The most important learning I had was how to be strong in myself, trust my experience and find my own inner resources. I also discovered who I am and found a new confidence in myself. I got sick of hearing its a process and trust the process but these statements proved to be true. I found a place in LC&CTA in which I could really discover and be me without external expectation. It was this experience that allowed me to begin and continue to flourish as person and a professional with a bright future as I see it.
I was quite pessimistic at the start of my studies at LC&CTA, part of me didn't believe it would be a life changing experience. How wrong I was! I entered the Diploma with a few prejudices I knew about many I was unaware of. I have changed as a person and certainly have increased my self awareness. My training here has been one the most significant experiences I have had in my life. The tutor team has been outstanding in facilitating my journey and personal growth. An added bonus is the 30 hours of personal counselling, which has enabled me to confront difficult feelings and has allowed me to discover who I am and it certainly helped me to move forward. I feel so much more grounded as a person and now I am about to start my qualified practice as a counsellor. I highly recommend LC&CTA.
Put simply, it has been an incredible journey. The Diploma course under leadership of Juanita and Chris was deeply involving, challenging, and enriching. I look back in awe at where I was when I began in comparison with where I am now. Change is not always easy, and change is not always fun; throughout the course I have come up against things which are difficult. But in a reflection of the theory that underpins the whole experience, even at it's most challenging there is an eventual understanding that the direction all along has been toward personal growth and higher awareness. The tutors possess great insight into people – insight that at critical moments on the course has proved invaluable. In my experience person-centred counselling is the opposite of the caricatured 'nodding dog therapist'; it is a deeply relational process that requires the therapist to extend his/her whole being in response to the client, and is far from passive in this pursuit. The real learning for me as been here, in fostering a trust in and rapport with my own visceral, emotional, and organismic experiencing to the service of the therapeutic work. Needless to say I am now on wider journey that I am only just beginning, but LC&CTA has helped lay the foundations - by showing me all I can achieve and facilitating the confidence in me that I can do it.
Doing the Diploma in Person Centred Counselling at LC&CTA has been one of the best decisions I have ever made. This course is tough, it's life changing and I can not recommend it highly enough.
I found that at LC&CTA I was helped to experience the person-centred approach in practice and not kust in theory through the way that the tutors interacted with me. I was also encouraged to explore my potential to relate to others fully. I am just at the beginning of my journey as a qualified counsellor but my experience at LC&CTA has helped to give me confidence to pursue my dreams more and more in the future.
As a former student of LC&CTA I have found that the material provided i.e. tutorial information, guidance and support quite dynamic, structured, informative and concise. It has enabled me to recognise and understand in terms of theory and skills the importance of re-evaluating my beliefs, values, morality, sex, religion, race, gender, motives, barriers and my conditionings; which has facilitated me in gaining new insights of self as well as being able to work more effectively and ethically with my clients. My initial thoughts when reflecting back on my experience on the course is just how surprised I am by the depth of information and learning of the theories and concepts covered; and in being congruent, many of these issues would have never occurred to me at all in advance of the course, hence I am very grateful to have been able to grow within the diverse dynamics of LC&CTA. Thank you LC&CTA.
Making the decision to join an LC&CTA counselling course was a life changing experience for me. I cannot imagine my life now without the additional knowledge I have gained since starting from Introductory level to Diploma level. I have experienced a long and challenging journey towards finding myself and at times I struggled against my being, but I was able to receive the support to meet my needs from the LC&CTA Team. I know I am in a place today where I feel good about myself and how I interact with others, through the process of self awareness and reflection on self.
I was introduced to person centred theory by a work college who was undertaking LC&CTA’s HPD course, he swore it would change my perspective on life… and it has. I didn’t know what I was letting myself in for! It has NOT been easy to explore who I am -and why I am the way that I am; facing myself and exposing myself to others (metaphorically speaking!) has been hard. I have definitely been challenged and my growth has exceeded my expectations; I have grown much closer to understanding, knowing and really loving myself. The support of the LC&CTA Tutor Team has been invaluable – I have felt fully held throughout this course and felt safe knowing there was always someone willing to listen when things got tough. I have experienced a roller coaster of emotions I’ve laughed, cried, felt alone, felt love and expressed great anger! However, this has helped me develop an inner strength and gain an awareness of myself that I didn’t have before. I’ve also had the great privilege of working with a group of amazing peers who have made my journey incredibly special and unforgettable.
I would like to say what a wonderful experience my course has been. It has truly encouraged an organic change in my process and subsequently, in my life. I am coming away from my training at LC&CTA a transformed practitioner and much improved man. In an amazing way, things will never be the same again!
I would describe my training at LC&CTA’s simply; ‘it was life changing’ and a journey I will never forget. The experience was extremely challenging at times, as any real personal growth entails, but it gave me profound insight into the potentials life has to offer me. The benefits I now reap are ones of personal maturity, freedom, and professional competency.
I’m coming to the end of my studies vastly different from how I begun. I’ve acquired skills and knowledge which have equipped me for being a good (moving towards excellent) counsellor. I say this whilst being aware that there is still a lot for me to learn in terms of the profession and learning about myself. Studying at LC&CTA has been a rollercoaster ride for my emotions and for me as a person. I have been stretched in ways that I could not have imagined and parts of the journey have been hard, challenging and painful. However the things I have achieved from each experience resulted in euphoria, I do not regret, in fact I am grateful that I decided to study here. The tutors have been a very important part of the whole process. Both Juanita and Chris and their team have facilitated my learning in both practical and personal ways; supporting me when I’ve needed it and not allowing me to get away with the things that in the longer term would hinder my professional and personal development. When I started studying it might as well have been French the tutors were speaking; I did not understand a thing and never thought I would. I did not believe that I could actually counsel a cat, let alone another person in need. Now everything makes sense, I’ve learnt a new language and I am counselling effectively with positive results for my clients.
HPD in Counselling Student
Being a student at LC&CTA is a constantly changing experience - a process, not a destination! It is challenging, tough and engaging. It is authentic and demanding. I have met incredible people; these people and being part of the HPD group has facilitated great learning for me. For me studying at LC&CTA has gone beyond all normal learning parameters - it has been life-altering; it has been, and continues to be, a privilege.
I have been on an incredible journey since I began my Counsellor Training. I have cherished every moment of the process. I have been able to get in touch with my true self and become whole and able to appreciate what life brings my way. On my journey I have been supported well by my tutors and my student group on the HPD course. I have been challenged but have also been emotionally held by my peers which encouraged me to go further into self exploration. I have learnt a whole new way of appreciating the positives and negatives in life. All this would not have been possible without the unique training offered by LC&CTA.
Works with male perpetrators of domestic abuse and supports their partners/ex partners.
This picture of me in Thailand was taken before I became a student at LC&CTA and before I knew of my external locus of evaluation, that I had an inner child and that I was capable of becoming a psychotherapist. All that has changed, the ‘price’ of learning is not cheap and its a one way ticket, I cannot unlearn what I have learnt about myself and I would not wish to, even though at times it has been painful. If someone had told me five years ago about the journey I would undertake I would not have believed them, but the sense of achievement is fantastic and I feel in safe hands supported by the Tutor Team. I would recommend LC&CTA courses to anyone who is prepared to take a step towards becoming a complete person. The assignments can be hard work but this is only part of the journey, it is more about self discovery. None of us know what we are capable of unless we try to reach beyond what we know ourselves to be at this moment in time.
Schools Counsellor
Being a student at LC&CTA has been a journey of self deliverance and empowerment. I found the course very challenging in a positive way. The guidance which is given by the tutors is excellent; if you prepared for the challenge you will have found the course uplifting.
Qualified Counsellor
I have attend a number of Continued Professional Development Workshops held by LC&CTA. My experience has been beneficial and rewarding in terms of being provided on-going opportunities to further develop my skills and professional awareness. The background experience of LC&CTA tutoring staff provides a constructive learning environment which is supportive and encourages a sense of freedom to explore a range of personal and professional development issues that are stimulating and informative.
What is it like to be trained by LC&CTA? In a nutshell, it is CHALLENGING! From day one I have been challenged to examine myself – to unpeel layer upon layer to reveal who I am, to shed labels, to shed prejudices, to look at myself and others differently. There is no place to hide at LC&CTA! For me this has been an extremely challenging process of becoming and a real journey toward self-acceptance. LC&CTA tutors are truly committed to turning out counsellors who reflect the diversity of the world in which we live. This is a huge strength and I am immensely grateful for my group - a wonderful bunch of colleagues from all walks of life who challenge and support me week to week.
I didn't quite know what I was letting myself in for when I decided to study again and become a mature student at LC&CTA, I was fearful and lacked confidence. I soon learned that my fears were something of the past and my Course Tutors were helping me to develop my confidence. I have had to work hard at putting in what I want to get out of the Course and this has definitely not been an easy thing for me to do, in fact, quite difficult at times. LC&CTA have always encouraged me to do more than I thought I was capable of in both my personal and professional life and supported me in times of difficulty.
What an incredible journey. I have laughed, cried, marvelled, been scared and amazed. I have been held and have held. The tutors and my wonderful peers have facilitated me to explore so many facets of my life and the lives of others. This has been a very difficult, painful, emotional roller coaster, but such a rewarding experience. I have delighted in the learning theory, been challenged in the skills and academic elements, but throughout have been supported by the LC&CTA Team to stretch myself, face my doubts, grow, and move towards becoming a fully functioning person.
