Understanding resistance as communication, protection and progress in work with children and families

Resistance is a familiar experience for professionals working with children, young people and families, particularly within social work, safeguarding and therapeutic contexts. It may present as missed appointments, avoidance, hostility, apparent compliance or disengagement, and is often experienced as a barrier to progress. This training invites practitioners to move beyond viewing resistance as a lack of cooperation, and instead to understand it as meaningful communication shaped by trauma, attachment, power and previous experiences of services. By reframing resistance in this way, professionals can strengthen engagement, reduce escalation and support safer, more sustainable change.

What does the course cover?

Participants will explore how resistance can present in social work and therapeutic settings, including behaviours such as avoidance, missed appointments, hostility, apparent compliance without change, and disengagement by children or parents. The session will consider resistance as a form of communication and protection rather than defiance, and how it can be understood through attachment, trauma-informed, and systemic perspectives.

This section focuses on how power dynamics, particularly in statutory and safeguarding contexts, can influence resistance. Participants will reflect on how professional authority, assessment processes, and organisational demands can unintentionally increase fear or defensiveness, and how thoughtful use of power can support trust and collaboration.

Resistance often evokes strong emotional responses in professionals, including frustration, anxiety, helplessness, or pressure to “push harder.” This part of the workshop encourages reflective practice, helping participants recognise their own triggers and responses, and consider how these shape interactions with families and young people.

Participants will be introduced to practical strategies for working constructively with resistance, including:

  • Naming and validating experiences without collusion
  • Slowing the pace to prioritise relationship and safety
  • Working with ambivalence and mixed feelings about change
  • Using curiosity rather than confrontation
  • Offering choice and shared decision-making where possible
  • Recognising when resistance may signal emerging engagement or readiness for change

Case examples and small-group discussion will be used to explore how these approaches can be applied in everyday practice.

The workshop concludes by reframing resistance as a potential indicator of movement, particularly when change feels closer or more threatening. Participants will consider how staying present, reflective, and relational at these moments can support sustainable progress and prevent breakdowns in engagement.

The workshop is interactive and reflective, combining brief theoretical input with discussion, case reflection, and practice-based examples. Participants are encouraged to draw on their own professional experiences and consider how learning can be applied within their specific roles and organisational contexts.

Course details:

Audience: Social workers, therapists, and professionals working with children, young people, and families

Days: Half

Session length: 3 hours

Cost: £60.00 + VAT

Maximum participants: 12 (please contact us if you require a larger group)

Location: Virtual

Dates: Please contact us to book this course for your team, or view our upcoming events

Aims of the training

This workshop aims to support social workers and therapeutic professionals to develop a deeper, more compassionate understanding of resistance in their work with children and families. Rather than viewing resistance as a barrier or lack of cooperation, the training reframes it as a meaningful and often protective response that can provide important information about a person’s experiences, fears, and readiness for change.

The training also aims to strengthen practitioners’ confidence in responding to resistance in ways that maintain relationships, reduce escalation, and support meaningful engagement, particularly within contexts where power, risk, and statutory authority are present.

Intended learning outcomes

  • Recognise different forms of resistance in children, young people, and families, including overt and more subtle presentations
  • Begin to develop an understanding of resistance as a response shaped by trauma, attachment, power dynamics, and previous experiences of services
  • Reflect on how professional responses, organisational pressures, and systems can contribute to or reduce resistance
  • Use resistance as a source of information to guide engagement and intervention planning
  • Apply practical, relationship-based strategies to work collaboratively with resistance rather than attempting to overcome it
  • Reflect on how we can maintain curiosity, empathy, and professional resilience when faced with challenging or disengaged presentations

What professionals think about our CPD courses

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“Informative and helpful course. Engaging and educational, with practical tips to apply to real life situations.”

“Very informative. Great to learn about things that relate to daily struggles and having strategies to try to support the children.”

“Very very interesting, informative, useful and engaging. Couldn’t have gone any better. Taking a lot from it. Best training I’ve been on. Thank you!!! :)”

“The best CPD training, will definitely recommend.”

“Powerpoint and discussions all directly linked to what we hoped to achieve. Engaging from start to finish. Thank you.”

“Having light bulb moments and being able to think of specific children and now understand how to help more and support them.”

Upcoming CPD courses

Trauma Informed Classrooms (Feb 2026)

2 February @ 09:30 - 16:00

Prenatal Alcohol Exposure & FASD (Mar 26)

12 March @ 09:30 - 16:30

The Ties That Bind: Sibling Trauma Bonds

26 March @ 09:00 - 12:00

Working with Resistance (Apr 2026)

30 April @ 09:00 - 12:00

FAQs

There are a variety of ways to access our training services. If you wish to book on to a session as an individual, please view our upcoming events. You will find more details on how to apply on the specific event page.

If you want to book a dedicated training course for your team, please get in contact with us for a quote. It would be helpful for us to know if you would prefer us to deliver your training programme face-to-face or virtually, and your expected numbers.

For our live, interactive courses, each participant will need a laptop or tablet device, webcam, microphone and an internet connection. Mobile phones can be used, but they do not offer the best possible experience for the participant.

We typically host our live virtual courses on Zoom.

Please contact our team to discuss your requirements. We will discuss feasibility with you, and provide an outline of costs.

Yes, we offer a range of options to help provide ongoing support to your team.

Please get in touch with us to talk about your consultation requirements, such as frequency, your goals and the type of families your organisation works with (or the difficulties they typically experience). We will work with you to create a bespoke consultation package that works for your needs.

Cost is dependent on the type of course you are accessing, in addition to the length and number of clinicians presenting. Please take a look at the individual course pages for more information.

Bespoke courses may involve a higher cost, as development time will need to be included. We will work with you to find a pricing structure that works for your needs.