Introduction to Bridging Creativity: Cross-Cultural Work with Muslim & Middle Eastern Communities

Sara Powell

The Centre for Creative Therapeutic Practice is honoured to partner with Sara Powell to bring you this “must do” CPD course for those looking to strengthen their cross cultural competency. As an art therapist, trainer, supervisor and founder of ATIC Psychological Centre in the Middle East Sara deepens this unique training by sharing  her own lived experience of being “a third culture kid” 

As someone committed to fostering cross-cultural understanding, who embodies a cross-cultural existence and identity, I’m thrilled to offer this one-day training designed to provide professionals with a broadening of cultural understanding on beliefs and religious influences when working with Middle Eastern Muslim communities and those who identify as Muslim. This course offers an opportunity to explore the nuances of cultural sensitivity and integration of these insights into therapeutic practices.

The driver for offering this training is the significant barriers that continues to exist in mental health care, one being a lack of cultural competency, to varying degree. Our research has revealed that many therapists experience anxiety when working cross-culturally, especially with clients whose religiosity or spirituality is an integral part of their identity, which may differ from our own worldview.

For example, for many Muslim clients, where culture is often deeply informed by religious principles, therapist anxiety can manifest as discomfort or hesitancy within the therapeutic alliance, resulting in missed opportunities for making connection and even delay the onset of healing.

Clients can sense this unease, which can result in feelings of mistrust or may even lead to reluctance to engage in therapy. Muslim clients, in particular, may feel misunderstood or judged, or stifled especially when the therapy session touch upon their spiritual or cultural values. These dynamics can create significant barriers and prevent clients from fully accessing the benefits of therapy and even leave therapists feeling inadequate due to a lack of knowledge in bridging this gap.  

Throughout this course, we will address these challenges head-on. Together, we will also explore the complexities of acculturation and assimilation, and unpack how Islamic principles inform cultural identity, and learn strategies for fostering empathy and connection within the therapeutic alliance. Participants will also gain practical tools for integrating art as a culturally responsive medium, allowing clients to express themselves in ways that honour their beliefs and traditions.

This training aims to break down the barriers that can make cross-cultural work challenging. By developing greater cultural understanding, competence and sensitivity, therapists can create spaces where clients lead and feel understood, respected, and empowered to heal as a whole. It’s a journey of growth, both for therapists and the communities we serve. 

I look forward to welcoming you 

Read more and book this course here

Creative Therapeutic Practice to Support Autistic & Neurodivergent Children and Young People

⁠

Mary Rose Brady and Dr Patricia Watts

To mark Autism Awareness day 2025 we are delighted to offer this one day CPD course designed for those working with children and young people who wish to build  their specialist knowledge and skills in creative engagement to support autistic and/ or neurodivergent children and young people.

The significant year-on-year global increase of autism diagnoses presents a particular challenge for a Health Care system already under considerable stress. NICE guidelines recommend maximum waiting times of 13 weeks for clients referred for autism assessments, however waiting lists in the UK are generally around 5 times this length, preventing best practice from being implemented.⁠ This also means that creative therapists and other professionals are being referred more children and young people pre or post assessment and are required to adapt their interventions to address and support additional needs 

Delivering effective creative therapeutic intervention for autistic children and young people requires specific training in order to support development, social communication and emotional regulation and to mitigate some of the more distressing accompanying symptoms.⁠

Applying  integral elements of early years evidence based training for autistic children and young people like PACT and JASPER and incorporating knowledge of the 3 hidden senses can be a game changer in delivering safe and effective practice. This CPCAB endorsed course draws on researched interventions to combine theory and practice with sensory motor activities designed by children and young people themselves.

By utilising a “  heads, shoulders, knees and toes... and eyes and ears and mouth and nose”  approach, we can help  join the sensory, motor, interoceptive, proprioceptive and vestibular dots to support autistic children and young people in a more effective and  holistic way.

“what I love most about this approach is its focus on sensory and symbolic methods, making it easier to connect with neurodivergent cyp, especially those who may struggle with verbal communication. The training is both practical and evidence based , giving me a solid understanding of how to apply these techniques in real world settings. I highly recommend this course- it has been a game changer for how I support the cyp I work with “

Participant from our most recent course 

You can find out more about this course here.

#WAAW25

#NoChildShouldHaveToWaitForSupport

#WAAM25#WAAM25

A Call to Action for Children’s Mental Health Week 2025

Practicing for over 3 decades as therapists, supervisors and trainers our Founding Directors speak from the heart to share their reflections in advance of children’s mental health week 2025. 

Mary Rose Brady and Patricia Watts

Children’s Mental Health Week is a powerful reminder of the importance of young people’s emotional well-being, but for those affected, the struggle is not confined to a single week. It is an ongoing challenge, every day of the year. Growing demand for services, combined with ever-lengthening waiting lists, paints a troubling picture which many families find themselves navigating alone.

This reality underscores the urgent need for systemic change. Increased funding, better early intervention strategies, and greater access to school-based counsellors and therapists are critical steps forward. Despite increased public discourse, the capacity to meet the demand for mental health support remains woefully insufficient, leaving thousands of children across the UK without the support they urgently need.

As practising therapists, supervisors, and trainers, we are deeply aware—both from our own experiences and from those of our highly skilled and committed colleagues working in schools, social care, and Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS)—that the challenges we face are a shared problem and a shared burden. We must now acknowledge the urgent need for a comprehensive root-and-branch review at both Governmental and Local levels. Such a review is essential to embed systemic change in how services are funded, staffed, and delivered.

CAMHS, designed to provide specialised support for young people experiencing severe mental health issues, is currently overwhelmed. New figures sourced from NHS England using the Children’s Commissioner’s legislative powers reveal that in 2022/23, 949,200 children and young people were referred to child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS)  in England. The report disclosed that  while 32% received support, 28% - close to 270,300 - were still waiting. For the 305,000 children and young people who accessed support the average waiting time was 35 days, however, in the last year nearly 40,000 children experienced a wait of over two years. This delay exacerbates mental health struggles, often requiring more intensive intervention by the time they finally receive support.

Childcare and education settings have immense potential to positively impact children’s mental health and wellbeing at Tier 2 through creative therapeutic support. However, this potential remains largely untapped due to significant barriers to accessible and affordable online training in creative therapeutic practice. In our work, we encounter many talented practitioners who are deeply passionate about supporting children therapeutically, but face obstacles such as financial constraints, geographical limitations, or caregiving responsibilities that prevent them from pursuing specialised training.

Meanwhile, the rising demand for mental health support and growing waiting lists mean that countless children and young people (CYP) are unable to access timely, creative therapeutic interventions at Tier 2, often leading to a worsening of their issues.

Whilst we recognise that schools are overstretched, they are also uniquely positioned to provide early mental health support, yet this  potential remains largely untapped. Educators, teaching assistants, and pastoral staff form an existing workforce that could, with a significant increase in funding and robust additional training, play a critical role in supporting children at Tier 2, offering early, preventative interventions before issues escalate to require CAMHS-level support.

At the Centre for Creative Therapeutic Practice we highlight  the urgent need for innovation in how mental health services are delivered to CYP recognising  that we can no longer  afford to rely solely on traditional models of delivery.   By investing in training the children and young people’s workforce  as tier 2 therapeutic practitioners, we could significantly reduce the burden on higher-tier services and provide CYP with the help they need when they need it.

A Call to Revolutionise Mental Health Support

The current system is compelled to be reactive rather than proactive, leaving children to reach crisis points before effective intervention is offered. This is unacceptable, waiting is not an option for children whose symptoms worsen and cause distress with every passing day. We must reimagine how we deliver support today, accepting the status quo is not an option and will have far-reaching consequences, not only for those directly affected but for society as a whole. Every day that we delay action is a day where a child’s mental health deteriorates, their education is disrupted, and their future potential is diminished.

Mental health is not a luxury. It is a fundamental right. The time to act is now. Schools, policymakers, and mental health professionals must come together to create a system that prioritises early intervention and provides accessible, effective care for every child who needs it.

At the Centre for Creative Therapeutic Practice we believe that #NoChildShouldHaveToWaitForSupport 

#CMHW25

You can find out more about what we do here.