Service Supervisors Professional Development Course

This course is aimed at child and adolescent psychotherapists, working in the NHS, Voluntary Sector, Education and Social Care, who have a trainee undertaking a placement and wish to enhance their supervisory skills. We particularly recommend the course to service supervisors who have not previously supervised a trainee on the Independent Child Psychotherapy Doctorate (BPF\UCL\Anna Freud). It is an ACP requirement for child psychotherapists who are service supervisors, to undertake training on the many aspects of this complex role.  Supervision skills are a crucial addition to professional and managerial development in NHS and public sector services, so this will be valuable addition to CPD. 

Applicants need to be child and adolescent psychotherapists and a service supervisor in an NHS/Third Sector setting. 

The bpf is committed to diversity and inclusivity in all the work we deliver. We are fully dedicated to promoting, maintaining and supporting equality of opportunity in all aspects of our organisation and, as such, the bpf welcomes applications from all sections of society. 

This group meets online monthly on a Wednesday morning for 2 hours once a month October – July, and is divided into two parts which encompass both more didactic and experiential learning: 

10.00 – 10.50am Teaching and led discussion on issues that commonly arise from the role – see course program here: 

Topics have been co-constructed with previous course participants and can be adjusted to reflect the current group’s learning needs eg. sourcing and creating the trainee’s psychiatric placement, identifying and supporting the trainee’s clinic-based research activities etc.  

11.00 – 12.00pm Presentations from individual service supervisors of supervision sessions coupled with facilitated group discussion and reflection, to strengthen and promote supervisory skills.  

Across both parts the individual supervisor will be expected to bring their experience of supervising a trainee or other professionals to this group, and to participate in the opportunity to discuss and reflect on the dynamics of supervision in a small group seminar style.  

Course Outcomes  

The trainee therapist has to learn to use him/herself in a different way as a therapist. We will look closely at how the supervisor facilitates the development of all this. We want to explore the difficulties that come up in the process of supervision as well as acknowledge the extraordinary privilege of helping someone to become a professional who over time learns to function autonomously.   Alongside this there are a number of areas that necessarily come up during the four years.  Course leader(s) will also make space for and openly encourage the group’s suggestions on other topics of mutual interest that are arising within their work as Service Supervisors of CAPt trainees across the year.   

• Settling in and setting up: induction of the trainee, supporting the trainee’s relationships with members of the MDT, considering the previous experience of the trainee, EDI and work culture differences of employment as a clinician in the NHS / third sector.   

• Timetable:  How to help the trainee think about and manage the multiple demands of the training – clinical work, academic work, personal analysis, leave, wellbeing.  How to think about the difficult balance of fostering resilience and building competencies with support and accommodation to the trainee’s role as a learner. What is doable, sustainable, achievable, aspirational for your trainee?  

• Assessments:  The pros and cons of assessing for the trainee or with the trainee?  What level of past or present risk is appropriate / wise?  Can an assessment be both a learning and a clinically informative process?  How might we help a trainee formulate and then report on an assessment? When should a trainee be encouraged to shadow, co-assess or lead-assess at initial assessment?  

• Expectations of the caseload in the First Year and beyond: How many and what kind of cases should my trainee take? How do these fit with the training log? How do these fit with the ACP requirements for qualification? How much can / should these fit with Service needs.  

• Research: understanding the research expectations for trainees. Being aware of the impact of our own experience of and engagement with research. Supporting the trainee’s local service related project and doctoral thesis work.   

• Intensive cases: How to think about and select an intensive case. What ‘counts’ as or makes a ‘good’ intensive case? The complications of working the case up.  developing a therapeutic alliance with the parents/carers;  

• Parent work / Lead Practitioner / Care Coordinator roles: what does the trainee need from you in these roles? How and when might they be encouraged to take up these roles with / for other members of the team?  

• The psychiatric placement (IPCAPA SS only) History and rationale behind the placement, arranging and assuring safety at the placement, learning outcomes.   

• The supervisory model; distinguishing between modelling in service supervision and intensive case supervision; how to manage when the intensive case supervisor is recommending an approach when you and your department have a differing perspective   

• Building competencies and a “time-line” of growth: How does supervision help the student progress? Is this formally registered and noticed or does it happen invisibly? What is the supervisee’s part in the process – co-construction – who decides what gets brought to Service Supervision? Who is in charge of the agenda?  

• Giving effective feedback. How do we effectively give feedback to a supervisee about how they are doing? Given that such personal issues are being thought about in what way do these affect the supervisee’s relationship with the supervisor  

• Transference issues: between the supervisor and supervisee. Noticing, addressing and using these as part of the learning process. Recognising what hopes and fears we as supervisors bring to the role.  

• Specialisms: what might need to be thought about in setting up and integrating specialist experiences / clinical work during the four years – eg. perinatal, consultation to schools, family therapy clinic etc. How might we think about whether this is useful or a distraction in relation to the development of core competencies.   

• Dealing with endings:  throughout the training and in particular with final year trainees; how might we help the trainee think about and manage unexpected endings, absence through illness on either side, breaks in the work due to holidays or study leave.  The external job market support.  

2025/2026 Course Fees:

• IPCAPA Alumni: £551

• Non-IPCAPA Alumni: £673

On offer of a place, you will be invited to register and pay via debit card through a secured payment page.  

Please note that the bpf will not be held responsible for travel/hotel expenses made or incurred in the unlikely event of this course either being cancelled or postponed. See our cancellation and refund policies for more information. 

This group meets online monthly on a Wednesday morning for 2 hours once a month October 2024 – July 2025, and is divided into two parts which encompass both more didactic and experiential learning: 

10.00 – 10.50am Teaching and led discussion on issues that commonly arise from the role 

Topics have been co-constructed with previous course participants and can be adjusted to reflect the current group’s learning needs eg. sourcing and creating the trainee’s psychiatric placement, identifying and supporting the trainee’s clinic-based research activities etc.  

11.00 – 12.00pm Presentations from individual service supervisors of supervision sessions coupled with facilitated group discussion and reflection, to strengthen and promote supervisory skills.  

Across both parts the individual supervisor will be expected to bring their experience of supervising a trainee or other professionals to this group, and to participate in the opportunity to discuss and reflect on the dynamics of supervision in a small group seminar style.  

The course is offered on Wednesday mornings 10-12pm online using MS Teams as follows: 

Term 1:  

16^th October 

13^th November 

11^th December 

Term 2:  

29^th January 

26^th February 

26^th March 

Term 3:  

30^th April 

14^th May 

11^th June 

9^th July 

The building has limited access – Please call us on 020 8452 9823 to discuss your needs.

Please complete the application form via the given link: https://forms.office.com/e/kRBceH0x4C 

Contact Edina Kernbaum with any queries at (ipcapa- [email protected].)  

** Application deadline 19^th July 2025 **