NORTHSIDE
TRAINING
Inside Couples+ Therapy An in-depth exploration of theory and application
This five-part series brings together some of the most compelling theoretical frameworks in contemporary relationship therapy — and asks not just what they say, but what they demand of us as practitioners.
Each seminar moves between concept and clinical application, giving you frameworks you can actually use.
Trainer: Brad McLean CTA MSc. 60 mins per workshop
Dates (online via Zoom):
Wednesdays 10.30 - 11.30am 22 April, 20 May, 24 June
Saturdays 10.00 - 11.00am 27 June, Sat 4 July
Workshop Information
The Series at a Glance
Format: Online via Zoom | Duration: 60 minutes per workshop | Price: £12 per seminar Book individually or as a series
Relationships are complex. The therapy space that holds them needs to be more so.
Designed for therapists and practitioners working with — or curious about — relationship therapy, this series takes the field seriously. It draws on Gottman, Tavistock, Kleinian, Jungian, and integrative TA approaches to give you a genuinely rich and multi-perspectival foundation.
Open to all relationships. Inclusive of gender, sexual, and relationship diversity.
The Gottman Method for Relationship Therapists — Strengthening the Relationship Adult in Couples+ Therapy
Wednesday 22 April 2026 | 10.30am UK time | 60 minutes
The Gottman Method is one of the most research-informed approaches to relationship therapy available, built on decades of longitudinal observational studies of couples in the lab and at home. But how does it translate into a TA framework?
This seminar introduces Gottman's evidence-based interventions with a specific focus on how they support Adult ego state functioning in relationships. You'll explore tools that sharpen communication, build emotional and affect regulation, and deepen intimate connection — all within a framework that will already feel familiar to TA practitioners.
Expect clear clinical application and practical takeaways from the outset.
Early Wounds, Adult Love — Psychoanalytic Depth Meets TA
Wednesday 20 May 2026 | 10.30am UK time | 60 minutes
An introduction to the Tavistock psychoanalytic model of couples therapy, explored through a Transactional Analysis framework. The workshop focuses on the unconscious life of the co-constructed Child ego state of the relationship and how it is expressed and negotiated within the relational field.
Designed for TA relationship therapists seeking greater conceptual depth, it integrates psychoanalytic insight with TA theory and structure to deepen our understanding of unconscious processes in intimate relationship dynamics.
This presentation outlines McLean’s (2025) integrative Transactional Analysis model for relationship therapy, focusing on the decontamination and deconfusion of Parent, Adult, and Child ego states within relationship systems.
Through practical stages, clinical illustrations, and links to contemporary approaches in relationship therapy, the workshop demonstrates how TA offers a unique structured and dynamic framework for relationship psychotherapy.
Decoding Relationship Structures: Decontamination and Deconfusion in TA Couples Therapy
Wednesday 24 June 2026 | 10.30am UK time | 60 minutes
Understanding Infidelity as Manic Defence: A Contemporary Kleinian Perspective for Transactional Analysts
Saturday 27 June 2026 | 10.00am UK time | 60 minutes
A presentation based on contemporary Kleinian analyst Shelly Nathan’s paper, which conceptualises infidelity as a defence against the experience of loss and the elements of relationships and individual psychologies and identity that cannot be fully grieved. The session offers a clinically rich exploration of how infidelity functions within the internal world and the couple dynamic.
Examines what is distinctive about the Jungian approach to couples therapy, drawing on key concepts such as individuation, alchemy, complexes, and shadow work. Participants will explore how Jungian depth psychology illuminates unconscious forces shaping relational dynamics, and how these insights can offer an overarching depth-psychology framework compatible with TA when working clinically with relationships.
Soul Work with Couples+: Integrating Jungian Depth with TA Practice
Saturday 4 July 2026 | 10.00am UK time | 60 minutes
About the Trainer
Brad McLean
CTA (Psychotherapy) · MSc · Gottman Level 3 · PACFA Registered
Brad McLean is a psychotherapist, Certified Transactional Analyst (Psychotherapy), and Balint group leader specialising in clinical work with gender, sexual, and relationship diverse clients. Based in Australia, he works nationally and internationally with individual and relationship clients and supervisees, practising from a contemporary relational/ psychodynamic orientation increasingly informed by Jungian ideas.
Brad is a PACFA-registered psychotherapist, certified clinical supervisor, and Gottman Level 3 practitioner, holding an MSc in TA Psychotherapy from Middlesex University. He is a member of the Balint Society of Australia and New Zealand and has published two widely read papers (2023, 2025) in the Transactional Analysis Journal on relationship therapy and TA.
If you’re interested in deepening your relational and couples work, you may also want to explore other events coming up.