Contact and Connection: Therapy, Children and the Creative Arts

Psychotherapist and trainer Jon Blend, MA facilitates this ‘taster’ event. Jon has over fifteen years experience of working with young persons and their families, both in the NHS and in private practice. He has trained with Dr. Violet Oaklander and his writings, on children and adolescence, have featured in the British Gestalt Journal, the International Gestalt Journal and the Journal of Pastoral Care in Education.

This workshop is for counsellors, psychotherapists, doctors, nurses, social workers, teachers, emergency and pastoral care staff and others working directly with young persons. The focus will be practice -oriented and practical; we will be working with arts materials so appropriate clothing is advised. This event also provides an introduction to the five-day certificated course entitled: “A Gestalt Approach to Working with Children and Adolescents “, 11th-15th April 2011.

Some of the following topics will be covered:

* What children need: A developmental perspective

* Attunement, boundaries, containment, grounding, presence

* Enjoyable, relational ways of engaging children using: drawing, clay, and music -making

* The wider ‘field’ or context: family and neighbourhood influences on children and teenagers

* Understanding angry feelings and how to work safely with them

* Training and development: ‘next steps.’