Staff support and development

Continuous learning and development give you the support and tools you need to thrive and grow throughout your career.

At Hampshire and Isle of Wight Educational Psychology (HIEP), we can provide individual and group training, as well as supervision, coaching, and work discussion groups.

Individual training

Our centralised courses run between one and three times a year (depending on the course) at locations around the county.

You can also access courses offered by Hampshire County Council’s Children’s Services Department. Whilst these aren’t targeted at school staff, they can be accessed for a fee.

These courses include:

Advanced attachment course
Teenage psychology
Bereavement and loss

To view available courses, register for the Learning Zone.

Group training

For larger groups, even up to whole school staff, we can deliver bespoke training to the school using your SLA (traded service) time. This training will be based on your school’s needs and can be delivered on site.

Professional supervision

We can offer supervision or coaching to members of staff, through your SLA. This is often delivered on a one-to-one basis but can also be for a group. Sessions are scheduled to run regularly, for example, one hour meetings every month or half-term.

Supervision sessions provide a safe space for reflection and learning, an opportunity for staff to focus on the things that are worrying them as well as building their confidence and thinking together about strategies that will help.

Coaching

Coaching helps to support staff as they think about how they might develop their practice. This includes aspects of their career like future role changes. During coaching, staff work with the EP to think about their strengths, areas for development, future goals, and potential barriers to achieving these.

Work discussion group for headteachers

Two EPs will provide a safe and confidential space where a group of headteachers can share, reflect on, and problem-solve challenges. The headteachers also provide support for their peers' emotional wellbeing.

The groups are run half-termly and sessions last for two hours. Headteachers can sign up for a year. There is a fee for attending.

SENCo circles

We facilitate half-termly circles for groups of SENCos. These two-hour sessions are supported by two EPs, and allow SENCos to access practical guidance on supporting individual children and on group-selected aspects of SEN. The circles act as a professional network outside the school environment and support SENCos’ wellbeing, while providing up-to-date knowledge about how best to support children and young people with SEN.

Schools that choose to be involved with this pay for their SENCo to attend six sessions across a year. The annual cost for SENCo circles can be added individually to your SLA subscription.