Suzanne Keys - 'Encountering the erotic in therapy relationships'
Saturday 28th August 2010

A group of practitioners met for a day in August 2008 and 2009 to explore this theme and so 2010 is both part of an ongoing inquiry and encounter and an invitation to any person-centred therapists interested in sharing and deepening their awareness in this area of their work. For those who are interested Suzanne can send out resources from the first workshop.

This is an opportunity to look at what we mean by the erotic within person-centred therapy, to share dilemmas and discoveries and be open to meeting and learning. It is based on the experience that if there are areas we are not willing to look at as practitioners together then these can lead to incongruent and unethical practice.

Suzanne Keys will be the facilitator. She has been involved in person-centred therapy for the last 15 years as a client, therapist, trainer and supervisor. She is very interested in love in all its manifestations in therapy and has led workshops on this nationally and internationally. She has edited books on idiosyncratic person-centred practice and work with children and young people (PCCS Books) and a special issue of the international person-centred and experiential therapy journal on the theme of gender. She has contributed chapters to books on spirituality, politics and ethics. She lives in London with her partner and young son and works as a trainer at the City Literary Institute in London and Temenos in Sheffield and as a counsellor at Newham Sixth Form College in London. She is a regular group facilitator in Scotland where she enjoys being with other person-centred practitioners.

Date: Saturday 28th August 2010
Time: 10am – 5pm
Venue: Water of Leith Conservation Trust
Lanark Road
Edinburgh EH14 1TQ
Cost: £65

Brian Thorne - 'The Costly Task of Being Fully Present'
Saturday 9th October 2010

** This event is now FULL **

** please note the change of venue**

In this seminar/workshop Brian Thorne explores the concepts of Presence (Rogers) & Tenderness (Thorne) & outlines the demands & rewards experienced by the therapist who attempts to offer these qualities. He also spells out the implications for the development of a spiritual discipline by the practitioner involved and strongly questions the appropriateness of state regulation for such work.

The seminar/workshop includes lectures, small group work and plenary discussion. It will be of interest to person-centred and pastoral counsellors and to all those concerned with the evolution of the human spirit.

Date: Saturday 9th October 2010
Time: 10am - 3.30pm
Venue: St Mary’s Parish Centre
61 York Place
Edinburgh EH1 3JD
Cost: £85

Brian Thorne is Emeritus Professor of Counselling at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, Co-founder of the Norwich Centre and a Lay Canon of Norwich Cathedral. He is an international figure in the world of person-centred therapy and a widely published author whose books include best-selling titles co-authored with Professor Dave Mearns and a study of the life and work of Carl Rogers.

Cate Kelly - 'How have you been affected by adoption'
Saturday 6th November 2010

I want to take a fluid approach to the workshop. I hope that those who are drawn to do so will join in an exploration of how adoption affects/has affected each of the participants, whether in a professional, a personal capacity or a combination and interplay between both. I want to provide a safe, trusting space where we can meet and will all feel able to bring our experiences about adoption. I hope that through our encounter we will be able to give and take in a way which feels that our own experiences are heard, respected and valued and that we are all able to offer the same to all who choose to participate.

In exploring my thoughts about this workshop I found myself being drawn to the title: ‘How have you been affected by adoption?’ and saying to myself: “How have I been affected by adoption”. I know that, because I am the whole of me, the personal as well as the professional me, thirty seven years of ‘professional’ adoption work had and continues to have a deep personal impact on me. I worked in Local Authority and voluntary adoption agencies for thirty four years…with all members of the ‘adoption triangle’. Currently, as a counsellor in private practice and using the BACP ‘Find a Therapist’ website as my sole source of advertising, I know that people who need my help with something concerning adoption find me. Adoption work drew me in as a trainee social worker, age 22. I remain compelled by the complexity of human emotions which engage with all the adoption issues I meet.

About Me

In addition to the above information about my professional work : I have been qualified as a Person-centred counsellor for over eleven years. Currently I have a small private practice in South Manchester. I work with adults, young people and children. I supervise trainee and qualified counsellors. In 2008 I had two chapters published in a book on working with children with the PCA. One of the chapters is about facilitating therapeutic work with children placed for adoption by working alongside their adoptive parents. I am married with three adult children and three grandchildren.

Date: Saturday 6th November 2010
Time: 9.30am – 4.30pm
Venue: St Columba’s by the Castle
14 Johnston Terrace
Edinburgh
EH1 2PW
Cost: £70

Gillian Proctor & Linda Smith - 'Boundaries'
Saturday 20th November 2010

We invite you to a day of encounter exploring boundaries...

Boundary: an often imaginary line separating one thing from another. (Encarta dictionary).

So eventually we come to the boundary of our freedom. (The ending of time. Krishnamurti J; Bohm, D.)

Given that we all use supervision consistently for our work, we want to offer a space where we can experiment, in a considered way, with how we make our personal decisions about the boundaries we ethically value. Of all the concepts we encounter, "Boundaries", seems to stand alone as if it is understood. The word does not appear in the BACP Ethical Framework and seems to be the single, most significant concept by which our work stands.

Gillian Proctor
having recently expanded the boundary of my body to include another (being pregnant), I am fascinated by the concept of boundaries between myself and others.

Linda Smith
I have an idea that some of my boundaries are unknown to me and therefore unspoken, yet probably expressed and communicated differently, depending on the relationship, in the moment. I think a group of courageous people in their wisdom will be able to offer a space for adventure.

Date: Saturday 20th November 2010
Time: 10am – 5pm
Venue: TBC
Cost: £65