Alternative locations for studying this programme Location Which elements? Taught by UEL staff Taught by local staff Method of Delivery

UNIVERSITY OF EAST LONDON

POSTGRADUATE PROGRAMME SPECIFICATION

MA IN INTEGRATIVE CHILD PSYCHOTHERAPY

This programme is only offered at The Institute for Arts in Therapy & Education (IATE)

Final award MA

Intermediate awards available PG Certificate in Integrative Child Psychotherapy Studies PG Diploma in Integrative Child Psychotherapy Studies

Mode of delivery On campus at IATE

Details of professional body accreditation

Leading to a UKCP registered professional qualification Relevant QAA Benchmark

statements

N/A

Date specification last up-dated 27 June 2013

Alternative locations for studying this programme

The summary - Programme advertising leaflet

Programme content

The MA in Integrative Child Psychotherapy (ICP) is a three-year, part-time programme. On completion, graduates are eligible to apply for registration with United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP) when they have completed 450 hours of clinical practice, 20-days on an observational mental health placement and an additional assessment procedure.

MA ICP at UEL

The programme prides itself in offering students the most up-to-date knowledge in child mental health. Key clinicians, researchers and theoreticians working at the cutting edge of child mental health are included in the syllabus. Students will experience a whole host of ways to engage a child or young person in a truly meaningful dialogue for profound personal change. Over time this relationship can enable the child to widen the relational options with self or others, and fulfill their potential. Students will also benefit from learning from top international trainers and those eminent in the field of child psychotherapy and child mental health. A thorough grounding is provided in various theoretical models and schools of thought and students aim to adapt their approach to meet the needs of each client, paying careful attention to risk and mindful of the setting in which they are working. As the outcome studies have shown, it is the relationship that heals, not adherence to method. Our primary concern therefore is one of treatment. This treatment is informed by Bowlby’s work on unmet attachment needs and borrows extensively from the work of Fairbairn, Winnicott, Balint, Kohut and Mitchell who all assert the primacy of relational needs. The theoretical models concentrate on the work of key theoreticians and practitioners of this and the last century in the field of child psychotherapy.

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Access to the MA in Integrative Child Psychotherapy requires students to demonstrate the following:

1. A first degree from a British university or its equivalent, a qualification in a helping profession or in education, or a minimum of five years' professional experience in therapy or a related field with the proven academic ability to work at Masters level standard. IATE have a widening access policy in line with the University. Accreditation of Prior Learning is considered in all applications abiding by the QAA Code of Practice.

2. The PG Certificate in The Therapeutic Arts, from The Institute, or an equivalent qualification from an alternative, recognised psychotherapy training college.

3. The completion of at least one year's in-depth personal psychotherapy.

4. At interview on Taster Day students will be assessed for the following capacities and abilities:  The ability to be self-aware, open to contact and emotionally undefended.

 The ability to create both mental and artistic images.

 Good communication and interpersonal skills and capacity to work well in groups.  Sound emotional literacy skills.

 Emotional robustness.  A good ability to play.

 A good level of contact with other people.

 An accepting and compassionate, as opposed to judgmental, attitude towards other people.  A positive, rather than frightened or inhibited relationship to the Arts.

 The ability to support themselves when working with negative or aggressive feedback from others. This means that the trainee would not become defensive in the face of criticism, and would be able to maintain an empathic thinking stance.

 The ability to maintain or quickly regain their thinking function, as opposed to becoming overwhelmed by or confluent with another’s feelings.

 The intellectual capacity to inquire critically into psychotherapeutic theory and practice with academic rigour.

 A valid enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) processed or checked through IATE.  Potential for an empathetic and holding therapeutic presence.

 Capacity to remain stable under stress.  Capacity to self-regulate.

5. Unless in exceptional circumstances, candidates will have had a minimum of two years’ experience of working in related fields with children before applying for the MA in Integrative Child Psychotherapy.

Students that apply to enter stages of the programme may be admitted through normal Accreditation of Experiential Learning (AEL) or Accreditation of Certificated Learning (ACL) processes, or through an approved articulation agreement. Therefore such applicants must be able to demonstrate and evidence that they have the required learning outcomes as listed in the modules for which they are seeking exemption.

Application Process

a) Written application.

b) Attendance at one of The Institute's Taster Days that includes an interview. (If a student was previously on the PG Certificate in The Therapeutic Arts), attendance at a Taster Day is not necessary (however, the student may be required to attend an interview).

c) Trainees who have not completed the PG Certificate in The Therapeutic Arts and seek direct entry will be required to present a written transcript of a session with a client, and demonstrate an ability to discuss its content, with particular reference to their own interventions and how these were therapeutic.

d) A satisfactory recommendation from The Institute's Board of Studies.

Although some trainees will have qualified from the PG Certificate in The Therapeutic Arts and also have the required academic qualifications for the Masters Degree, this will not necessarily lead to acceptance onto the programme. Students need to be considered ‘ready to practice’ so progression is not automatic. This is because some of the skills required to be a psychotherapist are over and above those required to successfully pass the PG Certificate in The Therapeutic Arts.

If any student is not accepted for the MA programme, we offer a tutorial with the Dean and written feedback about what areas could be worked on before submitting a potential future application, e.g. more personal work in psychotherapy, or more work experience in professional settings.

References are taken up for all students who apply to study on the Masters programmes

 Details of a student’s referees (one employment and one academic reference) are requested when a student makes an application to enrol on the Masters Programme.

 This application must be submitted to the administration office.  References are then requested by the Academic Officer.

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All IATE programmes demonstrate a commitment to experiential learning. The modules contain both theoretical and practical components to ensure an ongoing interaction between knowledge and experience, allowing a thorough developmental synthesis throughout the duration of training. Aspects of the modules are delivered at appropriate times across the three-year programme, rather than sequentially, in differentiated modules. This is to ensure there is the richest possible transfer of theory and practice from one subject area to another and to acknowledge the inter-relationship between the content of the different modules.

Year Module Name Assessment Weighting Credits Year 1 Module 1 Introduction to Clinical

Skills and Fundamental Principles in Integrative Child Psychotherapy Child Protection exam 30% 30 credits Essay 70%

Year 1 Module 2 Psychotherapeutic Concepts for the Understanding of Babyhood and Childhood Experience

Clinical Seminar 100% 30 credits

Year 1 Module 3 Infant Observation Year 1

Infant Obs Log Year 1 (pass/fail)

0 credits

Year 2 Module 4 Child Mental Health and Psychiatric Issues in Child Psychotherapy Child Psychiatry exam 50% 30 credits Child Mental Health Project 50%

Year 2 Module 5 Advanced Clinical Skills and Image, Metaphor and the Inner World in Child Psychotherapy

Case Presentation 100% 30 credits

Year 2 Module 6 Infant Observation Year 2

Infant Obs Log Year 2 (pass/fail)

0 credits

Year 3 Module 7 Research & Dissertation Infant Observation

Paper

30% 60 credits

Dissertation 70%

Year 3 Module 8 Readiness to Practice Viva 0 credits

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 Experiential learning workshops.  Case presentations and discussion.  Group process.

 Supervised therapy skills practice through role-play in small groups (the supervision will be self, peer and staff).

 Staff presentation of case material.  Clinical placement experience.

 Infant Observation Seminars with reading of observations and group discussion lead by a Seminar Leader.  Live ‘clinics’ lead by a Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist.

Assessment

All learning outcomes are assessed summatively.

All written assessments, see assessments with an asterix below, are either double-marked, or marked and moderated.

Assessors award marks using detailed criteria listed for each assessment and marking and feedback proformas.

The external examiner sees a sample of assessments.

All trainees must adhere to the IATE Codes of Ethics, Conduct and Practice. If a serious breach of ethics comes to light in any assessment the student will automatically fail the assessment, regardless of the marking criteria outlined on the marking sheet.

Students with disabilities and/or particular learning needs are asked to complete a Learning Agreement with the Academic Officer to ensure they are able to fully engage with all assessments within the programme.

Assessment Credits Year Module

Child Protection Exam

30 1 1

* Essay

* Clinical Seminar 30 1 2

Infant Observation Log 1 0 1 3

Child Psychiatry Exam

30 2 4

Child Mental Health Project

* Case Presentation 30 2 5

Infant Observation Log 2 0 2 6

* Infant Observation Paper

60 3 7

* Dissertation

Readiness to Practice Pass/fail 3 8

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Students undertake a placement through the ‘Helping Where it Hurts’ Project. The commitment is for two years, during which time our students will see two children in the first year, working up to a maximum of five children in the second year. The scheme has been offering arts therapy to primary school children for a number of years. It

supports the notion of early intervention to prevent the emotional pain that can result when children are in distress, cannot cope with difficult feelings they are experiencing and need support in understanding and managing

overwhelming emotions such as anger, rage, grief, betrayal and fear. It can build esteem, confidence, self-control, the ability to form relationships and concentrate.

The trainees work through a variety of arts mediums to facilitate expression of the feelings that may have been ‘bottled up’ or become too awful to bear, this has often resulted in all manner of disruptive and destructive behaviours. The mediums include art, sandtray, puppets, clay, movement, storytelling and poetry.

They need a safe, quiet place free from intrusions to meet weekly with each child for 50 minutes. They make confidentiality agreements with the children explaining that these cannot be broken unless the therapist believes they are in emotional or physical danger (i.e. child protection issues). The therapist will endeavour to talk to the child, if possible before talking to a third party. The therapists are not trained to deal with disclosures only to report them.

Psychiatric Placement: Students are required to undertake a 20-day Mental Health Familiarisation Placement (usually completed in the second or third years) in an institution or organisational setting where there is a multi-disciplinary team of child mental health professionals, working with seriously disturbed children and young people. The aim of the psychiatric placement is to gain familiarity and first-hand experience of the thinking, clinical methods and assessment tools used in child psychiatry in Great Britain.

Dissertation/project work

The dissertation module takes place in Year 3.

A case study is integral to the dissertation and requires that students write an in depth summary and analysis of their work with a child over a period of at least six months (one session per week minimum).

The clinical work should be taken from the candidate’s main field of clinical practice, revealing evidence of an Integrative approach to the arts and psychotherapeutic perspectives. It must reveal evidence of working with the imagination through a range of expressive media and include reference to the physiological, cognitive, affective and behavioural aspects of Integrative Child Psychotherapy in action. Students are required to evidence their core competencies in working in interdisciplinary teams. It must also reveal evidence of critical inquiry, rigour and evaluation.

Added value

Credits from this programme can be used to transfer onto a non-clinical training. Graduates may apply for registration with the UKCP once they have completed 450 child client hours

Your future career

On completion of the MA in Integrative Child Psychotherapy students will be eligible to use the title Trainee Integrative Child Psychotherapist. Students may apply for UKCP registration as an Integrative Child Psychotherapist when they have fulfilled the specific UKCP eligibility criteria

How we support you

Students can approach the Programme Director on this training for advice. They will be the first point of contact for students who seem to be falling behind and will offer advice and encouragement. This will be monitored in tutorials, which are held once a term.

Each student is allocated a Personal Tutor. The role of the Tutor is to monitor the effectiveness of the student’s learning providing feedback, encouragement and support, and any necessary remedial action.

The Academic Officer for the programme can be approached to arrange meetings, pass on emails or to provide any additional support that may be required.

Academic support is also offered to the students and additional learning support is in place for students with a statement of specific learning difficulties.

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Programme aims and learning outcomes

What is this programme designed to achieve?

This programme is designed to give opportunity to develop a career in Integrative Child Psychotherapy through clinical, academic, personal and professional development. This includes:

 Preparing students to be able to work therapeutically with the highest of ethical standards, with children in a variety of health, education, social services and private sector contexts.

 Providing opportunities to explore and examine how to prevent children’s unprocessed feelings and emotional and behavioural difficulties by helping them process their feelings to form meaningful and enriching connections with self and others.

 Enabling students to acquire a systematic understanding of knowledge and a critical awareness of insights into working therapeutically with children.

 Enabling students to develop clinical skills to be able to assess the emotional needs of child clients and to respond to these effectively leading to effective application of core competencies in clinical practice.

 Enabling students to evaluate critically current theory, research and interventions in order to deal with complex issues with sound judgement and communicate conclusions clearly to specialist and non- specialist audiences.

 Ensuring that students have acquired the reflective and evaluative skills necessary to monitor and appraise effectively their clinical work with children.

What will you learn?

Knowledge

1. A knowledge and understanding of essential Integrative Child Psychotherapeutic theory, which underpins the effective therapeutic treatment of children.

2. An understanding of the key aspects of Child Protection, Codes of Conduct, Codes of Professional and Ethical Practice so as to be able to work ethically with children.

3. A systematic understanding of knowledge of child development and a critical awareness of current issues and new insights with reference to the latest psychological and neurobiological theories and clinical evidence. 4. A thorough understanding of key aspects of Child Psychiatry so as to offer effective diagnoses and participate in

multi-disciplinary discussion with other Child Mental Health professionals.

Thinking skills

1. An advanced and detailed level of understanding of the theoretical and clinical principles of psychotherapy with children.

2. The ability to carry out scholarly research in the area of the theory and practice of Child psychotherapy. 3. A sound understanding of the issues relating to the use of medicines in the mental health treatment of

children, and an ability to engage in multi- disciplinary reflection on the validity or otherwise of such treatments.

4. The capacity to analyse a child’s communication of feeling in terms of transference, counter transference and through imagery.

5. An understanding of what it means to have an integrative approach to child psychotherapy and to talk fluently about personal models of integration.

Subject-Based Practical skills

1. The ability to engage in a psychotherapeutic relationship with children and relevant adults.

2. The capacity to provide effective therapeutic intervention solidly grounded in theory and taking account of the child in their context.

3. The capacity to convey accurate empathy to a child with an age-appropriate vocabulary, which shows clear evidence of ‘imagining in’.

4. The ability to enable children to process their feelings rather than unconsciously acting them out, discharging them or defending against them in detrimental ways.

5. The ability to work effectively with the child’s language of metaphor and to respond in this language with accurate empathy.

Skills for life and work (general skills)

1. Verbal communication and interpersonal skills.

2. Research skills and report writing, including critical inquiry, reflection and analysis. 3. Capacity to stay stable and thinking under high levels of stress.

4. Flexibility in adapting to a wide range of circumstances and settings.

5. Maintaining good professional relationships with clients, colleagues and management 6. Ability to negotiate and handle conflict confidently and respectfully.

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Introduction

All programmes are credit-rated to help you to understand the amount and level of study that is needed. One credit is equal to 10 hours of directed study time (this includes everything you do e.g. lecture, seminar and private study).

Credits are assigned to one of 5 levels:

0 equivalent in standard to GCE 'A' level and is intended to prepare students for year one of an undergraduate degree programme

1 equivalent in standard to the first year of a full-time undergraduate degree programme 2 equivalent in standard to the second year of a full-time undergraduate degree programme 3 equivalent in standard to the third year of a full-time undergraduate degree programme M equivalent in standard to a Masters degree

Credit rating

The overall credit-rating of this programme is 180 credits at M level.

Module 1 Introduction to Clinical Skills and Fundamental Principles in Integrative Child Psychotherapy 30 credits

Module 2 Psychotherapeutic Concepts for the Understanding of Babyhood and Childhood Experience 30 credits

Module 3 Infant Observation Year 1 0 credits

Module 4 Child Mental Health and Professional Issues in Child Psychotherapy 30 credits

Module 5 Image, Metaphor and the Inner World through Clinical Work in Child Psychotherapy 30 credits

Module 6 Infant Observation Year 2 0 credits

Module 7 Research & Dissertation 60 credits

Module 8 Preparation for Professional Practice 0 credits

Typical duration

How the teaching year is divided

The teaching year is divided into two semesters. The teaching year begins in October and ends in July. A typical student registered in a part-time attendance mode will study three modules per year in years 1 and 2 and 2 modules in year 3.

What you will study when

Level UEL Module Code Available by distance learning (Y/N)

Module Module Title Credits Year Status

M N 1 Introduction to Clinical Skills and Fundamental Principles in Integrative Child Psychotherapy 30 1 CORE M N 2 Psychotherapeutic

Concepts for the Understanding of Babyhood and Childhood Experience 30 1 CORE M N 3 Infant Observation Year 1 0 1 CORE

M N 4 Child Mental Health

and Psychiatric Issues in Child Psychotherapy

30 2 CORE

M N 5 Advanced Clinical

Skills and Image, Metaphor and the Inner World in Child Psychotherapy 30 2 CORE M N 6 Infant Observation Year 2 0 2 CORE M N 7 Research & Dissertation 60 3 CORE

M N 8 Readiness to Practice 0 3 CORE

Requirements for gaining an award

In order to gain a Postgraduate Certificate in Integrative Child Psychotherapy Studies, you will need to obtain 60 credits at Level M.

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Where a student is eligible for a Masters award then the award classification is determined by calculating the arithmetic mean of all marks and applying the mark obtained as a percentage, with all decimals points rounded up to the nearest whole number, to the following classification:

70% - 100% Distinction 60%- 69% Merit 50% - 59% Pass 0% - 49% Not passed

Further information

All sessions have compulsory attendance. UKCP regulations allow for only two days to be missed over the year. Any additional days must be attended and paid for the following year.

Teaching, learning and assessment

Teaching and learning

Knowledge is developed through

 Knowledge-based activities with feedback  Analysis of case material

 Direct contact with the teaching team, lecturing staff and other students including lectures, seminars, experiential workshops and group discussions.

 Supervised clinical practice in placements  Psychiatric placement.

Thinking skills are developed through  Group Process

 Supervised clinical practice in placements

 Student-researched presentations and research forums on the work of both artists and theoreticians.  Staff, peer and self-supervised role-play and facilitation practice.

 Tutorials and academic supervision of dissertations.  Essay.

 Dissertation.

Practical skills are developed through

 Student researched presentations and research forums on the work of psychologists, clinicians and artists.  Supervised clinical practice.

 Staff, peer and self-supervised role-play and facilitation practice.  Self, peer and staff appraisal in groups at the end of each term.  Rehearsal and preparations during performance arts projects.

 Individual personal psychotherapy, which is a UKCP requirement (one hourly session for the duration of the programme with a UKCP registered psychotherapist of their choice).

 Group process (usually one session of an hour and a half during term time student directed and staff facilitated).

Skills for life and work (general skills) are developed through

 Building capacity to relate to others with emotional intelligence, empathy and tact.  Supervised clinical practice in student placements.

 Staff, peer and self-supervised role-play and facilitation practice

 Student researched presentations and research forums develops presentation skills and confidence in speaking in groups.

 Rehearsal and preparations during performance arts projects.

 Individual personal psychotherapy which is a UKCP requirement (one hourly

session for the duration of the programme with a UKCP registered psychotherapist of their choice).  Group process (usually one session of an hour and a half during term time – student directed and staff

facilitated).

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Knowledge is assessed by;  Child Protection exam  Essays

 Child Psychiatry Exam  Child Mental Health Project

 Confirmation of attendance report from psychiatric placement  Case presentations.

 Dissertation including case study

 Readiness to Practice Viva and Written Transcript Thinking skills are assessed by:

 Clinical Seminar  Essays

 Child Mental Health Project

 Infant Observation Logs and Seminars  Case presentations and discussion  Dissertation including case study

 Readiness to Practice Viva and Written Transcript Practical skills are assessed by;

 Case presentations.

 Clinical supervisors report for submission during final examination and registration processes.

 Confirmation of attendance report from Individual Psychotherapist (not assessed for the reasons of privacy and confidentiality).

 IATE Group Process attendance requirement (not assessed for the reasons of privacy and confidentiality).  Essays and dissertation.

 Readiness to Practice Viva and Written Transcript Skills for life and work (general skills) are assessed by;

All items of assessment throughout the programme are designed to facilitate the development of transferable skills. These include the following in order of appearance:

Year One

Child Protection Exam Essay

Infant Observation Log - Year 1 Year Two

Child Psychiatry Exam Child Mental Health Project Case Presentation

Infant Observation Log - Year 2 Year Three

Dissertation

Infant Observation Paper

How we assure the quality of this programme

Before this programme started

Before this programme started, the following was checked:  there would be enough qualified staff to teach the programme;  adequate resources would be in place;

 the overall aims and objectives were appropriate;

 the content of the programme met national benchmark requirements;  the programme met any professional/statutory body requirements;

 the proposal met other internal quality criteria covering a range of issues such as admissions policy, teaching, learning and assessment strategy and student support mechanisms.

This is done through a process of programme approval, which involves consulting academic experts including some subject specialists from other institutions.

How we monitor the quality of this programme

The quality of this programme is monitored each year through evaluating:  external examiner reports (considering quality and standards);  statistical information (considering issues such as the pass rate);  student feedback.

 University annual monitoring  University revalidation  University Field Boards  University Award Boards

 UKCP Revalidation, every 5 years

Drawing on this and other information, programme teams undertake the annual Review and Enhancement

Process, which is co-ordinated at School level and includes student participation. The process is monitored by the Quality and Standards Committee.

Once every six years an in-depth review of the whole field is undertaken by a panel that includes at least two external subject specialists. The panel considers documents, looks at student work, speaks to current and former students and speaks to staff before drawing its conclusions. The result is a report highlighting good practice and identifying areas where action is needed.

The role of the programme committee

This programme has a programme committee comprising all relevant teaching staff, student representatives and others who make a contribution towards the effective operation of the programme (e.g. library/technician staff). The committee has responsibilities for the quality of the programme. It provides input into the operation of the Review and Enhancement Process and proposes changes to improve quality. The programme committee plays a critical role in the quality assurance procedures.

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The standard of this programme is monitored by at least one external examiner. External examiners have two primary responsibilities:

 To ensure the standard of the programme;

 To ensure that justice is done to individual students.

External examiners fulfil these responsibilities in a variety of ways including:  Approving exam papers/assignments;

 Attending assessment boards;

 Reviewing samples of student work and moderating marks;  Ensuring that regulations are followed;

 Providing feedback through an annual report that enables us to make improvements for the future.

The external examiner reports for this programme are located on the UEL virtual learning environment (UELPlus / Moodle) on the school notice board under the section entitled ‘External Examiner Reports & Responses’. You can also view a list of the external examiners for the UEL School by clicking on the link below.

http://www.uel.ac.uk/qa/CurrentExternalExaminers.htm Listening to the views of students

The following methods for gaining student feedback are used on this programme: List the methods that you use e.g.

 Module evaluations in the form of feedback sheets

 Student representation at the Academic Board 3 times a year  Programme Committee meetings 3 times a year

Students are notified of the action taken through:

 Circulating the minutes of the programme committee via email  Circulating the termly report-back via email

 Providing details on the programme noticeboard  Individual responses to students as required Listening to the views of others

The following methods are used for gaining the views of other interested parties: List the methods that you use

 Questionnaires to former students  Annual student satisfaction questionnaire  Staff/ Student liaison committee

Where you can find further information

Further information about this programme is available from:  The UEL web site (http://www.uel.ac.uk)

 The student handbook

 UEL Manual of General Regulations http://www.uel.ac.uk/qa/  UEL Quality Manual http://www.uel.ac.uk/qa/

 Regulations for the Academic Framework http://www.uel.ac.uk/academicframework/  IATE web site (http://www.artspsychotherapy.org)