Sandplay and creative therapies

Supervision Groups space available 

Monthly: Tuesdays at The Nautilus Rooms, Totnes 

 6pm – 8pm 

£40 per person

If you would like an online Zoom group contact me. I have an existing online group which is working well. 

Some experience of sandplay is required to join these groups. If you are interested please contact me. 

A highly experiential introduction to sandplay therapy which will also build on any prior experience you may have had and act as a refresher and so much more... It is an ideal starting point for anyone wishing to start their sandplay journey and also a good ‘topper upper’ for those who have experienced some sandplay in their learning journey. Based on Jungian and transpersonal perspective. 

Feedback for this course is terrific: 

'The best CPD I have ever done' 

'An opportunity to fully explore and gain a deeper understanding of sandplay therapy'

9th and 10th December 2023 Some space still available 

10th and 11th February 2024

20th and 21st April 2024 

8th and 9th June 2024 

14th and 15th September 2024

16th and 17th November 2024 

Cost 

£225 this includes a deposit of £75. 

This course is organised as four 3-day weekends. 

The aim of this course is to bring depth and understanding to your sandplay work from a Jungian and Transpersonal perspective. The course carefully weaves theory and experiential work. This work integrates well into other theoretical perspectives. 

Weekend 1: 13th, 14th 15th October 2023

Weekend 2: 24th, 25th, 26th November 2023 

Weekend 3: 12th, 13th, 14th January 2024

Weekend 4: 1st, 2nd, 3rd March 2024

Cost 

Total cost of the course is £1800 payable in instalments. 

Deposit: £200 secures a place on the course. 

Certificate of Attendance 

You will need to: 

• Attend the course in full. (Catch up sessions due to illness can be arranged) 

Full Diploma in Integrative Sandplay Studies 

You need to: 

• Attend the course in full (catch up session due to illness can be arranged) 

• Complete 50 hours of client Sandtrays which have been supervised by an AIST approved supervisor. 

• A minimum of 10 hours supervision with an AIST approved supervisor. 

• Use the Supervision Record Template provided and submit a log of the supervision record signed by your AIST supervisor.

• The supervisor will need to provide a declaration the supervision has been completed to a satisfactory level. 

• Supervision should be for current clients and should contain at least one example of a series of Sandtrays from the same client which have been reflected upon (as a series) in supervision.  

• Completed a minimum of a Level Three or Certificate in Counselling Skills. 

• In some circumstances the individual may be asked to complete further therapy prior to receiving the full Diploma. This will be discussed with the Course Tutor prior to the end of the course. 

• If you have failed to achieve the above requirements the opportunity to pass the course to a satisfactory level will be available through either additional supervision and/or therapy. 

• To keep a personal journal of your sandplay journey throughout the duration of the course. 

An introduction to the world of therapeutic art and symbolism. When we express our inner world through paint or pastels, we can somehow make a different sense of ourselves in the here and now. 

Dates 

16th and 17th March 2024 

2nd and 3rd November 2024 

Cost 

£225 this includes a deposit of £75. 

The deposit holds the place for you.

Creative weekends

These weekends will include a mix of sand, art and meditation – a soul filling exploration .. 

Themes tbc

11th and 12th May 2024 

29th and 30th June 2024 

Am I eligible for these courses?

These courses are aimed at counsellors, psychotherapists, psychologists, coach’s’, and those working more widely in the helping professions and education. They are suitable for people working with all age’s groups i.e., children through to adults, couples and groups. 

Course Location 

The courses are run from The Nautilus Rooms in Totnes, Devon UK which houses a fabulous collection of sandplay symbols built specifically to give students a full experience of the power of sandplay. 

Totnes is a thriving market down and in itself a fantastic place to source symbols (it has become a tradition to look at student’s symbol purchases after lunch). People travel from all over the country and abroad for these courses. Totnes is on the mainline railway from London Paddington. 

Questions 

Course size

These courses tend to be small 5-9 people which allows plenty of time for individual processing and experiential work. These creates a fantastic intimacy and depth of work. 

Can’t make the date.

Interested in a course but cannot make the date – do let me know there may be others in the same position as you. 

Bespoke Courses

I have run a number of trainings for organisations and charities in sandplay therapy. If your organisation or group of colleagues are interested please contact me to discuss. 

Ruth first degree is in psychology, and has been working as a counsellor and psychotherapist for over 25 years. She has woven her career to embrace both the therapeutic work she loves with her initial training and working as a probation officer then moving into the NHS as a key worker and then manager. She has enjoyed a rich career of focussing on individual and service / system change. This extensive experience of working with individuals, couples and groups from a range of different backgrounds including the criminal justice system, mental health services, drug and alcohol services, healthcare provisions including hospices and private practice Ruth brings into her teaching. 

Ruth has a love of nature she lives on a small holding and enjoys – walking – swimming – gardening and growing and being in wild spaces. She is a student of the Diamond Approach which is a dynamic, evolving teaching and exploration of all that leads to openness, freedom, and realization of the many dimensions of our human potential—especially the amazing secrets of our spiritual nature. 

She has extensive training in Integrative Sandplay Therapy and Therapeutic Art and is a teacher of mindfulness. She is a counsellor, psychotherapist, supervisor, consultant and teacher. 

Ruth is a teacher and supervisor within the Association of Integrative Sandplay Therapists (AIST) courses who accredit these courses. 

Ruth’s depth of knowledge and experience is valued and commented on by students as is her ability to hold the space for deep and rich learning to take place. 

Feedback on Ruth’s teaching:

‘Thank you, Ruth, for your gentle teaching, holding and facilitation. As I get older, I find myself a bit fussy about who I feel I can learn deeply from and you are definitely one of those people who wisdom and knowledge has a depth which is so rich I find I can settle in (relax) and absorb with confidence.’

‘I found the practical frameworks very useful’

‘…such thoughtful training. Ruth created an environment in which I felt safe and secure at all times. 

‘The handouts are very comprehensive and will be hugely helpful to refer back to’

‘Having experienced sandplay as a client I really have the sense of depth it can bring to my clients’ 

‘The balance of experiential work and practical was so useful – I feel I am going away with some really solid foundations from which I can experiment and grow my practice.’ 

‘There was honestly nothing that wasn’t useful this weekend’.

‘Thank you so much for the most incredible and powerful weekend. I am so glad I took the leap to do this course. 

I have so enjoyed my teaching so far this year. I have been out and about providing training for organisations which has been enjoyable and expansive : personally and professionally. 

The Diploma in Sand course requires participants to complete a ‘Learning Journal’. There is no right or wrong in this – it is simply a way for students to consolidate their learning personally and professionally. I have been deeply moved by these journals. They are accounts of a very deep personal and professional journey. There is something profound about reflecting upon a series of Sandtrays over the course of several months and seeing how we are impacted. This is a good reminder of the importance of this reflection with our client work. 

I love the co-created intimacy in these groups which enables participants to so quickly enter their process and engage with the depth of this work. 

Here are a few comments: 

‘As I write this reflection, I can connect it with all the trays and they all begin to make sense as a whole journey, both micro from the course and macro through my life. ‘

I have never experienced such a good ending as I did with this course. The rituals of giving symbols helped to express my love and feelings about the people from the course. They have all had a huge impact on me and I will be very sad to finish and will miss them. 

Wow what a journey during and after the course. 

I have learned a lot from reflecting in this journal. I have learned that despite the powerful, moving, therapeutic change that creating and unpacking a sand tray can evoke, I can look at photos 6 months later with a whole new perspective and understanding.

‘..this is such a beautiful journal of your process. As I read at times I could feel tears of tenderness stir within me and at other times joy. It is a touching, honest, highly reflective account of your journey on this course and through life.’

‘..your journal is such a wonderful reflection of your journey. The first tray so symbolised the start of your journey and the fullness of that is only seen in the final reflection.’

‘I love your use of reflection – reflecting upon previous trays; symbols used repeatedly and in earlier trays: how you are using the symbols in sometimes profoundly and sometimes subtly different ways at different points of your journey. I have a real sense of your developing such a strong understanding of some of these symbols. ‘

‘You describe your process beautifully and skilfully weave the theory we explored in your understanding of your process and the trays created and with the use of symbols. I have enjoyed reading your interpretation of symbols and your research which has enhanced your understanding. ‘ 

'Such a precious account’. 

From Dora Kalff the originator of Sandplay Therapy : 

These words are so keen to my teaching : 

‘In the hands of a properly prepared therapist, sandplay is a powerful invaluable modality…. 

(And about becoming a sandplay therapist) …even psychotherapists highly experienced in other methodologies .. should have a deep personal experience of doing a sandplay process… 

Kalff 1980

The collective yearning for connection and sensory experience continues. I observe the impact of lockdown has had a subtle (and not so subtle) impact on our psyches and the way in which we interact with the world. When we participate in creative therapies the embodied nature of these practices brings us in contact with the sensory nature of our human experience nourished. There is much now written about the significance of sensory stimuli for our neural integration. 

Sandplay and expressive arts are such a wonderful way of connecting with our depth. Come and explore your wilder edges – or maybe the soft belly of your inner self. I look forward to connecting with you.