Books

Creating Transformative Conversations

By Robin Shohet and Joan Shohet (2020)

Robin and Joan Shohet are pioneers in supervision training for the helping professions. Much more than a manual, this book embodies the heart, soul, spirit and values of their training courses - a golden treasury of insight, wisdom and practical techniques. Its detailed descriptions of their courses apply directly to the work of the helping professions and the therapeutic relationship; what they say apply also to how we all negotiate relationships in our work and our lives.

The book opens with the '23 principles' that form the basis of their beliefs about the role and function of supervision. It goes on to describe in detail five of the courses they have been running for some 40 years. These are vivid scripts taken directly from course recordings, bringing to life the interactions, exchanges and relationships played out in the training process. Here we have the Core Course, the Seven-Eyed Model, the Group Supervision Course, the Advanced Course, and the one-day workshop Fear and Love in Supervision.

The book ends with a bank of resources drawn from Robin's published writings over the years. These are bold, brave, sometimes raw and always deeply honest accounts of the Shohets' inspirational supervision training - each accompanied by one of Joan's cake recipes.

A series edited by Peter Hawkins and Robin Shohet.
Published by Open University Press.

Staff in the helping profession are working under increasing amounts of pressure. They are having to balance growing levels of distress, dis-ease and disturbance, while at the same time managing an increasing speed of change in the financing and organisational structures of their employing organisations. Staff will only stay effective at their important work if they are supported and well supervised. Often their supervisors move straight form being a skilled practitioner into a management and supervisory position with no training in the skills that staff supervision requires.

This series is aimed at the increasing number of people who act as trainers, tutors, mentors and supervisors in the helping professions. It is also designed for those who are studying to become a trainer or supervisor and for supervisee, who can use the books to reflect on the many complex issues in their work.

The series is designed to follow on from the success of the best selling title Supervision in the Helping Professions by Peter Hawkins and Robin Shohet. Each book explore the key issues, models and skills for trainer and supervisors in the main areas of the helping professions: social work and community care, the medical and nursing professions, psychotherapy, counselling and mentoring for managers.