Single Session Family Consultation (SSFC)
Conduct family sessions that provide timely, accessible support to all family members while retaining a strong client-practitioner relationship.
Incorporating family members and other people who are important to service users during the provision of service for your individual clients has been shown to improve outcomes for those experiencing a range of mental health and related difficulties and to their families.
What is SSFC?
SSFC provides an articulated practical process for engaging and consulting with families, and combines this with key components of Single Session Thinking principles and practices, enabling practitioners to make the most of each encounter with families.
Benefits of SSFC for clients and their families
SSFC model of practice:
- Provides an opportunity for the family members to better understand where and from whom their loved one is receiving support
- Facilitates greater shared understanding of the difficulties faced by your client, plans for supporting them and how to respond when challenges arise
- Allows the family to feel heard and better understood by the practitioner and service
Learning Options
Please select the learning options below to find out more and start your SSFC learning journey.
Single Session Family Consultation In Practice
This implementation workshop builds on your existing knowledge of SSFC. Put into practice the skills at the convening, conducting and follow-up stages of SSFC in a supportive small group context.
This half-day workshop is the practice companion to The Bouverie Centre’s Single Session Family Consultation (SSFC) self-paced online course that aims to bridge the gap between ‘knowing’ and ‘doing.’ It provides you with an opportunity to consolidate your knowledge of SSFC and enhance the application of these ideas in your clinical practice.
Put into practice the skills at the convening, conducting and follow-up stages of SSFC in a supportive small group context. Particular attention is paid to the feedback process so that your learning is maximised.
What will you learn
By attending this workshop, you will:
- Build on your existing knowledge of SSFC as a practical, doable model of family engagement and inclusion
- Have a unique opportunity to practice skills of SSFC in a supportive small group setting where you will receive relevant and helpful feedback
- Become ‘practice ready’ in the use of SSFC
- Be able to work through the issues of how to get started in making SSFC part of your current practice
Prior knowledge
Completion of The Bouverie Centre’s Single Session Family Consultation self-paced online suite in the last 12 months.
Who should attend
SSFC in Practice is relevant for those who want a clear and straightforward practice model for engaging and including families in their work, but who are not family therapists. It is particularly suitable for those working in individually oriented services for adults and young people (such as mental health and alcohol and drug services) where working with families is not the primary focus.
Workshop Style
This is an implementation-focused workshop led by a subject expert who is also a clinician. There will be small group practice activities and case discussions, along with the exploration of ideas to help make SSFC part of your practice repertoire.
You will have the opportunity to ask questions about any aspect of SSFC and its applications and receive advice about how to start using SSFC within your work role and setting.
Register for Single Session Family Consultation In Practice
For group or organisation purchases
We offer bulk purchase discounts for organisations and groups bookings, please email bouverie.training@latrobe.edu.au for more information.
Training at Your Workplace
We can customise this training to the needs of your team and deliver it to your workplace. See here for more information.
Expression of Interest
Submit our expression of interest form to be notified of future offerings of this workshop and related professional development opportunities.
A key component of the 'From Individual to Families' framework, Single Session Family Consultation (SSFC) combines the principles and practices of family consultation with single session thinking.
Learning outcomes
On completion of SSFC, you will be able to:
- Understand the Single Session Thinking and Family Consultation frameworks that underpin SSFC
- Convene, conduct and undertake follow-up as part of SSFC
- Address challenging situations in sessions with families
- Identify how you can incorporate SSFC into your practice
Listen to Dr Brendan O'Hanlon discuss this course and how it provides a solid grounding in the practice frame of SSFC.
Relevant Audience
Professionals, including counsellors, therapists, case managers, team leaders, or managers interested in practical tips for working with ‘hard to engage’ clients.
Course module overview
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Describes the rationale and practice principles underpinning SSFC and its place within a comprehensive response to families
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Unpacks the conceptual and practical contributions of Single Session Thinking and Family Consultation to the model
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Describes and demonstrates the key stages of SSFC: convening, conducting and following up
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Addresses key challenges including translating SSFC training into practice
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Provides references and tools to aid and support practice
Purchase Single Session Family Consultation now
Turn complex mental health information into a shared understanding
Course Length: 1. 5 hours (CPD hours)
SSFC - Information Sharing with Families is an online learning module you can complete at your own pace, pause and return at any time and review content. The course features practice theory and examples, interactive activities and reflective questions to consolidate your learning.
At the completion of the module, you will receive a certificate of completion.
Who is this relevant too?
SSFC - Information Sharing with Families is for professionals working within the SSFC practice framework who want to further develop their skills and expertise in delivering family‑inclusive psychoeducation whilst working directly with clients and their families.
Individuals who will benefit
- Clinicians and practitioners working with clients and families, including:
- Mental health clinicians (e.g. psychologists, social workers, nurses)
- Therapists and counsellors
- Case workers and care coordinators
- Family workers and peer practitioners
Level of seniority
- Primarily frontline and early‑ to mid‑career practitioners
- Also relevant for senior clinicians, supervisors, and team leaders seeking to support reflective practice and workforce capability
Work setting
- Public and community mental health services
- Primary care and integrated care settings
- Rehabilitation and psychosocial support services
- Non‑government organisations and private practice
Relevant client groups
- Adults experiencing mental health challenges
- Families and carers, including parental mental illness
- Diverse families, including CALD communities
- Clients where trauma, complexity, or ongoing care coordination is relevant
Prior knowledge
Single-Session Family Consultation online learning and/or in-practice workshop
Practice experience using the SSFC framework
SSFC - Information Sharing with Families overview
Sharing information with families is a core part of effective mental health care — yet uncertainty about how to explain complex issues clearly, manage differing perspectives, and respond to common questions while maintaining relational safety is a concern of practitioners.
This online learning module builds on Single Session Family Consultation (SSFC) to strengthen your capacity to deliver clear, tailored, and family-inclusive psychoeducation. Grounded in SSFC principles, family-inclusive practice, and relational safety, the course content focuses on three-way conversations in which clients and families are recognised as experts in their own experience, alongside clinicians’ professional knowledge.
Participants will develop practical strategies to support shared understanding, engage families, and foster future collaboration. By the end of the course, you will be equipped to address questions about mental health, treatment, medication, confidentiality, and support options with greater confidence and clarity.
Key subject areas:
- Psychoeducation in the context of the SSFC framework
- Family inclusive practice
- Three‑way conversations (clinician, client and family)
- Relational safety
- Client centred information sharing
Learning Outcomes
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Explain the purpose and value of psycho‑education within a Single‑Session Family Consultation (SSFC) for clients and families using clear, plain language.
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Plan and convene a client centred, tailored psychoeducational SSFC that attends to culture, development, literacy, and relational safety.
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Facilitate effective three way conversations that normalise different perspectives, centre the client’s preferences, and support multi-engagement.
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Respond confidently to commonly asked family questions about mental health, treatment, medication, confidentiality, and support options.
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Apply practical strategies for agenda setting, containment, information sharing, and follow‑up to support shared understanding and future planning.