CALM Training

08/10/2025

Debrief: Recovery, Reflection and Organisational Learning

For 28 years CALM has championed a whole organisational approach to the prevention of distress. At the heart of this is the belief that how we respond in the aftermath of difficult moments matters just as much as how we try to prevent them.

That’s where Debrief comes in.

Debriefing offers more than a space to process an incident. It creates the opportunity for:
• Recovery - supporting staff wellbeing and repairing relational ruptures.
• Reflection - recognising the thoughts, feelings and systems that contributed to what happened.
• Organisational learning - identifying patterns, strengthening practice, and shaping safer, more compassionate cultures.

The CALM Debrief Course draws on the CALM Principles - Self-Aware, Relationship Promoting, Trauma Responsive, Systems Thinking, Rights Respecting, and Always Learning. (look back at previous posts for more on these!)

These principles guide practitioners and organisations in turning difficult experiences into practice knowledge and wisdom that prevents future harm and nurtures cultures of care.

Upcoming Online Course
We’re delighted to be running our live online Debrief course across three Mondays in November:
3rd, 10th and 17th November
3 x 3-hour sessions

This course is ideal for staff who may facilitate debriefs and for organisations committed to embedding recovery and learning into everyday practice. Together, we’ll explore different debrief structures, trauma awareness, attribution theory, and the role of language and listening in transforming moments of rupture into opportunities for growth.

23/07/2025

At CALM, we have read the PABSS Report 2025 with deep respect and attention.​

To the families who spoke out- thank you. Your voices matter deeply.

We stand alongside those calling for urgent, rights-based, trauma-informed change. We’re listening, learning, and taking action with a continued focus on early years, restraint reduction, and co-production.

Read our response to the PABSS report here:

https://calmtraining.co.uk/pabss-report-2025-response/

14/03/2025

Language shapes the way we see the world. The words we use about others influence the stories they believe about themselves; and shape how others perceive them too.

Words can exclude, distance, and judge, carrying hidden assumptions that reinforce barriers. But words are also powerful because they can include, invite, and create possibilities. The language we use can reflect a person’s strengths, even when they struggle to see them, and can shape a culture of care rather than control.

Many of us use the language of the services we work within without pausing to ask: What meaning does this language carry? What lies beneath it? And how can we fill our words with hope and care?

Take a moment to reflect on phrases that are common in social care. Here are a few examples:

🧡Hard to reach → We need to build trust

💛Not engaging → We need to find a different way to connect

💜Attention-seeking → Seeking connection and support

What if we became more intentional about the language we use? What if we saw words not just as descriptions, but as acts of care?

Let’s stay curious about the stories our words create.

07/03/2025

What if we approached every interaction with the quiet awareness that each of us is carrying far more than what can be seen on the surface?

Working in a trauma-informed way begins with a radical shift in mindset - one that invites us to see ourselves and each other as fully embodied beings - shaped by our experiences, histories, and the social worlds we move through. It asks us to move away from “What’s wrong?” towards “What might have happened?” or even “What might you be carrying?”

But trauma-informed practice isn’t just for those we think might have experienced trauma.

It’s for everyone.

Because being trauma-informed is ultimately about recognising what it means to be human - that our nervous systems are constantly sensing for safety or threat, often without us even realising. That how we feel in any moment is shaped by what we’ve lived through - and that this is just as true for those offering care and support as it is for those receiving it.

When we work in a trauma-informed way, we create spaces where people don’t have to prove their worthiness of care; where compassion is the starting point, not the exception.

This shift is simple, but it’s also radical. It asks us to let go of judgment and certainty and instead stay curious about what we can’t immediately see.

It asks us to believe that behind every behaviour is a story, even if we’ll never know the full details.

It asks us to remember that what we offer each other - safety, compassion, respect - isn’t just nice, it’s necessary.
What would change if we truly carried this awareness into our daily interactions?

27/02/2025

One of the six principles of the CALM Approach is being ‘Systems Thinkers’ — recognising that no person exists in isolation and that we all exist within a complex system of cultures, relationships, experiences and so much more.

When we adopt a systems lens, we begin to see the bigger picture — the inner systems that shape our own reactions, the systems we create in our teams and relationships, and the wider systems of culture, policy, and history that shape all of our lives.

It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by complexity; especially when the challenges we face feel urgent and pressing and we want to find the answers about how best to support people whose distress we may find challenging. But complexity isn’t something to be fixed or feared, it’s something to be curious about.

Systems Thinking helps us ask different questions:

💡 What’s happening around this person, not just within them?

💡 How do relationships, environments, and policies interact to help or harm?

💡 What role do power, history, and inequality play in shaping what’s possible for people?

When we move away from simple explanations or quick judgments, we open up the possibility for greater compassion and more sustainable change; for ourselves, our teams, and the people we support.

Being a Systems Thinker means understanding that everything is connected — and so are we.

21/02/2025

We do our best work in the context of strong supportive relationships. Whether in social care, education, or any field where people are at the heart of what we do, the quality of our relationships shapes the environment we create—for ourselves and for others.

When relationships are strong, people feel safe. They can heal. They can take risks, try new ways of communicating, and develop in ways they never thought possible. A focus on relationships is not just about connection—it’s about creating the conditions where trust, growth, and transformation can happen.

At CALM, one of the core principles of our approach is being ‘Relationship Promoting’ because relationships don’t just happen; they need to be nurtured. It means showing up with presence, curiosity, and care. It means recognising that we are interconnected and not alone.

Let's take a moment to reflect:
• Who has helped you feel safe enough to grow, learn, or take risks?
• How do you intentionally nurture relationships in your team or workplace?
• What small actions make the biggest difference in how people show up for you?

We are in relationship with everything and everyone around us in big and small ways and sometimes amid all the things we have to ‘do’ it can be easy to forget that our way of 'being' in those relationships has so much power.

11/02/2025

Last night’s BBC Disclosure: Kids on the Psychiatric Ward revealed deeply concerning practices at Skye House, one of Scotland’s few in-patient child and adolescent mental health units. The idea that a place designed to provide care and safety could instead inflict further harm is both distressing and unacceptable. When services fail the very people they exist to support, it represents a profound breach of trust.

But if we want real change, we need to move beyond outrage and ask why these cultures emerge. There is a significant body of research that helps us understand how environments meant to nurture can become places of harm. Staff working in these settings face relentless pressure—managing risk, absorbing distress, and often feeling powerless in the face of suffering. Without proper support, these emotions don’t disappear; they surface in ways that can shape attitudes, interactions, and ultimately, the culture of a service. If staff are unable to process their own frustration, fear, or exhaustion safely, the risk of dehumanisation increases—not because they are inherently uncaring, but because they are struggling in systems that don’t support them.

We have evidence, insights, and approaches that can help prevent these failures, but they need to be applied consistently and shared widely. Exposing poor practice is necessary, but without examining its deeper causes, we risk simplifying a complex issue and missing the opportunity to create lasting change. Holding services accountable must go hand in hand with understanding how to build cultures that truly care—not just in principle, but in practice.

Young women tell their stories from years spent on an adolescent psychiatric ward.

07/02/2025

At CALM, we believe in Always Learning—because growth isn’t just something we do; it’s part of who we are. All of our six guiding principles are there to help us make decisions, guide our practice and enrich our relationships and Always Learning is one that helps us remember that we learn in so many ways:

✨ Through experience – by stepping into new challenges and embracing the unexpected.

✨ Through reflection – by pausing to consider what worked, what didn’t, what we can do differently and what support might be needed.

✨ Through research – by seeking out fresh ideas, perspectives, and evidence to inform our practice.



At the heart of learning are curiosity and intellectual humility. Curiosity keeps us asking questions, exploring possibilities, and staying open to discovery. Intellectual humility reminds us that no one has all the answers—and that’s okay. The real magic happens when we listen, learn from one another, and grow together.



Want to dive deeper into intellectual humility? Check out What Does Intellectual Humility Look Like? (https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/what_does_intellectual_humility_look_like)



Let’s keep learning together. 💛

31/01/2025

Another one of the six principles which guides our practice at CALM and is at the core of our approach is being ‘Rights Respecting’. We believe that being rights-respecting is not just an approach—it’s a responsibility and a privilege. Every person we support or work alongside has the right to be treated with dignity, to have their voice heard, and to make choices about their own lives.

Respecting rights means:

👁️ Seeing the person first, beyond labels or diagnoses.

🔀 Supporting autonomy by offering real choices.

🦺 Ensuring safety without compromising dignity.

👂 Listening—really listening—to what matters to the people we care for.

When we embed rights into every interaction, we create environments where people feel valued, listened to, and truly respected.

Let’s commit to keeping respect for rights at the heart 💕 of everything we do.

How do you champion the rights of those you support? Let’s start a conversation!

24/01/2025

At CALM we have guiding principles that help shape our decision making and our practice, and one of these is 'Self-Aware'.

How does our self-awareness shape someone else’s calm?

In moments of stress or distress, we instinctively focus on the person who seems upset. But have you ever paused to consider your own role?

Research shows that emotional regulation is contagious. When we are calm and aware of our own emotions, we are better equipped to respond to others in distress. But when we are tense, reactive, or unaware of our own emotions, we can unintentionally escalate the situation.

Self-awareness isn’t just about “knowing yourself.” It’s about recognising:

• Your own stress signals and how they might show up in your body.

• How your assumptions or judgments could strengthen tension.

• What your presence communicates to someone else—calm, or chaos?

Imagine this: A colleague, friend, or person you support is visibly upset. Instead of jumping in with solutions or reacting to their distress, you take a moment to notice your breathing, your body language, and your thoughts.

• Are you holding tension?

• Is your tone of voice steady and reassuring?

• Are you listening, or simply waiting to speak?

It might seem small, but these shifts can be profound. Evidence from trauma-informed practice highlights the power of safety and trust in de-escalating tense situations. When we model calm and self-regulation, we make it easier for others to do the same.

What strategies or techniques have helped you stay self-aware in stressful situations? Share your thoughts below—your experiences might inspire someone else!