About the course

Dispelling the disorder – One-day course for administrative and reception staff

Understanding complex trauma, emotional development & personality

This one-day trauma-informed course is for administrative and reception staff (or similar roles) or staff who do not work directly with people using HPFT services.

The course explores:

The interpersonal dynamics commonly encountered by admin and reception staff, and effective ways of managing these.
The impact of trauma on personality development
Introducing a compassion-centred approach in our communications with people.

This course is delivered by two facilitators: one from a lived experience and one from a learned experience.

This course is free of charge for HPFT staff. For anyone outside of HPFT, the total cost of the one day course is £60 per person.

Step one:

If you have not yet enrolled, please do so using the professional enrolment form below

Enrolment form for professionals

Step two:

Book your place on an upcoming course

Staff Testimonials

I enjoyed the course and felt it was very informative and thought provoking. I have learnt a lot from this topic and will be able to reflect on my practice on how I work with people with Personality Difficulties.”

I have learnt to be more patient with service users and not take everything personally. I have learnt how to word things differently when addressing difficult topics with service users, ensuring a better road to recovery and rehabilitation, as well as creating better professional relationships.

Very validating towards the service I provide and non-judgemental, I learn every day from lived experience service users, but it is in a different setting. The tutors made this a comfortable setting and encouraged a non-judgmental atmosphere.

Definitely gained a wider understanding of personality difficulties and how they may impact a persons’ mental health. It has given me a much wider lens to work with. I think the section on different perceptions was really valuable.

Thoroughly enjoyed the training. It was interactive and full of information. In addition, it was really helpful to have peers and those with lived experience present.

Amazing training Really well put together, so interactive and the lived experience made it even better.

I felt it was a well rounded training that looks at, and came from, many perspectives, both professional and service users in a non-judgmental way

Very comprehensive, interactive, thought provoking and reflection provoking.

Downloadable Materials

Attending a course

All college courses or workshops are interactive. To enhance your learning experience, please use a laptop or computer when attending our courses.

Classes online are via the Zoom online platform. If you are still getting familiar with Zoom, visit our using Zoom page for resources, videos and Zoom guides.

We have additional information for people who might need access to IT equipment; please visit our digital skills and inclusion page.

The college strives to provide students with positive experiences and is committed to making the college accessible to all. Please read our code of conduct to learn what we expect of our students when attending courses.

Using Zoom Venues Code of conduct Digital inclusion

Upcoming course dates

This course is for one day

Dispelling the Disorder: one-day Course

20th October

10:00am - 4:00pm

Online Autumn 2025

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Get support to attend

No upcoming dates?

Our courses are regularly reviewed and may not appear available every term. If you've just missed the last session or you're waiting for a new release, you can still register your interest for this course. The more interest we receive, the greater the chance of the course returning! Alternatively, please book onto the three-day course, or take a look at some of the colleges other courses.

Dispelling the disorder – A three-day course for staff who provide direct support

Explore what trauma-informed care is and how to compassionately communicate with people in your everyday interactions.

Book course

About Recovery

What does personal recovery mean, and why is it so important?

Read about recovery, why it’s important and how a recovery college can help people with their mental health and wellbeing

Further help and support

If you want some help to book this course, or would like to put your name down for a course that's not currently running, please get in touch with us.

Please contact us

or give us a call on:

01442 864 966