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As the Programme Leader, and a Core Tutor, of a two-year BACP Accredited Counselling Course, I have no opportunity to experience directly the Personal Development Group. This is a vital component in both years that is, out of necessity, facilitated by an outside Visiting Lecturer. Core Tutors maintain a discreet distance. The reason for this is to provide the space in which the students can feel freer to express themselves, without being watched over by the very people involved in the assessment of their personal and professional development.
When I was asked if I would be interested in reviewing this book, what attracted me most initially was the cover photograph of the pebbly seashore, driftwood, crashing waves, and silvery skies. The image provoked a reaction in me that felt personally significant. I was born and brought up near the sea, and even now spend many a weekend along a similar shoreline. The relentless, pounding energy of the sea is a life-force with which I identify. The presenting image had already begun to conjure up my own ideas of what may emerge before I had even opened a page. In addition, my curiosity to read a student guide to the Personal Development Group, and to hopefully gain useful insights about the potential student experience had been whetted.
The introduction and continuing use of nautical metaphors in relation to a journey, and the inter-related images, provide a consistent thread on which to hang one's own experience, understanding, and knowledge. This is a creative approach that I feel will attract a potential participating student member, a novice to the notion of personal development, and a more experienced bystander like myself, already