A still from a film scene. Seated woman with cropped hair to the right presses a pad of paper into the lap of a seated woman with gathered braided hair to the left.

Spring 2025 brings the second series of CAT Training Films

Featured, Training, Training Films

We are really pleased to announce that our the second series of CAT Training Films are now available to stream. They depict five different clinical scenarios, aiming to represent challenging situations that may be encountered in CAT. You can find all the details at the dedicated page here. For a flavour of the material, watch the short trailer below. Here you’ll also catch a glimpse of the team of actors who helped make the films possible.

We are very grateful to all those whose goodwill, energies and improvisations helped director Kathryn Pemberton facilitate and edit the finished versions. You can see a full list of contributors on the information page. If you’ve purchased a copy of editor Yvonne Steven’s Creativity and Mental Health: A Cognitive Analytic Approach to Integrating Play and Imagination in Psychotherapy, Supervision and Training, you may have seen Kathryn’s chapter (14). In this she recounts reflections on creating two series of training films on cognitive analytic therapy as aides to learning.

Frank Margison lent us his keen overseeing eye on the weekend of filming. Frank was one of the working group who helped conceive and develop this second project. Others who couldn’t make it on the day were Glenys Parry and Mark Evans, but Rhona Brown brought a shelf-full of CAT books to help set the weekend’s stage.

The venue for filming was kindly provided by Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust. Their Endowment Grant funding also helped make it possible to begin the initial stages of this project. The Brickoven Video Production Company team kept us to time and focus over the weekend. They took care of the myriad (and exacting) technical aspects of the filming, sound, lighting and set design. To see some of their images of the filming on the day, click on their logo below.

Brickoven video production company log consisting of a flat triangle made of 12 blocks in hues of orange and brown

We very much hope that these resources will add fruitfully to the range of materials available to scaffold learning in CAT. They aim to support reflection and debate about possible therapeutic responses. They are particularly geared towards year 2 of Practitioner level training, and further CPD applications of CAT.

If you’re interested in subscribing, whether as a course, a Trust, a trainer, or even an individual seeking to refine your clinical skills, then you can do so on either an annual or three month basis. All subscription details are available at this link.

red spiral textile to the left, with warm grey shadows behind and to the right, on a pale wall

Not one but two new CPD events for 2025

CPD

The bad news: both of David Harvey’s’ CAT as a Tool for Leadership’ events in January and February are now fully booked up. If you weren’t quick enough to secure a place but want to attend another then do let us know. It’d be useful to hear whether you are interested in an in person or online repeat.

The good news: we have not one, but two, new CPD events in the calendar for 2025. First up is Kathryn Pemberton, one of our training team for the Practitioner Course. She will lead a day on CAT and Eating Disorders on Friday 21st March in Manchester. This will be an opportunity to think creatively with colleagues about this area of work. Kathryn will share her approach from assessment to follow up sessions, through to team enactments. She will draw on her own specialised practice in this area. The day will provide space to think about both process and content in therapy, and reflect on use of self in clinical practice.

Next up, Jenny Marshall and David Harvey are co-leading a day on CAT Reflective Practice: Skills for Facilitation on Thursday 8th May in Manchester. Reflective practice has become a staple of using CAT in support of teams and services, and there is much demand for it from a number of sectors. However even seasoned CATs may have found that while offering this as an intervention, they may not have had an opportunity for CAT-specific learning around the area. Alongside her trainer role with the Practitioner training, Jenny has of course co-authored a book specifically about applications of reflective practice in forensic work. David penned a chapter for this too. They will bring their collective experience, and help you reflect on the RP facilitator role. You can practise skills in a safe learning environment with colleagues. The day will help you create your own development plan going forward, whatever your level of experience.

You can book on to one or both by following the links above. We look forward seeing some of you there.

Leadership on Repeat – Feb 2025

CPD

There’s been such demand for David Harvey’s ‘CAT as a Tool for Leadership’ online event on 31 January, we’ve almost filled a repeat online event the following week. A few spaces remain so if you’re keen to learn more about how David applies the Multiple Self States Model to a leadership context, book your place soon. It takes place on Friday 7 February and you can book via the link at CAT as a Tool for Leadership – sixth run.

Update 18th December 2024: Fully booked (again)

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Leadership online in January 2025

CPD

We are pleased to let you know the first of 2025’s CPD days is now open for booking. David Harvey is offering an online version of his very popular day on CAT as a Tool for Leadership on 31st January 2025. The first planned run of this day had to be postponed during lockdown in 2020. David readily took the plunge into remote delivery, and it ended up being the first of our online events.  David has since led the day another three times face-to-face as part of our CPD programme.  He’s also delivered it for a couple of NHS Trusts who commissioned bespoke CPD days through Catalyse.  Each time it gets consistent feedback as highly relevant to the realities of NHS and other public service settings.  In the words of one participant:

“One of the few teachings that recognises the reality of our day to day work, and proposes realistic strategies to support a traumatized system.”

If you are familiar with David’s work you’ll know that he makes use of CAT’s Multiple Self States Model (MSSM) as applied to systems.  In addition to a systemic overview he also manages to back-translate this conceptual understanding into manageable, personal and human interventions which help to maintain more healthy communication and relationships amongst staff, teams and levels within systems where risk and complexity present frequent challenges.

We were reckoning up that over a hundred participants have benefitted from this training to date.  Perhaps we can entice David into considering a ‘next step’ follow-on of some sort. This could build on the leadership capabilities of those who have been using these ideas in their settings to date….

The day is open not just to CAT Practitioners, Psychotherapists and trainees. It is also relevant and open to all professionals tasked with leading or influencing other colleagues, teams or systems which support service users with complex needs and/or high risks. By running it online a second time, we hope it is accessible to those who may struggle to attend an in-person event. With increasingly unpredictable weather, especially in the winter months, this may circumvent problems with travel and keep CAT CPD on our agendas as the new year begins.

You can read more about the day and book on to January’s event through the link at https://catalyse.uk.com/cpd/cat-as-a-tool-for-leadership-31-january-2025/

Update 17 October 2024 – this event is now fully booked but do contact us if you’d like to add your name to a waiting list for cancellations or notification about a future repeat.