A reminder to those who have completed ACAT accredited trainings about what their qualifications allow them to do, and how they can describe themselves and their practice.
There are several levels of training in Cognitive Analytic Therapy and this page gives you information about each of these and how you can begin to develop, or build on, your CAT skills and competences.
CAT is a versatile approach to psychological help. and it applications are constantly developing. There are three main areas of the application of CAT in practice. These are reflected in our training options.
All except Introductory courses in CAT are assessed and accredited by ACAT. You can link through to pages with detailed information about all the levels of training listed, below.
At th end of this page you can also link through to information about what different levels of training and qualification mean.
If you are interested in having a hands-on introduction to the ideas and methods used in Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT), then attending an introductory course is right for you.
This six-month course equips generic workers in health, caring and support worker roles to develop and apply a useful working understanding of Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT) to help inform routine practice.
This training offers you an opportunity to enhance your exisiting competence in your own professional field through learning and applying relational and therapeutic skills. Core CAT concepts and skills can inform your work with service users through formulation, intervention, care planning and risk assessment.
Please note this course does not train you to work as an individual therapist with clients. Its focus is not on therapy, but instead it offers a different application of CAT competencies.
Read more about this training at the CAT Skills Case Management Course page.
Foundation Level training in Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT) offers a one-year training for professionals with prior training in psychological therapies. It aims to equip you with the CAT skills and competencies for working primarily as a one to one therapist, usually in primary care or NHS Talking Therapies services.
This level of training is not sufficient to enable you to work as a therapist in secondary care or specialist psychotherapy services. On its own it does not meet requirements to practice as an accredited CAT therapist or practitioner.
The Foundation Training syllabus instead aims to provide you with an introduction to the CAT competences required for therapeutic work with people who present with problems in relationships alongside other symptoms and difficulties. They may have experienced early adversity with aspects of complex trauma, and been identified as demonstrating traits (but not a formal diagnosis) related to the concept of “personality disorder“.
Foundation Level training is currently mainly available as part of a number of Doctorate in Clinical Psychology (D.Clin.Psych.) training courses. It may also be commissioned by NHS Trusts wishing to equip NHS Talking Therapies service staff with competences to work with more complexity. With a Foundation Level qualification you can go on to apply to join the second year of an accredited CAT Practitioner training course in order to complete training as an accredited CAT therapist or practitioner.
Read more about CAT Foundation Level training on our dedicated page here.
CAT Practitioner training is an assessed two year course which leads to a diploma level qualification and accreditation by ACAT as a Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT) Therapist/Practitioner. By joining this training you will learn about CAT through a combination of taught workshops or training days, seminars, peer group work, personal learning, supervision, clinical practice and personal therapy.
Practitioner training is open to you if you have an existing qualification and experience in your own core profession, and wish to extend your therapeutic knowledge and skills using CAT. Some courses can offer flexibility for applicants with appropriate experience who do not strictly meet the standard entry criteria.
You can join this well-established training in a number of locations throughout the UK. Several courses are integrated within NHS Trusts, while some operate independently. All are accredited and moderated by ACAT.
NHS England has commissioned and funded four training centres to deliver CAT Practitioner training. This complements the expansion of evidence based psychological therapies in adult community services for people with severe mental health difficulties.
Go direct to the Listing of Active CAT Practitioner courses
Once you have completed this training you can apply to go on to train as a CAT Psychotherapist over a further two years.
Find out more about CAT Practitioner training through its dedicated page here.
Are you:
Psychotherapy training through ACAT's Inter-regional Residential ACAT Psychotherapy Training (IRRAPT) enables CAT Practitioners to become Cognitive Analytic Psychotherapists. Once you have completed (or are near to completing) your two year CAT Practitioner training, you can apply to join this assessed course.
Succesful completion leads to eligibility for registration with the United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP). Many CAT psychotherapists go on to take on senior roles in training, service developments and specialised clinical settings.
The course includes a further two-year taught component taking place over three week-long residential meetings per year, near Evesham, Worcestershire. You also complete further supervised clinical work, case reports and other written assessments, plus personal development and personal psychotherapy over the duration of the training.
Read more about training as CAT Psychotherapist through the dedicated page here.
Would you like to contribute to the growth of Cognitive Analytic Therapy by supervising trainee practitioners and adding to the pool of accredited supervisors supporting CAT practice more generally?
If so, training as an ACAT-Accredited CAT Supervisor awaits. In order to start on this modular pathway, you need to:
If you can say yes to those requirements, then you're likely to be eligible to apply for the modular programme and progress towards accreditation as a CAT Supervisor.
You can read more details about CAT Supervisor Training on the dedicated page here. You can also check out more details of the different components of training in the Training Related Documents for Members section of your Members' Resources pages
A reminder to those who have completed ACAT accredited trainings about what their qualifications allow them to do, and how they can describe themselves and their practice.
A guide for people having, or interested in, CAT as a therapy, on the different professional qualifications in Cognitive Analytic Therapy and what these mean a therapist can offer.