Bookings for this course close on Monday 6 October 2025.

Teaching for this course will comprise a formal lecture, generally using audio visual material, with group discussion led by Graham Music, Associate Lecturer, and other visiting lecturers.

This course will be delivered live via Zoom and will not be recorded.

You will need a device with a microphone and camera together with a suitably fast internet connection. Although mobile devices and tablets can be used, we recommend the use of laptop or desktop PC for the best experience. Some devices provided by employers may have restrictions in place. Please use this test link (https://zoom.us/test) to check your set up before booking.

You will be sent the necessary login link about a week before the course start date.

Should you have any concerns about the accessibility of remote delivery please contact us at CPDEvents@tavi-port.ac.uk to discuss how we can best help you.

The programme for this course is split into three parts:

Part one

You will be introduced to key ideas emerging from child development research. Topics covered will include prenatal life and birth, early mother-infant interactions, an infant’s preconceptions of relationships, cultural influences on development, attachment neuroscience and the impact of early experience on brain development.

Part two

You will hear about the impact of disruption in early parent-infant interaction, how memories and representations of relationships form, as well as gender development, the role of fathers and the development of language and play.

Part three

You will learn about the development of a child as a social being, the place of non-maternal childcare, the influence of peers and siblings, adolescent development and the long-term effects of early experience.

Lecture topics include:

• Introduction to child development 
• Prenatal life
• Primed to relate
• Neurobiology and early development 
• Culture, diversity and developmental Issues
• Early defences in response to adverse experiences
• Attachment theory
• Memory and internal representations of relationships
• Empathy, and other minds
• Play, creativity, flexibility
• Language, symbols and words
• Humans as a group species
• Adolescence and early adulthood
• Gender, sexuality and the role of the father
• Moral development 
• Maltreatment and resilience 
• Long-term effects   

The course is structured around the writings of Graham Music. Graham will present several of the lectures, in conjunction with several other speakers who bring specific specialist expertise.

Reading

You will have access to an extensive reading list to complement the course and are encouraged to set aside time to undertake reading between the lectures.

Course Certificate

On completion the course you will be issued with a certificate of attendance. No written work or assessment is required, nor qualification conferred.

(Please note that other attendees on the full Child, adolescent and family mental well-being multidisciplinary practice course will be completing assessments. Any reference to these can be ignored.)

Library membership

Included in your course fee, you will receive online membership to the Tavistock’s internationally-renowned library for the duration of your course.

Our friendly and knowledgeable library team will help to support you through your specialist CPD course, whatever your level of professional or academic experience. You will have access to an extensive range of eBooks, online journals, all the relevant key databases and our specialist audio-visual collection, plus reference access to all our print books.

Our Information Skills Trainer has made lots of material available on Moodle to help you navigate our comprehensive electronic collections. PCs and photocopiers are available for your use (charges apply for printing and copying), as well as various online resources including audio/video playlists. Find out more.