of psychoanalytic/dynamic psychotherapy. The workshop provides a basic introduction sufficient to enable participants to begin practicing this manualized treatment with supervision.
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 12th May 2022 - 26th May 2022
- 5 days
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Dynamic Interpersonal Training (DIT) Refresher course
- Online – live via Zoom (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 10th June 2022
- 1 day
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Interpersonal Psychotherapy Training for Adolescents with depression (IPT-A)
This six-day course, including one follow up refresher day, will provide a comprehensive introduction to the knowledge competencies of IPT-A for depression in adolescents and an introduction to the skills competencies, which will be developed more fully in supervised clinical casework.
- Online – live and self-directed learning (Joining instructions will be sent to the email address you booked on with at least one working day before the event)
- 5th September 2022 - 9th September 2022
- 5 days plus 1 follow up day
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Mentalizing and Mentalization Based Treatment with Adults (MBT Adult): An Introduction
This self-guided training covers most of the theoretical knowledge that is currently taught on the MBT courses organised by the Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families.
- Online
- Online Training Programme - 4 hours learning content
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Multi-Family Groups in Schools
This training programme is designed to teach professionals how to set up and run Multi Family Groups at school. The programme is packed with detailed filmed illustrations of how a family group works. For this, we are extremely grateful to the children, their parents and the staff working at Downe Manor Primary School in the London Borough of Ealing who very kindly agreed to us filming their Family Group. They are very keen that many more professionals can learn how to run family groups. They have said they want lots more children and their families to receive the same sort of help they have experienced in the group.
- Online
- Online Training Programme - Combination of two hours film and written materials equivalent to five hours learning content
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