Paul Henderson BSc, FACCPH, MNCP (Snr. Accred.)
Author, UKAIT Founder and Course Director
Twenty years of professional education. A new direction. The same commitment to quality, learning and therapeutic excellence.
After 20 years of providing professional training and education in counselling and psychotherapy, The United Kingdom Academy of Integrative Therapy (UKAIT) is entering an exciting new chapter.
From January 2027, the Academy will be evolving its approach to professional education. Following careful consideration, and in light of my personal experience of a cancer diagnosis and its impact on my life, I have made the decision that UKAIT will no longer deliver its established two-year diploma programmes.
This has not been an easy decision. Building the Academy over the past two decades has been an enormously rewarding part of my professional life. I am proud of the students we have supported, the practitioners who have developed their skills through our programmes, and the contribution the Academy has made to the counselling and therapeutic professions.
However, change also brings opportunity.
A renewed focus on specialist professional development
Moving forward, UKAIT will concentrate on the development and delivery of high-quality Continuing Professional Development (CPD), specialist short courses and practical workshops for counsellors, psychotherapists and other helping professionals.
Our ambition is to provide accessible, relevant and professionally meaningful learning opportunities that enable practitioners to deepen their knowledge, develop specialist interests and enhance the quality of their clinical practice.
Rather than offering broad, lengthy training programmes, our new direction will focus on particular areas of practice, providing focused learning that practitioners can take directly into their professional work.
Our first new programme will be Psycho-Oncology for Counsellors, a specialist CPD exploring the psychological impact of cancer and the therapeutic support required by people affected by a cancer diagnosis. This will be followed by further specialist learning opportunities across a range of therapeutic disciplines.
Our courses will be designed with the practising professional in mind: practical, engaging, relevant and grounded in the realities of therapeutic work.
What happens to our diploma programmes?
Our two-year diploma programmes will continue under a new home, The UK Therapy Guild, which will take responsibility for delivering these longer-term training pathways. This allows UKAIT to focus its resources and expertise on its new specialist CPD direction.
Looking ahead
Twenty years represents a significant milestone, but it is not the end of the story.
The Academy will retain its commitment to high standards, professional integrity and meaningful education. What changes is the way we deliver that education and the opportunities we create for practitioners.
I would like to thank everyone who has been part of the UKAIT journey over the past 20 years: our students, graduates, colleagues and professional associates. Your support and contribution have helped make the Academy what it is today.
I look forward to welcoming both familiar faces and new learners as we embark on this next chapter.
Paul Henderson
Course Director
The United Kingdom Academy of Integrative Therapy
Promoting Flexibility and Diversity in the Field of Therapy
Need Help? Email: enquiries@alc2alc.com
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