Bibliotherapy Skills Course
Bibliotherapy is a therapeutic approach that uses literature to help clients better understand and cope with the world around them.
Building on the success of the Bibliotherapy in the Community programme, in the autumn of 2021 Exeter City of Literature began working with Exeter College to develop a first of its kind course — the Introduction to Bibliotherapy Skills adult learning course.
The course has since run in 2022 and 2023 and plans are currently underway for its return in 2024.
Introduction to Bibliotherapy Skills Course
Applications for the latest Introduction to Bibliotherapy course are now closed.
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“A new and ambitious course offering unique skills to those working in community-focused organisations. Trainees will develop bibliotherapy skills that they will be able to use to support people in their workplace and communities who would benefit from personalised book prescriptions and conversations around reading in order to increase their overall wellbeing.”
Building on the success of the Bibliotherapy in the Community programme, in the autumn of 2021 Exeter City of Literature began working with Exeter College to develop a brand new course — the first of its kind — the Introduction to Bibliotherapy Skills adult learning course.
A development group made up of esteemed bibliotherapist Susan Elderkin, teachers, a psychotherapist, City of Literature’s Executive Director, and book-industry professionals worked together to build the course before then training Exeter College faculty to deliver it.
The benefits of reading have been well-researched and bibliotherapy is a particular modality that uses reading to improve wellbeing on an individual basis. This new and ambitious course offers unique skills to those working in community-focused organisations. Trainees will develop bibliotherapy skills that they will be able to use to support people in their workplace and communities who would benefit from personalised book prescriptions and conversations around reading in order to increase their overall wellbeing. In addition, the Wellcome Centre for Cultures and Environmental Health at the University of Exeter is engaging in research around bibliotherapy and the course.
Bibliotherapy in practice
On Thursday 30 June 2022 the first run of the Introduction to Bibliotherapy Skills course concluded with a wonderful event at the Devon & Exeter Institution.
Our second cohort of trainees got to test their skills on members of CoLab’s staff book group on Wednesday 24th May 2023.
Course participants had the opportunity to practice skills learned during the course in conversations, creating two wonderful evenings of connection and conversation, where it was truly fantastic to see bibliotherapy skills in action!
“I will never forget practicing bibliotherapy skills for the first time at the Devon & Exeter Institution; I never thought that a conversation about books and reading could have such a profound effect on someone, or that it could make such a positive difference to them. I have found the whole experience very humbling and eye opening, and it has really changed me. I can’t wait to take these skills and use them more on a day-to-day basis in my work.”
“Although initially I was quite daunted by the idea of putting the skills I had learned into practice, by the time the event came around I was actually quite looking forward to it. Having discussed the ideas in theory, I was interested to see how it all worked in a real setting. I found the conversations easier and more natural than I had expected, and people really did seem to value being given the time to talk, and think about their relationship with books and reading. ”
Interested to find out more
about Bibliotherapy?
Gill Partington from The Wellcome Centre for Cultures and Environments of Health took part in our first Introduction to Bibliotherapy course as part of a wider research project on the effects of bibliotherapy. This paper details the results of their findings.
Further reading on Bibliotherapy
Creative bibliotherapy is the use of fiction to improve wellbeing. Does it work to improve mental health in schools? To find out, we plan to review the evidence. This paper describes how we will search for evidence for the effects of school-based bibliotherapy. If there is evidence that it works, we will also explore how and in what contexts.
Redman, H., Melendez-Torres, G.J., Bethel, A. et al. The impact of school-based creative bibliotherapy interventions on child and adolescent mental health: a systematic review and realist synthesis protocol. Syst Rev 13, 86 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13643-024-02482-8
