Courses & events for social care professionals
We offer a suite of training options for social care professionals, including live & CPD accredited courses which we deliver on various dates throughout the year and on behalf of other organisations such as local authorities, care homes and social care & community support teams. We also host Q&As and provide pre-recorded webinars and videos on various topics.
Further details are available below or, to quickly navigate to a specific training option, please use the following links:
Live courses
Our live courses are delivered either in-person or online via Zoom (we can also deliver training for organisations via Microsoft Teams if preferred), by our training facilitators who have valuable lived experience of PDA as professionals, PDAers themselves, parents, carers, partners and family members.
Our CPD accredited courses are marked with the ‘CPD certified’ logo.
Each course we offer includes the following general content:
- what is PDA?
- demands and their effects
- how PDA can feel
- helpful approaches (including collaborative problem solving)
- signposting to resources & support
These themes are then developed with additional material included depending upon the course – detailed below.
Please note: any legislation/diagnostic approaches discussed are related to England unless stated otherwise. Social worker programmes are also available covering the Welsh education system, please ask for details.
If you aren’t sure which course is the right one for you, have any questions about any of our courses or would like to enquire about costings or making a booking on behalf of an organisation, please email* our training team at: training@pdasociety.org.uk
Courses we’re currently offering for social care professionals include:
Working with & supporting PDA children (social workers)
CPD accredited courses
5.5-6 hour programmes (delivered in-person on one day or online via 2 sessions)
Suitable for those working with children up to age 18 years.
Additional material: anxiety, rewards/praise/sanctions, siblings, diagnosis, transition to adulthood, and education.
Please email training@pdasociety.org.uk to make a booking enquiry.
Working with & supporting PDA children (social care and residential settings)
4-5 hour programmes
Suitable for those working within residential settings, social care or anyone employed directly by a family as a support worker/PA.
Additional material: good support, what helps, individual needs, self-help ideas.
Please email training@pdasociety.org.uk to make a booking enquiry.
Working with & supporting PDA adults (social care and residential settings)
CPD accredited courses
4-5 hour programmes
Suitable for those working within residential settings, social care or anyone employed directly by a family as a support worker/PA.
Additional material: good support, what helps, individual needs, self-help ideas.
Please email training@pdasociety.org.uk to make a booking enquiry.
Tickets for upcoming public course dates are available below.
Working with & supporting PDA children (education, health & social care) – introduction
CPD accredited courses
1.5-2.5 hour programmes
Predominantly for education settings but also suitable for all professionals (education, health & social care) supporting PDA children aged between 5-16 years who would prefer an overview rather than more in-depth training.
Additional material: educational good practice.
Please email training@pdasociety.org.uk to make a booking enquiry.
Tickets for upcoming public course dates are available below.
You may also be interested in…
What is PDA?
2.5-3 hour programmes
Introductory session discussing PDA, including an opportunity to ask questions to a PDA Adult.
Please email training@pdasociety.org.uk to make a booking enquiry.
Tickets for upcoming public course dates are available below.
Working with & supporting PDA young people & adults
CPD accredited courses
3.5-4 hour programmes
Suitable for all professionals supporting PDA young people and adults.
Additional material: teenagers & adults; distressed behaviours; individual needs; inclusive support
Please email training@pdasociety.org.uk to make a booking enquiry.
Tickets for upcoming public course dates are available below.
Q&A Live events
Our online Q&A Live sessions invite guest speakers to answer questions about PDA and specific topics live via Zoom (a recording for ticket holders is also included – available for 30 days).
Questions can be submitted at the time of booking and/or via the Zoom chat function on the night.
It may not be possible to answer all questions depending on the numbers attending and the amount of questions asked. Also it won’t be possible to answer specific questions on personal situations within these Q&A sessions – if you require support please contact our enquiry line.
Full details and tickets for our upcoming Q&A Live events which may be of interest to social care professionals are detailed below.
Post Identification Support
Thursday 25th April 2024 – 8pm – 9pm (GMT)
In our final Q&A within this free series we will be talking about and sharing examples around post identification support for PDA people. Both of our guests are keen to answer questions on what you’d like to know more about rather than assuming what might be important, so please do share your questions at the time of booking.
Our guest speakers will be Dr Anita Marsden, a Clinical Psychologist whose work around PDA has been published by the British Psychological Society and Hannah Harris, a PDA adult with sensory processing disorder, ADHD, auditory processing disorder, dyspraxia and dyslexia who is a neurodivergent coach & consultant and the founder of The Autistic Advantage.
Q&A recordings
Replays of our past Q&A sessions, where guest speakers answer questions about PDA and specific topics, which may be of interest to social care professionals are available to purchase for 30 days by clicking or tapping on the images below.
Already purchased a Q&A recording? Please sign-in to the PDA Society training hub (using the same log-in method used to make the purchase) to access the recording via your dashboard. For further information about using the PDA Society training hub, please refer to our user guide.
The Importance of Diagnosis
Selective Mutism
Navigating Distressed Behaviours Pt. 2
Navigating Distressed Behaviours
Sensory Processing
Eating Disorders (Ellern Mede Group)
Understanding social care
Gaming
Sleep
Teenage years
Neurodivergent parenting
See all Q&A recordings
FREE webinars
The following pre-recoded webinars, videos and podcasts which may be of interest to social care professionals are free to watch by clicking or tapping on the images below.
Introduction to PDA
What is PDA?
Demand Avoidance of the PDA Kind
PDA for social care professionals
PDA & masking
PDA & school avoidance
Best practice – the professional voice
Best practice – the PDA community’s voice
See all free webinars
If you aren’t sure which course is the right one for you, or have any questions about any of our training, or would like to enquire about costings or making a booking on behalf of an organisation, please email* our training team at: training@pdasociety.org.uk
*Please note: our emails can sometimes be filtered into junk/spam/social/promotions folders – please check yours if you haven’t heard back from us in your inbox within 3-5 working days.