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Behavioural Family Therapy Training

Course duration: 5 days (usually consecutive, but can be flexible on request)

Behavioural Family Therapy (BFT) is an evidence-based, effective and practical skills-based approach in which the therapist, service user and family members work together to promote:

  • Knowledge acquisition
  • Positive communication
  • Problem-solving skills
  • Coping skills
  • Stress reduction
  • Relapse prevention
  • Achievement of individual goals

The National Institute for Clinical Excellence Guidelines for Schizophrenia (NICE, 2014) recommend that family interventions are offered to 100% of families where someone experiences episodes of schizophrenia. Evidence indicates that this approach is effective for those with bipolar disorder, major depression and other long-term mental health problems.

Those who undertake the training should have a commitment to working with families and should be comfortable using a practical, here-and-now approach. During the training, participants will learn and feel more confident about:

  • Policy and research around families and carers
  • Working with carers and families
  • Carer and family assessments
  • Early warning signs
  • Communication skills
  • Problem solving

The course is facilitated by multi-disciplinary speakers and facilitators from the Meriden Family Programme. There are some didactic elements, but the course mainly consists of skills-based experiential learning where participants have the opportunity to practice skills and get feedback.  Skills-based practice is carried out in small groups with a 1:5 tutor to participant ratio throughout the course.

All participants are provided with a detailed training manual and additional hand-outs as part of the training.

  • Example flyer
  • Course learning objectives
  • Example course evaluation/newsletter article
  • Quotes from participants