Plan Training for the Coming Financial Year

"This is the 3rd time I have done this training but this is the longest course I have done. I learn something new every time. It's incredibly useful & the online resource is fantastic. Phil is very knowledgeable and welcoming making the course brilliant. Thank you!"–

Course Participant

Practical, Evidence-Based Training That Strengthens Real-World Practice

As organisations look ahead to the coming financial year, many are balancing increased complexity with tighter resources. In this context, training needs to be more than informative—it needs to improve engagement, strengthen outcomes, and support staff to work effectively with complexity.

At Freespace, I deliver evidence-based, practice-focused training for professionals working in addiction, mental health, and complex need. All courses are grounded in frontline reality and designed to be immediately usable, not aspirational.

To enhance learning and retention, courses are supported by online materials, giving participants access to resources before, during, and after the training. In addition, an AI integration allows participants to rehearse skills post-training with virtual clients, providing safe, practical practice that embeds new techniques and strengthens confidence in real-world application.

Training is available online or in person, as 1- or 2-day programmes, and can be adapted to service priorities and capacity.

Core Change Approaches

These courses focus on how change happens—building motivation, strengthening engagement, and helping people move from ambivalence and stuckness into action.

• Motivational Interviewing (1 or 2 Day)A leading evidence-based approach designed to increase motivation in ambivalent, disengaged, or treatment-resistant clients. Focus on practical MI skills, responding to resistance, and strengthening commitment to change.

• Solution Focused Therapy (1 or 2 Day)A brief, strengths-based intervention that equips practitioners to help clients identify and mobilise their own personal resources to create meaningful and rapid change.

• Working with Stuck Clients (1 Day)Explores the key psychological processes that lead to stuckness in change and provides practical, evidence-informed strategies to help clients move from impasse into action.

Applied Behaviour Change in Addiction

These courses apply behaviour change principles to specific stages of recovery, supporting people to translate motivation into action and sustain change over time.

• Controlled Drinking Skills (1 or 2 Day)Structured approach to identify suitable candidates for moderation and deliver a comprehensive programme of controlled drinking skills.

• Structured Relapse Prevention (1 or 2 Day)Defines the critical stages of recovery and provides a wide range of practical relapse prevention and relapse management tools to support long-term change.

  
  

Core Addiction & Recovery Practice

These courses provide essential knowledge and practical skills to support recovery, manage risk, and respond effectively to substance use issues.

• Addiction, Dependence & Recovery (1 Day)Knowledge of substances of abuse, including emerging trends and legal highs, clear criteria for identifying substance misuse problems, and practical approaches to promoting recovery.

Assessment, Planning & Practitioner Effectiveness

These courses strengthen assessment, care planning, and practitioner skills to improve outcomes and embed effective working practices.

• Effective Assessment & Care Planning (1 Day)Supports workers to understand the function of triage and assessment processes and how these link with clear, outcome-focused care planning.

• Alliance Factors: Maximising Treatment Outcomes (1 Day)Explores what increases practitioner effectiveness and why some approaches work better than others.

• Psychologically Informed Environments (PIE) (1 Day)Examines the five core principles of PIE and supports services to apply them in practice, strengthening consistency, staff confidence, and psychologically informed responses to client need.

  
  

Mental Health & Complexity

These courses equip practitioners with practical approaches to support clients with mental health difficulties and complex presentations.

• CBT Toolbox for Mental Health (1 Day)Practical CBT-informed toolkit to support people experiencing psychosis, trauma, depression, and anxiety.

• Dual Diagnosis (1 or 2 Day)Explores how substance misuse and mental ill-health interact, with practical strategies for working effectively with complex presentations.

• Personality Disorders (1 Day)Clear framework to understand and respond to personality disorder presentations in frontline settings.

• Behavioural Activation for Depression (1 or 2 Day)Evidence-based approaches for internalised disorders such as depression and anxiety, including their interaction with substance use.

• Practical Management of ADHD (1 or 2 Day)Develops understanding of ADHD and provides practical strategies for engagement, support, and ongoing management.

• Practical Management of PTSD (1 or 2 Day)Builds understanding of PTSD and equips practitioners with tools to support symptom management and stabilisation.

  
  

Families, Young People & Transitions

These courses provide strategies to engage families, support young people, and manage critical life transitions to reduce risk and promote positive outcomes.

• Working with Concerned Others (1 or 2 Day)Demonstrates why families and significant others are central to the change process and provides a comprehensive practical skills framework.

• Adolescent Development & Substance Misuse (1 or 2 Day)Examines why substance misuse emerges at specific points in adolescent development and provides developmentally informed practice strategies, including support for key sub-populations of young people.

• Critical Time Interventions (1 Day)Supports people through major life transitions such as discharge from hospital, release from prison, or moves out of homelessness.

  
  

"Yes, amazing insight… Just wish we had more time to chat about things. Lots of useful stuff I can incorporate into my work. If I had an addiction issue I would really hope Phil could be my worker…"– Course Participant

Planning Ahead

Training can be delivered as stand-alone courses, structured learning pathways, or whole-service development programmes. Early planning for the new financial year helps secure dates, manage budgets, and tailor content to local priorities.

Click Me

If you’d like to discuss training for the coming financial year, including availability, flexible delivery options, online materials, and AI-supported skills practice with virtual clients, get in touch to start the conversation.