Walter Carrington Educational Trust

Charity for the Walter Carrington Educational Trust

Programme for Alexander Technique Teachers 2018

An opportunity for six teachers to receive free practical experience in teaching the Technique to People with Parkinson’s plus a follow-up of sponsored individual lessons.

Following on from previous workshops and activities The Walter Carrington Educational Trust is offering six STAT qualified teachers to participate in two workshops and the opportunity to give 10 lessons to a person with Parkinson’s Disease.

This training will consist of attending two sponsored Alexander Technique workshops, where special training will be given in the mornings, followed by hands-on experience with people living with Parkinson’s in the afternoons. This will be FREE for teachers and people living with Parkinson’s (sponsored by the Walter Carrington Educational Trust). Any teacher completing the program will have the opportunity to have a Parkinson’s pupil allocated by the Trust for a set of 10 sponsored lessons (at £30 per lesson).

Maximum six teachers.

Location: The Constructive Teaching Centre/Alexander Technique Imperial Wharf centre
13 The Boulevard
Imperial Wharf
London SW6 2UB

Dates: Sunday 11th February + 25th February
Time: Morning sessions: 9:30am – 12:30 pm | Afternoon sessions: 1.30 – 5.00 pm, with breaks provided
How to apply: Please email constructiveteachingcentre@gmail.com or use the form here

Questions? Please email constructiveteachingcentre@gmail.com.

All six places for teachers have been booked. Please let us know if you would like to join the waiting list.

Participation in the morning sessions and practical afternoon workshops is free. A certificate of attendance will be given.
To apply for a sponsored place, please make sure that you will be able to commit to coming on both days.
If you would like to apply, please read all information on this page carefully. Attendance on both days and completion of an online questionnaire by the Trust afterwards will be a prerequisite for allocation of a pupil with Parkinson’s Disease by the Trust. You will need to be fully ensured as a teacher. A small amount of home study before the start of the programme will be recommended and links to the recommended material will be provided.

Please understand that for practical reasons this opportunity is only open to a maximum of six teachers.

PROGRAMME
DAY ONE, Sunday 11th February
Morning session 9:30am – 12:30pm
A short introduction to the programme and what has happened so far. The teachers who have pioneered this initiative with the support of the Trust (see below) will share from their experience of working with people living with Parkinson’s.
Chloe Stallibrass will give an introduction to her research and work and a special session with a focus on facial expression, breathing and voice.

Afternoon session 1:30pm – 5:00pm
Approximately 12 people living with Parkinson’s and their carers will be invited to come to a workshop entitled “Living with Parkinson’s – Exploring Possibilities with the Alexander Technique”. This workshop will be led by all or some of the teachers who have pioneered this initiative (Liz Dodgson, Loretta Manson, Dai Richards and Regina Stratil – see below information). The teachers in the Trust programme will be invited to watch and assist at their own pace, thus having the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in working with people with Parkinson’s.

DAY TWO, Sunday 25th February
Morning session 9:30am – 12:30pm
Discussion of DAY 1.
We will have talks by Daiga Heisters, Head of the Parkinson’s UK Excellence Network, and Sarah Webb, Founder of the South London Younger Parkinson’s Network (SLYPN).

Afternoon session 1:30pm – 5:00pm
Approximately 12 people living with Parkinson’s and their carers will be invited to come to a workshop entitled “Living with Parkinson’s – Exploring Possibilities with the Alexander Technique”. This workshop will be led by all or some of the teachers who have pioneered this initiative (Liz Dodgson, Loretta Manson, Dai Richards and Regina Stratil – see below information). The teachers in the Trust programme will be invited to watch and assist at their own pace, thus having the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in working with people with Parkinson’s.

Sponsored lessons
After completion of the two training days each teacher will have the opportunity to have a pupil living with Parkinson’s Disease allocated for a series of 10 Alexander Technique lessons. Lessons will be given at the teachers’ own teaching locations with a generous deadline (about four months) for completion of all 10 lessons. Lessons will be free for the pupils and teachers will receive £30 remuneration per lesson by the Trust. The fee will be paid after completion of the 10 lessons or expiration of the deadline – whichever comes first – and confirmation by the pupils that all claimed lessons have been received. Teachers will invoice the Trust for the number of lessons given up to a maximum of ten lessons @ £30 (£300 maximum per pupil). Both teachers and pupils will be encouraged to complete a short online questionnaire by the Trust after completion of the lessons.

The sponsored pupil with Parkinson’s disease may of course decide to continue to have lessons; that will be by separate arrangement between the pupil and the teacher.

The teachers who have pioneered this initiative:

Liz Dodgson trained with the Carringtons about 16 years ago, and runs a private practice from home and from Roko Gym in Chiswick. She particularly delights in helping people to be able to return to enjoyable, pain-free activity and works regularly with runners in particular. Having had only one student with Parkinsonism during her sixteen years of practice prior to this initiative, she feels that a concerted effort may be needed if the benefits of AT are to be brought to this community.

Loretta Manson trained with the Carringtons at the Constructive Teaching Centre in London, graduating in 1997. She teaches at The Bloomsbury Alexander Centre in Holborn and at The Alexander Technique Studio in Wandsworth Common. A keen dancer from childhood, and now very involved with Lindy Hop and Argentine tango, Loretta was diagnosed early on with scoliosis and multiple joint problems. First-hand experience of living with long-term pain and fatigue gives Loretta particular insight into the challenges faced by pupils in need of relief from tension, pain, backache, low energy and mood. Loretta values the Alexander Technique as a constructive approach to managing our individual limitations and living as fully, freely and joyfully as possible.

Dai Richards trained with Carolyn Nicholls in Brighton qualifying in 2012 and currently teaches full time in Brighton, Hove and Shoreham by Sea. He has a broad and varied experience of working with movement, injury and recovery. He has an excellent track record of helping people with their painful conditions as well as performance in running, cycling, swimming, dancing, and skiing through the Alexander Technique. Recently Dai has been particularly active in taking AT into the traditional workplace.

Regina Stratil trained at the Alexander Technique Studio in London, qualifying in 2014, and now runs a private practice at the Alexander Technique Imperial Wharf centre. She has a particular interest in applying the Alexander Technique to movement and movement difficulties, having a strong movement background herself as a martial arts expert of 25 years’ experience. After studying Chloe Stallibrass‘ research on Alexander Technique and Parkinson’s and participating in a workshop with The Poise Project, she became passionate about the potential benefits of the Alexander Technique to the quality of life of people living with Parkinson’s. Regina is the connecting link to the Walter Carrington Educational Trust and has been instrumental in moving this initiative forward.