At the Christian Counselling Centre we offer a two-year Lay Christian Counsellor Training Programme. The training consists of three phases: Basic, Intermediate and Advanced Courses.
This is an introduction to Christian Counselling and Pastoral Care and is designed to equip anyone with skills to help friends, colleagues or family members. Anyone may sign up for this course and we run it three or four times a year.
It is run over three Saturdays. ie. Three full days. Many people from church leaders, home group or cell leaders to teachers, nurses, in fact anyone with a heart for hurting people will benefit from this course.
The course also seeks to counteract some of the pre-conceived ideas some have about Christian counselling and helps participants decide whether counselling is a ministry they wish to pursue further.
Cost: Equivalent of USD90
This course is open to selected individuals and is run over two school terms – usually January to August, with a break half way for the school holidays. It requires attendance at once a week evening sessions as well as four Saturday morning workshops. Trainees are required to submit homework assignments, read certain books, conduct taped sessions and observe counselling sessions at the Centre. Written and oral and recorded assessments are also conducted. The course covers the following topics:
- Core Conditions of Counselling
- Further Counselling Skills
- Practical Aspects of Counselling
- A Behavioural Model of Counselling
- Marriage Counselling
- HIV/AIDS Counselling
- Bereavement Counselling
The goal of the Intermediate Course is to produce counsellors who can go into their churches and wider communities and help deal with the most pressing needs and problems experienced. eg. Marriage problems, HIV/AIDS and Bereavement. This course therefore concentrates on practical solution-focused therapies. Those who train to Intermediate level will reach what we believe is a reasonable degree of competence, will be familiar with a useful model of counselling and have sufficient skills and knowledge to be of use in their churches and communities.
Cost: Equivalent of USD500
Trainees having successfully completed the Intermediate Course are further screened and selected before admission to the Advanced Course. It runs over three school terms and consists of a year’s training. The 33 weekly three–hour AFTERNOON sessions are supplemented by 6 Saturday morning workshops. Requirements:
- written homework exercises
- required reading
- taped sessions
- written and oral assessments
- 50 hours counselling or co-counselling
- counselling with fellow trainee
- book reports
Time required to successfully complete the course: 14-16 hours per week
Cost: Equivalent of USD1,000. The Advanced Course is a year-long programme.
All who wish to work as counsellors at the Christian Counselling Centre must successfully complete all three stages of the training. The Advanced Course concentrates on the 5 Circles Model (an adaptation of Waverley Abbey’s Model of Counselling). This course takes counselling to a deeper level and covers a wide range of problem areas.
For further details please contact us and we will be happy to supply you with dates and more information on our up-coming courses.