Providing expert mediators nationwide

Training and courses

With our highly experienced team of trainers, coaches and facilitators, we are able to offer a variety of courses and training programmes, including in-house.

Courses vary in length from 1.5 hours to 1- 8 day accredited training. All courses are Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA)/Law Society accredited for continuing professional development points.

Current courses include:

For Legal Representatives:

“Getting the Best out of Mediation for your Client.”

This course concentrates on the role of the legal representative in a mediation and how they can assist in the mediation process and make the most of the mediator’s service including:

  • Preparing as if for trial
  • An open minded/flexible approach
  • Giving the client air time at the mediation
  • Using the mediator to share the burden of a difficult client or case
  • Providing a costs summary
  • Managing the client’s expectations
  • Pitching offers
  • Dealing with deadlock
  • It includes an interactive role-play based on a real life case highlighting the do’s and don’ts for legal representatives.

For Mediators:

“Who do you think you are?”

This is a 1-day course to:

  • Enhance self awareness of the mediator’s own mediation style
  • Develop awareness of the mediator’s potential influence
  • Look at strategies for developing personal styles
  • Identify areas of personal development

The course provides a balance of knowledge based and practical training and agreed personal development action plans for the mediator.

For the Employer and their Employees

A full programme in Workplace mediation, with ILM(Institute of Leadership and Management) development and endorsed awards.

This is an 8 day programme delivered in 2 modules.

Module 1 Basic Foundation Skills

– Development Award (24-28 hours contact)

For training mediators and those who will make referrals – supports organizations in identifying mediators with the right skills and assists HR and managers in understanding when and how to use mediation. An interactive and experiential course where participants will be involved as disputants and mediators in case study role plays developed from real cases.

Topics covered:

Conflict Awareness

  • Understanding conflict theory, how it applies to the workplace and basic workplace structures and processes in managing conflict

Understanding Mediation Basics

  • Mediation as a 6-stage dispute resolution method: comparison with other forms of dispute resolution, appropriateness of mediation, values and principles, benefits of mediation, qualities and skills of a mediator, conflict mapping, process startup (stages 1-2)

Working through the Process

  • Planning appropriate approaches, holding joint meetings – encouraging dialogue / problem solving to reach resolution / generating and evaluating options/ agreements and closing, strategies for handling resistance to mediation, understanding emotion as part of the conflict (stages 3-6)

Module Two – Leading the Mediation Process

– Endorsed Award – Assessed (24-28 hours contact plus 10 hours assessment portfolio)

For those who will conduct mediations for organizations (and have completed Module One), this module will strengthen understanding of the process and development of the methods and skills required to handle mediation cases. Again, an interactive and experiential course where participants are involved as disputants and mediators in case study role plays developed from real cases.

Topics covered:

Developing Process Management Skills

  • Setting the tone, facilitation skills, identifying opportunities, developing assertiveness in managing difficult behaviours, high emotion, and power imbalances, generating and evaluating options / writing agreements / closing

Handling prejudice and discrimination – mediation vs ‘the law’

  • Stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination, how prejudice manifests in workplace, strategies for handling prejudice and discriminatory attitudes, defining what’s ‘mediatable’

Developing a Service

  • Agreements – who owns them, service issues – case management, confidentiality & follow-up, supervision and action learning – ensuring service quality

Study Support and Case Supervision

We can additionally provide Study Days to support participants in completion of their portfolios. We also provide individual and group supervision to delegates completing our ILM course as they develop their practice as mediators. Additionally, we can support the administrative side of case management for services on a per case fee basis.