This certificate level course will give you a Gestalt perspective on working with intimate personal relationships and how this differs from one-to-one work. It’s an ideal CPD opportunity for qualified counsellors, therapists, coaches or psychologists.
Who takes this course?
This workshop is primarily aimed at qualified psychotherapists and counsellors, clinical and counselling psychologists and coaches – you don’t need experience of Gestalt. Whilst the course isn’t designed for people still in training, we can consider applications from final-year advanced trainees who have appropriate work experience with couples or intimate relationships.
About the course
The programme is composed of four taught units and an assessed case study.
Outcomes – The programme offers practitioners such as counsellors, psychotherapists, psychologists and coaches the opportunity to develop skills, knowledge and experience required to work effectively with people in couples and other intimate relationships.
Method and Content– The programme includes self-reflection, group discussions and processing, experiential and theoretical learning and practice and advice in a supportive environment.
The course explores,
- Established Gestalt Therapy Theory & Practice: field perspectives, ‘here and now’ and narrative awareness and phenomenological methodology
- Body Psychotherapy concepts: embodied relational perspectives, somatic experiencing and dynamics of transference and countertransference processes
- Other key therapy approaches, including systemic and relational processes
- Diversity, intercultural and intersectional understandings in relationships underpin the course content throughout the programme
- Reading lists and comprehensive handouts
The emphasis is on learning to use phenomenological-based meaning-making and active methods, as well as Gestalt field theoretical ideas applied in practice. There’s plenty of practice-based learning – you’ll be involved in role-play and receive live supervision and input on this.
Programme Modules
Module 1: Introduction to Couples and Relationship Therapy
This introductory weekend is intended for practitioners with little or no previous experience of working with relationships and practitioners wishing to find out about Gestalt Therapy Theory and Practice. Experienced applicants can request APL/APEL straight to the second module of Advanced Practice.
Module 2: Advanced Practice in Couples and Relationship Therapy
Delving deeper into the work with relationships, this module discusses the role of systemic and attachment dynamics. It also offers supervisory and group exploration of practical client work examples and facilitated role plays to explore specific issues that arise in this work. Some preparatory reading would be required.
Module 3: Creativity and Embodiment in Couples and Relationship Therapy
This module explores creative working with couples and intimate relationships, mainly through experiential exercises and Gestalt and Body Psychotherapy experiments.
It also includes the opportunity to explore and practice utilizing creative methods such as drawings, vocalisation and movement.
Module 4: Practicum Weekend: Putting It All Together
This is a facilitator and peer feedback and clinical practice assessment weekend for participants who wish to achieve the Gestalt Centre Certificate in Couples and Relationships Therapy. At minimum participants will have attended Modules 2 and 3 before they will be eligible to take part in the practicum.
*Fees: £1530 self-funded / £1996 charity sector / £2360 private sector
N.B. There is an additional assessment fee of £125 for the written work
*Fees may be paid module by module:
Module 1 – £300 self-funded/£400 charity sector/£500 private sector
Module 2 – £440 self-funded/£558 charity sector/£650 private sector
Module 3 – £440 self-funded/£558 charity sector/£650 private sector
Module 4 – £350 self-funded/£480 charity sector/£560 private sector
Certificate completion requirements
- Providing a signed log of supervised practice: 30 hours of supervised work with clients. The log to include brief notes about each case brought to supervision.
- Providing a signed log of clinical practice undertaken: minimum of two different couples or intimate relationships working. The log to include a brief note about each case, not already covered in the supervised practice log.
- Passing an assessed 3000-word Case Study focusing on one relationship, and incorporating experience acquired through the programme through group work, supervision and theory into practice including assessment and formulation.
Case study and completed logs normally are to be submitted within 15 months from the date of the practicum attended. The assessment fee of £125 is payable on submission of the written work.
Course tutor
Carmen Joanne Ablack is an experienced UKCP Registered Integrative, Gestalt and Body Psychotherapist and post graduate tutor, renowned both in the UK and internationally, with particular experience in relational approaches, body psychotherapy, sexual therapy and working with creativity and performance.
She is the core tutor for our Post Graduate Diploma.