Working Creatively with Groups (1-3 days)

Often workers shy away from groups, being somewhat anxious about emerging Group Dynamics and the challenge of effective leadership.
Working with groups is not only time efficient, making the best use of resources, but the medium also provides a unique opportunity for experiential learning and development.

This course is designed for experienced staff who wish to gain a basic knowledge of Group Dynamics, constructing a group in a social support setting and group leadership.
This course would not be suitable for people who intend providing ‘group therapy’.
The course certificate will provide NVQ links.

Learning Objectives:

By the end of this course learners should have understood:

• What makes a ‘group’
• The different types of groups
• The advantages of working with a group of people (for staff)
• The disadvantages of working with a group of people (for staff)
• What an individual can gain from being in a group
• The negatives for a service user of being in a group
• The type of groups that are commonly provided in social support settings e.g.:
        -Discussion
        -Cooking
        -Recreation
        -Current affairs etc.
• The groups that are more ‘therapeutic’ and generally involve work on more personal issues and disclosure:
        -Hearing voices
        -Bereavement
        -Women/Men
        etc.
• Why these groups could be high risk in a residential setting
• The requirements of a group leader in these groups
• The limitations of the untrained support worker
• The complexity of confidentiality
• What is meant by Group Dynamics and how these develop over the lifecycle of a group
• The policy and planning stages of a group
• How to start and manage a group
• Different models of Group Work
• Different facilitation and leadership styles
• Facilitation skills
• How to putt theory into practice

Training methods:

• Tutor presentations
• Chalk & Talk
• Small group work
• OHP/PowerPoint
• Handouts
• Role Play
• Facilitation exercises

CP75/4.9