UK Network for Mindfulness Based Teachers.
Good Practice Guidelines for teaching mindfulness-based courses.
Guiding principles are not etched in stone as there is no statute saying who can or who can’t teach mindfulness. However, there is a now a UK based teacher training Network, which has laid out guidelines to promote good practice in teaching mindfulness-based courses. Mindfulness for teachers and other educators based on the these practices is now available.
Ethically however, as mindfulness based courses aim to teach people practical skills that can help with physical and psychological health problems and ongoing life challenges, it is important that the teacher has some integrity behind their training. At least that was important to me – as well as wanting to immerse myself in the deep subtlety of the course for my own wellbeing.
The main approaches in the UK are MBSR and MBCT. The MBSR is a group based programme developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn and colleagues from the University of Massachusetts Medical Centre for populations suffering from a wide range of physical and psychological health problems. MBCT is an integration of MBSR with CBT. Initially developed by Zindel Segal, Mark Williams and John Teasdale to help recovered recurrently depressed participants and has been recommended by NICE for this group.
However, due to its success with this initial group, MBCT has evolved to be taught to a broader range of people based on psychological understandings of what causes human distress and in a range of settings (NHS, schools, Corporate, addiction recovery, eating disorders)
A teacher of mindfulness-based approaches should have the following:
A mindfulness Based Teacher Training. – which involves familiarity through personal participation with the mindfulness based course they will be teaching, as well as completion of a rigorous mindfulness based teacher training programme over a minimum duration of 12 months.
A Professional Background qualification in mental health or education or social care, or equivalent life experience, recognized within the context within which the teaching will take place.
Knowledge and experience of the populations that the mindfulness based course will be delivered to, including experience of teaching to groups or individuals, unless co-teaching with the help of a colleague who has this experience.
Ongoing Good Practice Requirements
Commitment to a personal mindfulness practice through daily and informal practice. As well as participation in annual residential teacher led mindfulness meditation retreats.
Regular supervision with an experienced mindfulness practitioner
A commitment to ongoing development as a teacher through further training.