Resources

Case-Based Trainings on Promoting Security in Caregiver-Child Relationships

Our team at Circle of Security International is excited that the COS Intensive model is now more accessible to providers and, therefore, to families. The pathway begins with COSP Training — the foundation of all Circle of Security work — where providers learn the basics of attachment theory and science and how that theory and science is applied in a relationship-based intervention. We've learned from COSP Facilitators around the world that working with caregivers who have a history of trauma, mental health issues, or a combination of risk factors means encountering dyads for whom individualized, extended intervention is indicated.

Step 1 — COSP Training

The pathway begins with COSP Training. Practitioners may complete this training online or in person. Most practitioners become Registered COSP Facilitators, but those not interested in facilitating the COSP program can choose to audit this course for $700 USD. Auditors do not receive the COSP Facilitator Manual and video, do not sign the licensing agreement, and do not have access to the member resources following training.

Step 2 — COS Intensive Assessment Training

Step 2 is the COS Intensive Assessment Training. This training focuses on the individualized assessment at the heart of the COS Intensive model. Providers learn how to conduct and analyse the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) and the Circle of Security Interview — the core assessment tools of the model. A primary focus is identifying the key attachment issue impacting a caregiver-child dyad, known as the Linchpin Issue, as revealed through systematic assessment. A secondary focus is identifying the caregiver's Core Sensitivity, which guides the clinician through the treatment model. Providers receive the COS Intensive Assessment Manual at this training, enabling them to conduct comprehensive assessments in their practice settings.

Steps 1–3 are open to any provider. You do not need to be a psychotherapist to develop these assessment and observational skills — and many providers find that COS Intensive Assessment Training meaningfully deepens their COSP facilitation work.

Step 3 — Intensive Case Review Course

Step 3 is the Intensive Case Review Course — an online course that allows providers to work independently or with a small group of learning partners to review dyadic interactions (SSPs) and caregiver interviews securely posted on our learning website. This self-guided course gives providers who have completed COS Intensive Assessment Training the opportunity to practise identifying a dyad's Linchpin Issue across four carefully selected cases. The course includes more than 8 hours of online video review, including expert narration from Bert Powell and Joe Coyne, and is priced at $750 USD. Optional two-hour consultation blocks with a COS Intensive Supervisor are available at $370 USD per block for providers who wish to discuss case formulations via videoconference.

The Intensive Case Review Course deepens the seeing and guessing skills at the heart of all COS intervention models — even for providers who won't continue to the treatment pathway.

Step 4 — Intro to Treatment Course (Psychotherapists only)

Step 4 begins the treatment-focused portion of the pathway, available to providers who already conduct psychotherapy with high-risk clients. This course introduces the key principles of COS Intensive Treatment, including an overview of protocols that can be delivered with individual clients, couples, or groups of caregivers. Participants explore Being With as applied to the therapist–client relationship and how this therapeutic stance connects to the intervention model. The course includes a guided case analysis with Bert Powell reviewing key moments from one of the very first COS Intensive groups, and an active learning module in which participants practise clip selection — a core skill for the Tape Reviews at the heart of each phase of treatment. The course concludes with an introduction to Case-Based Consultation, Step 5 on the pathway.

Step 5 — Case-Based Consultation with a Certified COS Intensive Supervisor (Psychotherapists only)

Step 5 is Case-Based Consultation — the final step on the path to endorsement as a COS Intensive provider. Consultation is conducted via secure sharing of video assessments gathered by the trainee and regular online meetings reviewing video of the clinician's COS Intensive intervention cases. Small group consultation is recommended and is available at a lower cost than individual consultation.

Who Is Eligible for COS Intensive Training?

Steps 1, 2, and 3 are open to any provider. We have found that COS Intensive Assessment Training and the Intensive Case Review Course provide an excellent organisational framework that enhances COSP facilitation and deepens the seeing and guessing skills at the heart of all COS intervention models.

Steps 4 and 5 are for providers who already conduct psychotherapy with at-risk clients, as these steps focus on treatment rather than assessment. We recognise that definitions of which providers are eligible to conduct psychotherapeutic intervention vary across different parts of the world.

Working With a Team

While we have worked hard to make the COS Intensive pathway accessible to individual practitioners — including those in private practice — most providers prefer both learning and implementing COS Intensive as part of a team. Reflecting with a close colleague as you learn is genuinely helpful. Providers often tell us that working alone with this model is difficult: having a colleague to share Circle stories with doesn't just support learning — it prevents isolation and burnout.

Individual practitioners are warmly welcome on the pathway. We do recommend learning alongside peers, and we encourage individual learners to buddy-up with one or two other providers — particularly for the Intensive Case Review Course and Case-Based Consultation.

COSP and COS Intensive — Understanding the Relationship

We're often asked about the relationship between COSP and the COS Intensive model. COSP can be facilitated by any Registered COSP Facilitator — online or in person — while COS Intensive Steps 4 and 5 are for providers who already conduct psychotherapy with at-risk clients. The two are not competing approaches; COSP Training is Step 1 of the COS Intensive pathway. The difference is intensity and personalisation, not quality or validity.

In many ways, COSP is built on the same platform as the COS Intensive model. Both use video to introduce what the science of attachment has shown professionals: namely, that the elements of secure attachment can be understood by anyone. The goal of both is to engage each caregiver's wisdom — using the Circle of Security diagram as a map and reviewing interactions between caregivers that illustrate how attachment needs are expressed, and sometimes hidden, by young children.

The key difference is one of intensity. COSP is generally an 8–10 week program in which caregivers reflect on video of other caregiver–child interactions. COS Intensive uses a comprehensive individualised assessment — the Strange Situation Procedure and the Circle of Security Interview — to feed into a longer intervention focused directly on each caregiver's own video with their child. For some caregivers, COSP is enough to promote security in their relationship; for others — particularly those with histories of trauma or other significant stressors — a more intensive, individualised therapeutic model is indicated.