The programme aims to develop students’ capacities to observe infants and young children and themselves in their work setting with children, young people or families.
It has been found that improved observational skills and the experience of observing babies and toddlers enhances the quality of direct work with children and young people in diverse settings, including education, social services, family centres, residential work, in-patient units and in counselling and arts-based therapies. The programme integrates observational tasks (directly with babies and young children) and in the applied setting of the students’ own places of work (all three tasks linked with small seminars led by experienced clinicians) with an introduction to psychoanalytic theory and to child development research and the development of the human personality from birth throughout the life cycle.

Most students already hold an honours degree or a professional qualification; they are expected to have at least one year’s experience (preferably more) of direct work with children, young people or families: and to be able to bring accounts of current work and interactions to the seminar. They need also to manage the academic requirements of the programme in terms of reading and written work, and, through interview, to be able to discuss their interest in observation and a psychoanalytic frame of reference, and to demonstrate that they will be able to manage the time demands as well as the emotional demands of the programme.

The course is part-time, and is offered either as a day-release course or on two evenings per week. Infant observation and work discussion seminars which are formatively assessed (seminar groups of five students) and reading seminars in Psychoanalytic Theory and Child Development Research are undertaken in the first year, at the end of which students may submit up to a total of two modules of the six required in the two year Postgraduate Diploma programme. (These are Psychoanalytic Theory (3,000-3,500 words) and Child Development Essay (3,000-3500 words) which comprise units 1-2.)

In the second year they continue with and are formally assessed in Infant Observation and Work Discussion, take on a Young Child Observation and its related seminar, as well as continuing with Psychoanalytic Theory and a non-assessed seminar in the Development of the Personality from a psychoanalytic perspective. There are thus four further written assessment units at the end of this second year (Papers of 4,000 words on Infant Observation and Work Discussion, a shorter paper on Young Child Observation (3,000-3,500 words) and a second Psychoanalytic Theory Essay (3,000-3,500 words)). There is provision for students to study fewer units in a given year and proceed through the course at a slower pace (maximum 4 years).

The course is taught either as a one-day or a two evening part-time course. Each seminar lasts for 1 1/4 hours. Infant Observation, Work Discussion and Young Child seminars are taught in groups of 5 with a clinician-seminar leader and are based on detailed presentations of reports of observation or of interactions in the work place. The seminar group work with the facilitation of the seminar leader on the interactions and their meaning, from a psychoanalytic and child development perspective. There are larger reading groups for Psychoanalytic Theory, Child Development Research and Personality Development in which set texts from reading lists are discussed with the seminar leaders. Students are often asked to take it in turn to lead the presentation of some of the reading. The reading list for Personality Development is more flexible.

Students are assessed in relation to their developing observational skills, the quality of their written presentations and their contribution to small group seminars. Seminar leaders discuss progress with them. Seminar leaders also communicate at least once a year, and more often if there are difficulties with the students’ personal tutor. The personal tutor is usually a seminar leader for one of the small seminars whom the student sees every week during term time. Formal academic assessment takes the form of the submission of written units at the end of each academic year (the first Wednesday in June). The written submissions are blind-marked (a proportion are double marked and a sample seen by the External Examiner). Students are sent the results of the assessment during August, along with detailed written comments from the markers.

Students report that the course is highly relevant to their professional work. Most report that they feel their working practice is changed fundamentally by the course, and that they feel their understanding of difficult or troublesome behaviour is enhanced. They also indicate that they feel more able to think under pressure and not to be forced in to premature action.

In the third year of the course, upon satisfactory completion of the first two years’ modules and required written work, students who proceed to MA are required to write a dissertation based on one or more of the modules of the course. They are not expected to undertake new research for the dissertation (although very occasionally some do). They are encouraged to think about the data they have gathered within the course or about psychoanalytic or child development literature and to develop a hypothesis which they work on with the aid of individual academic supervision (four to six in total) during two terms of the final year of the course. The dissertation with a maximum of 14,000 words is expected to be at a substantially more advanced level than the written work of the first two years of the course, and to demonstrate some capacity for critical thought and an ability to read literature and research material critically.

Students undertake this course as a pathway of continuing professional development. The course is a stand-alone course; its completion is also a prerequisite for application to the professional training in child and adolescent psychotherapy.

The course offers continuing professional development to professionals working with children, adolescents and families who seek to develop their capacity to observe and to think about the meaning of behaviour from a psychoanalytic vertex. A proportion of students (about 15 per year) are offered places on the professional training in child and adolescent psychotherapy. Some students seek adult psychotherapy training; apply to train as psychoanalysts, or for counselling training. Other students seek promotion within their own professions for example as teachers, social workers, nurses or therapists.

All students on the course are offered a lengthy individual interview on application. Once a place is offered students are allocated individual personal tutors whom they see weekly since the personal tutor is also a seminar leader for one of the weekly seminars. In addition all students are offered at least one long tutorial per term as well as having the opportunity to speak to their tutor from time to time as the needs arise. The course is demanding, academically and emotionally and so it is important to provide a high level of personal support. The organising tutor is always willing to speak to individual students and the ethos of the course is that individual need and difficulty are taken very seriously. There is communication between seminar leaders, personal tutors and the organising tutor although requests that discussions are kept confidential are respected. Students who are non-graduates or who struggle with written work are encouraged to talk to their tutors and seminar leaders in order to discuss where particular support may be available. Each year a full-day writing and essay writing workshop is offered at the Tavistock Centre on a Saturday in February or March to encourage students to begin to think about starting written submissions and to seek further support if they need it.

The Tavistock Clinic is a national and international centre of excellence in training in psychoanalytic and systemic psychotherapy and its applications. The course offers a high standard academic qualification alongside teaching from highly experienced clinicians who are able to offer a course which is firmly based in learning from experience. Students who are seeing primarily to develop their professional skills and abilities, but who are also seeking a postgraduate qualification are able to use the course for both purposes simultaneously.

In 2006-7 the Trust implemented MOODLE. MOODLE is a virtual learning environment accessible to students on courses validated by the Trust’s university partners. Each academic course has been allocated a MOODLE page which contains substantial information and resources. Students can hold virtual meetings in chat rooms and debate over a longer period of time using the discussion forum. MOODLE represents a significant technical advance for the Trust and offers excellent support to students, particularly those studying part-time or at a distance. Students also have access to UEL libraries.