WHAT’S NEW?

With spring approaching, we wanted to share a few reminders and opportunities to stay connected with the AoF community over the coming weeks. We also wanted to share a reminder about our Practitioner Accreditation, which has come up in several recent conversations with guest members.

With just under one month to go, and some spaces still remaining, we wanted to share a reminder and invitation to join us for our upcoming Learning Day exploring Augusto Boal's Theatre of the Oppressed. Following the positive feedback from October, we’re delighted to be welcoming Nick Mabey back to run this experiential session exploring drama and theatre, and its relevance for facilitation today. This Learning Day offers space to experiment with participatory theatre approaches and consider how they can help us navigate power and complexity, support clients to see challenges from new perspectives and rehearse meaningful change in our facilitation practice.

As we move into February, we wanted to share a few ways to stay connected with the AoF community and some reminders about what’s coming up over the next month. Firstly, there are still spaces on our Group Dynamics course next week, the second module of the Foundations in Facilitation Skills Programme. If you’re looking to progress from our Facilitation Skills & Strategies module, or even if you’ve taken Group Dynamics before, this is a great opportunity to deepen and refresh your learning. Repeating a Foundations module can be a powerful way to refresh skills and gain new insights as your practice evolves. Do reach out if this might be of interest, we’re always happy to discuss what’s right for you.

As we begin 2026, we’re looking ahead to a rich programme of opportunities to deepen facilitation practice and connect with peers. From January to March, we’re offering a mix of core training programmes, Learning Labs, and Learning Days, alongside our newly announced Facilitators Retreat this summer. This newsletter brings together key dates and highlights for the months ahead, including Foundations and Certificate programmes, themed online Learning Labs, and experiential Learning Days designed to explore specific tools and approaches in depth.

To begin 2026, we’re delighted to invite members to a brand-new opportunity: our first ever Facilitators Retreat, taking place 3–5 June 2026 in the peaceful woodlands of Hazel Hill Wood, near Salisbury. Designed as a gentle pause rather than a training course, this retreat offers facilitators space to reflect, reset, and reconnect — with themselves, with others, and with the natural environment. Set in a secluded 70-acre woodland, the retreat blends optional, lightly facilitated activities with time for solitude, walking, and conversation, supporting both wellbeing and professional renewal.

As the festive season approaches, we’d like to thank you for being part of the Association of Facilitators community and share a look ahead to what’s coming in 2026. From our Certificate and Foundations programmes to learning days and supervision opportunities, the new year brings a range of ways to deepen your facilitation practice, connect with peers, and continue your professional development.

Following conversations with our members, we’ve updated the entry criteria for our Certificate in Facilitation Skills programme, making it more accessible for experienced facilitators who are ready to deepen their practice. With places still available for our 2026 course dates, this newsletter shares what’s changed, who the Certificate is for, and how the programme supports both professional development and personal presence in facilitation.

Following last week’s newsletter on winter reads to inspire facilitation practice, we shared a reminder of our upcoming November events. From an informal virtual catch-up to a deeper Learning Lab on Habits and Patterns, these sessions offer opportunities to reflect, connect with peers, and continue developing your facilitation practice as the year draws on.

As the year begins to wind down, many facilitators look for ways to pause, recharge, and prepare for what’s ahead. Reading can be a powerful companion in that process, offering fresh perspectives, new ideas, and space for reflection. As you may have seen, on our website we’ve curated a list of books covering facilitation skills, groups, teams, and supervision. We’ve just added three new titles to the list, and wanted to share them here as they speak directly to reflection and professional development [...]

Join Us This Autumn & Explore Our 2026 Programme As autumn unfolds and the year begins to draw to a close, we’re excited to share what’s coming up at the Association of Facilitators. This newsletter includes a reminder of our October events and a look ahead to our 2026 programme – with opportunities to deepen your practice, connect with peers, and plan your next steps in facilitation. Firstly, a reminder of our upcoming October events: Learning Day – Theatre [...]

Opportunities to meet, review and share good practice In recent conversations, during catch-ups, supervision sessions and events, a recurring theme has emerged. Many of you have been reflecting on the importance of staying connected, developing your practice, and making time to pause and review. With this in mind, we wanted to share a reminder of the continued professional development opportunities we offer, both online and in person, and to invite you to make use of them in whatever way [...]

This autumn, embark on your training from Foundations through to Certificate If you’re looking to develop your confidence as a facilitator, sharpen your skills, or deepen your understanding of group process, our autumn programme may offer the next step on your journey. We currently have places available on both modules from our Foundations in Facilitation Skills Programme, which can be taken as standalone modules: Facilitation Skills and Strategies (Sep 15-16) Group Dynamics (Oct 13-14). For those wishing to complete the [...]

Reflect and Strengthen Your Practice In our recent survey, several members mentioned that they were interested in supervision, so we wanted to share a reminder about this valuable benefit for members. As an Accredited or Affiliate Member, you receive one free supervision session per year - a dedicated space to: Examine your role and impact in groups Gain insight into your responses, attitudes, and facilitation style Debrief difficult assignments and manage stress Maintain well-being and ethical practice Non-members are also [...]

From Drama to Empowerment: Understanding Group Dynamics Group dynamics are always shifting - sometimes in flow, sometimes stuck in unhelpful patterns. As facilitators, we’ve all experienced teams working at their best, where collaboration feels effortless. But we’ve also encountered groups where drama, power struggles, and unspoken scripts get in the way. Many of us are familiar with Stephen Karpman’s Drama Triangle (Persecutor, Rescuer, Victim), but few know about David Emerald’s Empowerment Triangle (Challenger, Coach, Creator). Recognising these patterns, and [...]

Introducing our Learning Labs series Building on from our newsletter earlier this month on upcoming events, we wanted to tell you more about our Learning Labs series (previously called seminars). As part of our website refresh, our online 'seminar' sessions have been renamed ‘Learning Labs.’ This change reflects our commitment to offering interactive, content-rich sessions that combine taught content, fresh input and practical takeaways with space to experiment and share experiences in a facilitated group environment. Our Online Learning Labs series covers a [...]