Essential Counselling Skills: Theory and Practice

  

Course Date:  Refer to Calendar page.

 Normal Fee: $1,600. Funding details available at the Funding page.

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​Course Overview

What is the significance and role of counselling skills in your current role as a social work practitioner, an AED or Educator in school? Mostly probably the answer is that you want to be a better advocate, assessor, agent of control, adviser and mentor. The ubiquitous phrase, “I want to help people”, best describes your motivation.

This workshop equips these ‘people-helpers’ with counselling knowledge and skills to better understand the needs of clients and carry out therapeutic conversation to effect positive changes in clients’ thinking, feeling and behaviour.

Besides covering topics like counselling theories and importance of self-awareness, this course will teach participants two complementary counselling approaches that they can use to work with clients of diverse needs:
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Systemic therapy approach: Using this approach, participants can help clients to understand themselves in relationship with others, rather than in isolation. The process helps to uncover the ways in which clients communicate and behave within a system, based on beliefs about their respective roles.

​Solution-Focused Therapy approach: Participants will learn how to empower clients to recognise and utilise their strengths and resources to find solutions to their own problems. 
 Participants with and without counseling background/training will benefit from the practical focus of this course. 


About the Workshop Facilitator
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The workshop facilitator is Ms Evonne Lek. Evonne holds a Master degree and is a qualified Systemic Psychotherapist and a member of AFT, The Association of Family Therapy and Systemic Practice. She has worked as a family clinician in London, and a family therapist and Senior Medical Social Worker in IMH. Evonne currently runs her own successful practice.
 
Evonne is passionate about the issues of mental health and has a combined 18 years of experience working with children, couples and families with a range of disabilities and mental illnesses. Her training on systemic therapy to parents, teachers, school counsellors, doctors, nurses and social workers has always been extremely well received. She has been quoted in news and interviewed for television.

Target Audience

This course is suitable for the following professionals, regardless whether or not they have counselling training, wishing to enhance their work effectiveness through appropriate use of counselling skills in their work practice
  • Social work professionals such as social workers, para-counsellors, junior counsellors and social service practitioners in a range of  sectors (i.e. hospitals, eldercare, youths)
  • Educators, School Counsellors & AEDs

Duration
3 days: 21 hours (9 am - 5 pm).

Workshop Topics:

Day One
 
Part A: Introduction to counselling 
  • Essential skills
    • Attending
    • Listening
    • Empathy
    • Questioning
  • What makes a good counsellor?
    • Communication
    • Acceptance and respect
    • Skills
    • Flexibility
    • Self-awareness
    • Awareness of differences (Culture, Race, Religion etc)
  • The counselling process
  • Barriers in the counselling process
Video example
Group discussion

Part B: Introduction to Different Counselling Theories and Approaches
  • Different theories
    • Family therapy
    • Attachment
    • Behaviour
    • Cognitive
 Experiential Exercise: Family Sculpting to show connections and relationships
 
Part C: Importance of Self-Awareness
  • Self-awareness
    • Why Self-awareness is important?
      • Impact on therapeutic relationship with clients
    • How to gain self-reflectivity
      • Feedback
    • Our own feelings/emotions
      • Use of meta-emotions questionnaire
  • Therapeutic relationship
    • What is therapeutic alliance?
      • Engagement with client

Day Two
 
Part D: Systemic Therapy Approach: Skills Learning
  • Situations when Systemic Therapy approach will be suitable
  • Case Conceptualisation
  • Introduction to Genograms/ Family Tree
  • Introduction to Hypothesising and Formulation
  • Limitations
  • Intervention Skills
    • Your stance
      • Being Neutral
      • Being Curious
    • Use of questions
      • Linear versa Circular questions
      • Strength-based and Solution Focused questions
      • Appreciative Inquiry
    • Your use of statements
      • Noticing positives and strengths
      • “Everyone is doing the best they can”
      • Reframing
      • Externalising
      • Being transparent
Role Play
Skills Practice
 
Day Three
 
Part E: Solution-Focused Therapy Approach: Skills Learning
  • Situations when Solution-Focused Therapy approach will be suitable
  • Case Conceptualisation
  • Intervention Skills
    • Solution-building versus problem-solving
    • Collaborative; client as expert in their own lives
    • Some assumptions of SFT: positive change, client’s or family’s strengths, etc.
    • Compliments: problem-free talk
    • Types of questions: Miracle question, scaling question, exception seeking
Role Play
Skills Practice
 
Part F: Common Counselling Situations You Will Encounter
  • Situations where you have to take a position
    • Ethics
    • Domestic Violence
    • Abuse
  • Working with specific client groups
    • Children
    • Youths
    • Couples and families
    • Mental illness; depression, anxiety, ADHD
Case discussions
Click here for funding details. Terms and Conditions apply.