Our next level two course is as follows:
First part: Friday 26th and Saturday 27th June 2026
Second part: Friday 17th and Saturday18th July 2026
Times: 10am to 4.30pm
CPD: 22 hours
Venue: Quaker Meeting House, 2 Lawn Terrace, Blackheath, London SE3 9LL
Cost: £540 for the full 4-day course.
‘How can I be true to myself while also engaging meaningfully in a mutually fulfilling intimate relationship with another?’
The conflict between the desire for autonomy and the desire for intimacy is perhaps the most fundamental and challenging dilemma in close relationships. When couples present with an apparent myriad of issues, nearly all of them can be seen to be symptomatic of a failure to successfully negotiate this same underlying challenge; that is if they’re viewed through the lens of differentiation. Differentiation can be described as a process for the co-creation of a healthy middle ground between the disconnect of individualism and the engulfment of symbiosis.
This Level Two course explores the important concept of differentiation in couples counselling, with a particular focus on the Developmental Model of Couple Counselling pioneered by Drs Ellyn Bader and Peter Pearson. There’s also an overview of Dr David Schnarch’s Crucible Therapy model. It has a similar 4-day format to our introduction course and is facilitated by Debbie Winterbourne and Simon Adamson. While it would be helpful to have already attended our introduction course, this isn’t essential, particularly for more experienced counsellors. A CPD certificate of 22 hours will be provided on completion of the course.
This course will cover the following:
• The Developmental Model of Couple Counselling pioneered by Drs Ellyn Bader and Peter Pearson
• Introduction to The Crucible Model by Dr David Schnarch
• Differentiation Theory and its relationship to Attachment Theory;
• How to work with affairs and betrayals;
• Different types of lies within relationship;
• Concepts from Neuroscience and how these might aid the couple counsellor;
• The five stages of development in adult relationships, and the goals/tasks of each stage;
• The three types of couples that present for couples counselling;
• Using a Couples Questionnaire;
• The Paper Exercise: a key exercise to ascertain and diagnose six major problems in the couple’s ability to handle conflict, negotiation and communication;
• Working with hostile and avoidant couples;
• Facilitating the Initiator-Inquirer Dialogue to strengthen differentiation in relationship;
• Goal setting;
• How to help couples repair ruptures in their relationship;
• Working with and disrupting Symbiosis; Facilitating Differentiation;
• Key negotiation principles; strategies for making decisions.
This course will run at least once per year.
Minimum qualifications required to enrol for the course: although we recommend that you first complete the Introduction to Couples Counselling course, it’s not essential.
This course is most suited to qualified counsellors or psychotherapists. If you are a trainee, then completion of a minimum ten week certificate course is required to enrol. If you are outside of these criteria, please contact me to discuss, as in exceptional cases, enrolment may be possible.
Cancellation terms: A £100 non-refundable deposit is required to reserve a place. The balance is payable one month before the course start date, and once paid is also non-refundable. In the event of cancellation with less than one month’s notice, a full refund of the balance payment will be offered if someone from the waiting list takes your place, otherwise the balance payment is also non-refundable.
Testimonial:
‘The course was fantastic. The explanations, resources and exercises have really enhanced my knowledge about couples counselling and increased my confidence in my work’. (therapist attending 2019 level two course)