Contextual Child Therapeutic Practice
This includes primary prevention and promotion of children’s wellbeing. It can be delivered within and beyond the therapeutic frame including therapeutic mentoring, key-working and creative group work as well as 1:1 work, or community based therapeutic support with groups and organisations. This can include participatory arts, sports, leisure and nature allied approaches.
Contextual therapeutic practice can also be integrated and applied within another role like teaching, social work or speech and language therapy. This includes incorporating therapeutic supervision / reflective practice with individuals and teams, promoting self-awareness, reflexivity, reflecting in dialogue, emotional regulation and the application of therapeutic knowledge and understanding in relationship with others in the wider systemic context.
It can include psychoeducation for parents and carers advocating and mediating on behalf of children’s rights and needs, encouraging a strength-based approach to facilitating their talents, interests, identity, self-awareness, self-esteem, self-concept, confidence, resilience and human potential.
Practitioners develop relationships with children based on trust, promoting inquiring minds in parents, carers and professionals, early intervention, and enabling each child to develop their capacities for wellbeing in the context.
Length and Duration of Training
The duration of education is a minimum of three years of professional training including a foundation year. This can be at undergraduate level and qualification is at degree level. This includes 450 hours tutor contact time as well as independent study, reading, written work, research and presentation.
Personal Therapy and Supervision
Students are required to do a minimum of 50 hours of personal therapy and 50 hours of professional supervision.
Placements
Students are required to complete 450 hours of placement and this can be organised in accordance with their training development needs in professional settings, including a minimum of 200 hours contextual working and a minimum of 200 hours of direct facilitation. A further 50 hours can be completed in either area of practice but must evidence engagement with multi-disciplinary liaison and exchange with adults, parents, carers and professionals.
Following three years of education, training, research and practice including final examination the graduate can be awarded the title of Contextual Therapeutic Practitioner.