News Highlights - the latest developments in play therapy

The Demand for Play Therapists in New Zealand
PTI World Congress
Research
Collaborative partnership with Canterbury Christ Church University - UK
QAA Audit
2010 Summer School

The Demand for Play Therapists in New Zealand

PTI has completed (October 2010) a model for PTNZ that estimates the demand for play therapists in New Zealand.  It is based upon the 2006 New Zealand Census data for children and young persons aged 5 to 14.  As well as showing the overall total (1435 therapists) it also gives estimates for each territory. A few examples are:

                                                           Clients        Sessions     Therapists

Auckland City                                           11,311          135,729                123

Christchurch City                                       9,912          118,949                108

Dunedin City                                               3,067            36,803                  33

Hamilton City                                             4,217            50,602                  46

Invercargill City                                          1,570            18,839                  17

Marlborough District                                  1,229            14,749                  13

New Plymouth District                               2,234            26,813                  24

Tauranga City                                             3,281            39,366                  36

Waipa District                                            1,487            17,838                  16

Wellington City                                          4,688            56,259                  51

Western Bay of Plenty District                   1,443            17,318                  16

The model uses parameters established through research by Play Therapy International (PTI).  For details of other territories please email Jeff Thomas - Director of Research at jefferyht@yahoo.co.uk

2010 Play Therapy World Congress

Following 18 months of planning and preparation, the 2010 Play Therapy World Congress took place between May 13^th and 24^th in Marrakech, Morocco.  It produced an attendance of 598 delegate days. A more appropriate sub title might have been ‘We shall overcome!’

The President of PTI, Monika Jephcott, sincerely thanked the presenters and delegates, whose commitment and resolution, overcame many difficulties to attend.  “You came from the corners of the earth by air and by land and although, as far as we know, no one travelled on the Marrakesh Express, many had nerve wracking journeys.” She then reviewed the progress made by PTI/PTUK since 2004.  Her concluding remark, “Although therapeutic play has a serious purpose, play is also about having fun” was followed by an amazing drumming session in which the whole audience participated. This was one of the really memorable highlights of the Congress.  At the conclusion of the drumming Monika announced: “As a gesture of appreciation to all of you who overcame the problems to attend – the drum is yours, to take home!”  A wonderful gasp of surprise came from the audience. (Hear it on the Congress video).

Watch a short video capturing the spirit of the Congress

The majority of the Plenary session was devoted to four key note addresses. Mike Shooter,   Chairman of the Mental Health Foundation, Chairman of Young Minds and pat President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, addressed the theme of integrating the deployment  of the psychological professions – working together for the benefit of the children. In addition to the ‘four Ps’ he reminded us that a fifth ‘Passion’ was vital.  He stressed the importance of taking therapeutic risks at crucial moments and also the significance of ‘windows of opportunity’ opening at unexpected times, often at times when a fully trained play therapist is not available.  How can we deal with this situation?

Sue Gerhardt, psychoanalytic psychotherapist, author of the influential ‘Why Love Matters’ and the recently published ‘The Selfish Society’ showed us how we can create a more loving society to get away from a self centred one,.  This may be achieved by focusing on how adults pass on their emotional skills to the babies in their care.  This theme was further developed in the afternoon session by Dr Fraser Brown showing how play as a therapeutic tool was used to repair the emotional damage that the Romanian orphans had suffered.  His main perspective has been mainly play work, but with a potential therapeutic perspective  This suggests that there should be more collaboration and integration between Play Workers and Play Therapists. 

Our final keynote speaker - Sir Richard Bowlby – returned to the most significant source of emotional problems – insecure attachment  - by examining the psychological coping mechanisms used by babies, toddlers and young children who experience disruptions to attachment relationships.  In a separate interview he paid tribute to the ways in which PTI and APAC have incorporated attachment theory into their model of play therapy. (see Congress video for interviews with all four key note presenters).

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Research

PTUK's research policies and activities are based on our systemic view of play therapy practice. This shows the importance of the evidence base upon which our competency framework, the foundation of training, learning and practice is constructed. PTUK's approach to play therapy practice is evidence based.

In turn the evidence base is updated by original research and practice based evidence.  The main emphasis of our current research programme is practice based evidence which is stored and analysed in the SEPACTO national database of play therapy clinical outcomes. This uses data derived from practice as a by product of clinical governance.  It's results are more likely to be replicated by others in future practice.  It is also used to justify funding on play therapy services.  When PTUK was formed there was a dearth of quantitative research upon the efficacy of play therapy. The latest findings (see news for details) are based on over 1600 cases which show that 70% of children receiving play therapy from PTUK Members exhibit a positive change. This continuous research programme places PTUK firmly in the lead of play therapy research.

It is felt that the main objective, set some five years ago, that the research priority was quantitative research to establish the effectiveness of play therapy has now been achieved in the UK. Whilst this type of research needs to continue, especially in other countries to ascertain if there is a similar beneficial effect, there now needs to be change of emphasis. We propose to develop three main areas:

1. The proportional use and the benefit of the various creative arts media that make up the ‘Play Therapy Tool-Kit’
2. The efficacy of play and creative arts therapies upon various conditions such as trauma, forms of autisim, ADHD, anger etc
3. Provide more encouragement and help for individual qualiitative research projects that explore new areas

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Workshop Programme – the Proven and the New

During the next three days 52 workshops/seminars took place..  27 of these presented proven methods that enabled Play Therapists to extend their skills and the range of children’s conditions that they could work with.  The other 25 presented completely new material – the leading edge of therapeutic play.  A selection of these innovations will be developed by PTI/PTUK in conjunction with their originators with the intention of disseminating them into widespread practice.

Conclusions

PTI is analysing and reflecting upon the Congress Just as good therapists do in their own practice.  So far four main themes are being explored, two of them concerned with the implementation of practice.

Conditional rolling programmes

In her opening address the President referred to the limited success of ‘projects’, especially the inability to achieve sustainability.  This is a complex problem when attempting to introduce play therapy into countries that are developing economies but it is also an issue in the developed world.  One main reason is the allocation of funding, which is often only issued a year at a time and tied to annual contracts.

We have become conditioned to this fixed, short term way of working.  But effective therapeutic work with a population of children requires continuity - a sustainable programme for at least five years and ideally forever.  We don’t expect our doctor’s surgery or our dentist to disappear after a year. 

However, play therapy is still an emergent profession and it is only in the last three years that PTI has provided a credible body of research that proves its effectiveness.  So realistically we can’t expect the decision takers to commission unconditional, open ended programmes. 

What we can justifiably ask for is a staged programme where permission to proceed to the next stage is dependent upon the results of the previous one.  The important thing is to get approval in principle to the overall rolling programme.  The stages will each need to have milestones that specify their outcomes.  ‘If we achieve x then we will proceed to y’.  As each stage is completed further ones are added to the programme, continually extending the time horizon.  This is a different approach to a project, which has a definite ending.  Of course projects can be included as parts of stages in a conditional programme but they must be regarded as stepping stones, not the whole trip.

Working with younger children

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Collaborative Partnership With Canterbury Christ Church University

Overseas Venues

The Academy of Play and Child Psychotherapy (APAC) is delighted to announce that its collaborative partnership with Canterbury Christ Church University (CCCU) in the UK, has been extended to cover the delivery of the MA in Practice Based Play Therapy programme in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Malta and New Zealand.

Forthcoming ‘Post Graduate Certificate in Therapeutic Play Skills’ and ‘Post Graduate Diploma in Play Therapy’ courses to be delivered by APAC, as stages 1 and 2 in the Masters programme, in these countries are subject to a venue check by the University as scheduled below:

The academic awards will be made by Canterbury Christchurch University; each of the three stages results in the award of 60 Level 7 credits .  The professional, clinical awards will be made by Play Therapy International (PTI) as certificates of practice: ‘Practitioner in Therapeutic Play Skills’ and ‘Certified Play Therapist’.

The programme will be the first and only one at Post Graduate and Masters level, accredited by a recognised university, in Play Therapy, in each of these countries.  By meeting the highest academic standards and the PTI international standards of practice competencies, it will enhance successful trainees' professional credibility and earning power.  It will enable them to achieve professional parity with other mental health professionals.

The collaborative partnership between APAC and CCCU has been in existence since 2006 in the United Kingdom where the programme is delivered at 9 venues in the UK, Ireland and France. The programme has become the most successful in Europe in terms of clinical results with the children (see research page/section) and number of trainees.

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Canterbury Christ Church University has received the highest Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA) rating – ‘Complete Confidence’ - following an audit earlier this year.  A significant part of this audit included managing collaborative partnerships focussing on the one with APAC because of its multi venue delivery of post graduate play therapy training courses.

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The sixth Summer School, held at the La Mouline Training Centre at St Genest, Tarn in the South of France was attended by 40 participants and two new trainee Course Directors.  The Post Graduate Certificate in Therapeutic Play Skills and the Post Graduate Diploma in Play Therapy attracted participants from 11 countries, maintaining the international flavour of the programme.

Interestingly delegates from the more remote parts of Scotland found that the courses were less costly than attending five, three day weekends, in the UK, even taking into account the weak pound.

Good for budget airlines! Only Lufthansa from Munich was over two hours late!

Although there were more cooler days and rain this year, there was still plenty of sunshine and organic fruit and vegetables from La Mouline’s gardener.  The lunches, were described as ‘fantastic.’

Although there were more cooler days and rain this year, there was still plenty of sunshine and organic fruit and vegetables from La Mouline’s gardener.  The lunches, were described as ‘fantastic’

The certificate course was plagued for half a day with electricity cuts.  No storms, no line repairs, no excessive load.  A call for Ricard (the electrician, not the French drink) who with his multitude of test meters found the cause - ants in the external lights wiring!

As for the teaching – “I'm really feel lucky that I had the opportunity to be part of the certificate group because my dream is coming true..... THANKS FOR INVENTING THIS COURSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm sure that all the children that I will be helping will want to say this phrase to you..... “

Next year’s dates are:

Post Graduate Certificate in Therapeutic Play Skills

Saturday 23th July 2011 to 6th August 2011

Post Graduate Diploma in Play Therapy

Sunday 7th August 2011 to 21st August 2011

For details of courses