Short Courses

Research isn't just for students or academics or those in a research role.  Increasingly Leaders and managers need to be well informed about a number of topics to lead their area of responsibility.  Research is about collecting data and information to help you make an informed decision.

Ever wondered the what, why and how of research? This interactive half day workshop uses real life examples and case studies of research to bring these questions alive. Learners will hear about a wide breadth of research from clinical settings, social care and within the community. Learners will look at the motivations and benefits of conducting research obstructions to starting research and how to plan to avoid them with practical advise on how to start their own research projects. You will discover more about What is research? Why do we need research? How can you do research?

Course Topics:

• An overview of what research is with practical examples of the impact some research studies have made and group discussion of these. Covering definitions of different types of 'research' to include service evaluations and audits.
• Why we do research? How it benefits people and society and why it is so important. You will review specific research case studies and discuss the importance and impact that they have had.
• How to present research information to influence others.
• Tips on what to consider when coming up with research ideas or planning projects and the guidelines we work to today.

Learning Outcomes:

• Describe what research is and the different categories of research relevant in their workplace setting
• Discuss why research is important, the motivations for conducting it and the real-life impact of research outcomes on individuals, organisations and society.
• Understand how to set up a research project in a work setting, what considerations need to be made and how to plan effectively to avoid obstructions.

Upcoming Courses:

Starting on the 16th October 2023 (9:30 - 12:30)

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This course is £220. Funding through the Intensive Learning Academy requires a 50% employer contribution fee of £110

A coaching approach refers to a style of management where the emphasis is on empowering and supporting others to respond to challenges and develop appropriate solutions as opposed to a more directive style which would traditionally involve ‘telling someone exactly what to do’.

This 2-day programme is designed to raise your awareness of the key principles underpinning a coaching approach and equip you with the knowledge, skills and capabilities to confidently use this approach within your management role. You will learn;

• What coaching is and how it fits alongside other management styles
• How to identify when a coaching approach would be appropriate to support workplace performance
• How to apply the core skills of coaching such as listening, questioning and providing feedback within your management role.
• Popular frameworks to help you structure a coaching conversation for maximum impact
• How to create a culture of trust where people feel safe to offer ideas, challenges and feedback.

The workshops will be highly interactive and include a blend of theory, discussion and practical exercises to embed skill development and promote reflection on real-world application.

Upcoming course dates:

22nd November and 4th December (9:30 - 12:00 and 2:00 - 4:30 on both days)

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Price: This course is £440 for the two days.

Leadership is different from management - it has different characteristics and function, but if an organisation wishes to be successful it needs both. The questions is how do you make sure your organisation is not overmanaged and under led.

This programme will help you understand The role of the leader and help you develop some of the core skills needed for "good" leadership. It will help you explore the synergy between leadership and successful organisational change.

Course Topics:

• Leadership vs Management
• Self-Awareness and Styles of Leadership
• Critical reflection and Critical thinking
• Perspective - getting the bigger picture.

Learning Outcomes:

• Develop a more strategic approach to your thinking as a leader or future leader
• Develop a sound understanding of the differences between leadership and management and the core skills that are needed by a good leader
• Understand the pivotal role of leadership in any successful change programme

Upcoming Course:

3 days - 17th January 2024, 30th January & 14th February

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Leadership is different from management - it has different characteristics and function, but if an organisation wishes to be successful it needs both. The questions is how do you make sure your organisation is not overmanaged and under led.

This programme will help you understand The role of the leader and help you develop some of the core skills needed for "good" leadership. It will help you explore the synergy between leadership and successful organisational change.

Course Topics:

• Managing Change vs Leading Change
• Transactional vs Transformational Change
• Change agents and organisational culture
• Behaviours to overcome barriers to change

Learning Outcomes:

• Develop a more strategic approach to your thinking as a leader or future leader
• Develop a sound understanding of the differences between leadership and management and the core skills that are needed by a good leader
• Understand the pivotal role of leadership in any successful change programme

Upcoming Course:

3 days - 28th February 2024, 6th March & 20th March

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This programme gives an understanding and an opportunity to participate in Systems Thinking activities. You will look at the benefits of Systems Thinking and its usefulness in relation to organisational leadership.

Course Topics:

• What is systems thinking and why and when is it useful?
• Characteristics of complex systems
• Overcoming block in systems thinking
• Use systems thinking techniques to visualise complex systems and guide helpful actions
• Tools and techniques to apply systems thinking to organisational challenges.

Learning Outcomes:

• Describe complex systems and their key features
• Understand how systems thinking can be applied to organisational challenges
• Be able to use a variety of tools to apply systems thinking to complex systems

Upcoming course dates:

Starting: 24th January 2024 (virtual)

Day 2: 8th February 2024 (face-to-face)

Day 3: 7th March 2024 (virtual)

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Price: This course is £660 for the three days.

Our lives are dependent more and more on technology. We live with our phones in our hands and smart devices wherever we turn, but that proliferation of tech comes with buzzwords and acronyms that could make your eyes glaze over in frustration.

Can you tell your XR from your VR? Is IoT just one TLA too far? Is AI really going to take over the world, or will your smart kettle get there first?

This session lifts the lid on some of the technology and terminology that surrounds us not just in our everyday lives, but also in our workplaces. We’ll go beyond the acronyms and look at Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality, the Internet of Things, as well as Augmented and Mixed Reality, and we’ll explore how you can start taking advantage of what they have to offer.

Date and time: 25th October 2023 (12pm-1pm)

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Managing Risk is at the heart of good governance. In recent years we have seen a growing recognition of the importance of understanding, managing and mitigating risks to organisations and businesses.

This short 1 hour session will help to broaden your awareness of risk management principles and the leading approaches taken in the environment you operate within.

Date and time: 26th October 2023 (12pm-1pm)

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"The hand you are dealt with is just the starting point for development" Carol Dweck (Author of best-selling book Mindset).

It's not just our abilities and talent that bring us success - it's what kind of mindset we have. The right mindset can help to motivate you and others in achieving your professional and personal goals and to see challenges as opportunities to grow and improve.

This session examines the concept of growth mindset and starts to explore tools and techniques for building a growth mindset.

Date and Time: 28th November 2023 (12pm - 1pm)

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Teams are the building block in most, if not all, workplaces. How teams behave, construct working relationships and carry out their roles in relation to each other is therefore of fundamental importance.

If you believe that the above statement is true then wouldn't you like to know how to ensure that you build and lead High Performing Teams?

This session will explore what a powerful high-performance team looks like, and will consider each of the 6 Key Dimensions required in order to Lead High Performance Teams.

What is a high-performance team?

• Defined as a group of people with clear roles and complementary skills, aligned with and committed to a common purpose.
• High Performance Teams consistently demonstrate high levels of collaboration and innovation thereby producing superior results.

Date and time: 15th February 2024 (12pm - 1pm)

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This short 1 day interactive programme allows you to explore the principles of Agile Project Management approached and learn some tools and techniques to plan better, communicate better and develop behaviours to deliver your projects at a faster and more dynamic pace. This programme is suitable for anyone involved in project delivery. 

Upcoming Courses:

Starting: 20th October 2023 (9:30am - 12:30pm)

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Starting: 25th January 2024

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This course is £220. Funding through the Intensive Learning Academy requires a 50% employer contribution fee of £110

The benefits of running a project or programme can be truly transformational, however, if we don’t identify the true value of what we are doing then why are we doing it.  This programme will ensure you know and understand how to extract value and communicate it clearly.  This programme is ideal for anyone involved in the delivery projects and programmes. 

Upcoming Courses: 

Starting: 20th October 2023 (13:30 - 16:30)

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Starting 8th March 2024

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This course is £220. Funding through the Intensive Learning Academy requires a 50% employer contribution fee of £110

Before you try to solve a big problem, you need to understand the cause of the problem and the dependencies involved. This programme will develop your approach to problem solving and decision making by trying out new ways to tackle challenges you face. This programme is for anyone in a line management or decision-making role. 

Find out more about the course by visiting our course page.

Upcoming Courses: 

Starting: 10th November 2023 (9:30am - 12:30pm and 2:00pm - 4:30pm)

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Starting: 11th January 2024

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This course is £220. Funding through the Intensive Learning Academy requires a 50% employer contribution fee of £110.

Managing risk is at the heart of good governance. Recent years have seen a growing recognition of the importance of understanding, managing, and mitigating risks to organisations and businesses. This short introduction to risk management will broaden your awareness of risk management principles and the leading approaches taken in the environment you operate within.

Upcoming Courses: 

Starting: 10th November (9:30-12:30)

Book your place here

This course is £220. Funding through the Intensive Learning Academy requires a 50% employer contribution fee of £110

The 5-case model for developing Business Cases is a tried and testing systematic and objective approach.  Its enables organisations to plan and contribute to their strategy, employ best practice to plan spending and enabling effective business decisions. This introductory course has been designed for those responsible for the inception of programmes and projects in their organisation and will give an insight into the better Business Cases APMG accredited programme.  

Upcoming Courses: 

Starting 26th January 2024 (9:30am - 12:30pm)

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This course is £220. Funding through the Intensive Learning Academy requires a 50% employer contribution fee of £110

Data visualisation creates a visual means to demystifying statistical data and presenting findings. Specific graphics, tools and techniques can be used to translate data clearly, providing an opportunity to communicate information with stakeholders in an accessible format. Power Bi is a powerful tool that can be used to generate insightful visualisations that can be utilised within reports and dashboards. During this course you will learn how to generate custom charts, structure presentation of information and apply conditional formatting. There are a huge range of visuals that can be produced, during this course you will obtain exposure to scatter plots, map plots, bubble charts, box and whisker plots and many more. With so many visuals to choose from it can be difficult to select the right visual, this course will support you in understanding how to identify the right visual for your data and your audience. 

Upcoming Courses: 

Starting: 8th December 2023 (9:30-12:30)

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Starting 16th February 2024 (9:30-12:30)

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This course is £220. Funding through the Intensive Learning Academy requires a 50% employer contribution fee of £110

The challenges we face in delivering our services are multiple and complex.  Any solutions need to have the service user at the core. This programme will give you a process to design or redesign your service provision to meet the challenges our users face through innovation, positivity, and empathy.

Upcoming Courses: 

Starting 6th October 2023 (9:30am - 1:00pm)

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This course is £220. Funding through the Intensive Learning Academy requires a 50% employer contribution fee of £110

A foundational introduction to what is meant by the term Data Visualisation & why the skill of graphicacy matters for today’s leaders. This course enables delegates to understand the background & broad applicability of data visualisation. Starting with assessing how graphs/charts help or hinder us in our personal lives, delegates are enabled to identify potential improvements for their workplaces. They also develop their skills in reading graphs/charts accurately & avoiding being misled.

Through a combination of teaching, a quiz & group interactive exercises, delegates see a wide variety of data visualisations. They learn to critique misleading designs & 4 tips to avoid being duped by data visualisations. Further, they learn a simple 5 step process for reading new charts/graphs that enables better understanding & spots any potentially misleading elements. Delegates leave with 12 tips for better charts or graphs, so they are enabled to challenge ineffective designs.

Course Topics:

• History of Data Visualisation.
• How and where you see it used in personal life.
• Potential for your workplace.
• Why effective design and Data Visualisation matters.
• How to spot misleading graphs.
• A 5-step process to read new graphics.
• Graphicacy tips and CPD resources.

Learning Outcomes:

• Understand the meaning of Digital Visualisation.
• Notice positive and negative examples of design.
• Identify where digital visualisation could help or be improved in your organisation.
• Enabled to spot misleading graphs.
• A 5-step process to read new graphs.
• 12 dos and don'ts for effective graph design.

Suggested progression route: Intermediate Data Visualisation full day course.

Upcoming Courses:

Starting: 17th October 2023 (10:00am-1:00pm)

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Starting: 17th January 2023 (10:00-1:00pm)

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This course is £220. Funding through the Intensive Learning Academy requires a 50% employer contribution fee of £110

A foundational introduction to what is meant by the terms Digital & Digital Transformation. This course enables delegates to understand the terms, begin to spot the opportunities for improvement in their organisations & gain a high-level understanding of technologies which could be achieve those improvements.

Through a combination of teaching & group interactive exercises, delegates will work from the theory through to action planning for their role & organisation. There will be plenty of opportunity to ask questions and overcome the barriers of jargon or misunderstanding.

Course Topics:

• Definitions and potential of Digital Transformation.
• How to spot 5 types of opportunities for digital transformation.
• A layperson's overview of 11 enabling technologies.
• Tips for approaching such a change.
• Personal action planning.

Learning Outcomes:

• Understand the meaning of key terms and technologies related to Digital Transformation.
• Be able to spot opportunities for improvement.
• Be able to identify potential enabling technologies.
• A personal action plan for first steps.
• Ideas and resources to sustain CPD on this topic.

Suggested progression route: Digital Transformation x2 day course.

Upcoming Courses:

Starting 14th December 2023

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Starting 14th March 2024

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This course is £220. Funding through the Intensive Learning Academy requires a 50% employer contribution fee of £110

Taking an Agile approach to project management can be challenging in organisations.  Understanding how to deploy the principles in a environment that is VUCA takes time, patients and skills.  This immersive course will take you through the design of a project plan using an agile approach, put your customer at the centre of your project and develop your planning and implementation skills.  This course will compliment the accredited project management courses such as Prince 2, Agile PM and Prince 2 agile and will concentrate on getting your project right.

Make an enquiry about our next intake

This course is £440. Funding through the Intensive Learning Academy requires a 50% employer contribution fee of £220

Addressing peoples spiritual care needs is increasingly being recognised as important in health and social care globally. This programme will provide you with the knowledge and skills required in your person-centered care practice.

The aims of this programme will help you to:

• Consider the competencies practiced within a compassionate relationship and founded in a person-centered and reflective attitude of openness, presence and trust.
• Treat people in a holistic way that has been shown to enhance recovery, quality of life, and potential to live independent, happy and fulfilled lives.
• Support them in finding meaning, purpose, value and connection in the midst of life changing events such as illness, uncertainty, sadness and loss

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This course is designed to help improve your awareness of Alcohol Related Brain Damage. By completing the course, you will improve your understanding surrounding the aetiology, prevalence and risk factors associated with ARBD. An overview of the current evidence supporting assessments and ongoing care for those living with ARBD is outlined.

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Learn how to release the full potential of your staff. As a leader consider how having coaching conversations can lead to innovation, change and greater commitment from each of your team members.

Course Topics:

• Coaching as a style of leader
• Tools and techniques to GROW
• Creating a culture of learning and development

Upcoming Courses:

Starting 19th March 2024

Book your place here

This course is £220. Funding through the Intensive Learning Academy requires a 50% employer contribution fee of £110