A course that starts next month will help youth workers and teachers to support young people who are healing from difficulties in their lives.

The Inter Agency Committee for Children, Families and the Community has opened registration for the nine-week programme.

It will be the second time it has run the Healing Centred Engagement Certification.

A spokeswoman explained: “This certification will help youth workers and educators explore ways that they can enhance their thoughts and behaviours to more effectively reach and impact the youth they serve.”

She said that the course included self-paced online learning as well as live virtual group sessions.

It runs from May 16 to July 19.

The spokeswoman added: “Healing Centred Engagement was the keynote focus of IAC’s 2020 Compassionate Care Conference, featuring Dr Shawn Ginwright.

“The certification will support service providers to advance ways of supporting youth, and in particular young people of colour, and includes the critical focus of the healing and wellness of the service providers.”

She explained that the certification took a “non-clinical, strengths-based” approach and demonstrated how to create the best environment for helping young people.

The spokeswoman added: “Last year’s participants reported having obtained enhanced knowledge of ways to support youth of colour as a result of attending this training.”

One participant said: “The programme was designed in a very helpful way, so that it was easy to incorporate in my daily work.”

SiriusPoint, an insurance and reinsurance company, is sponsoring the course, which means it will be subsidised for IAC members, who will pay $160.

Non-members can register for the full certification cost of $800 or take up IAC membership for $35 per year.

IAC supports non-profit organisations and social programmes through services such as technical training, leadership development, coaching and co-ordination.

It brings together different organisations in the sector through collaboration, network building and communication.

* To register for the training, visitwww.iacbermuda.org/events/.