CPD Standards Office accreditedIntroduction to Counselling Skills
This is a CPD short course for anyone using counselling skills in a helping role, not a counselling qualification, built on the BACP Ethical Framework. Lift College's 4 hour online course gives you a CPD Standards Office accredited certificate on the day you pass, which employers can verify, plus a free refresher every 3 years.
- £19.99, pay once
- CPD certificate the day you pass
- Free refresher when it is due
- 14-day money back
Accredited CPD activityThe CPD Standards Office, provider 51289. Verify accreditation
14-day money back · Pay once, no subscription
Introduction to Counselling Skills
You can learn the basics of counselling skills online in the UK with Lift College. Introduction to Counselling Skills is 4 hours of learning in 5 short modules, each with a knowledge check, for £19.99, pay once. Your accredited CPD certificate is ready the same day you pass. We recommend a refresh every 3 years, and the refresher is free.
Most of us are asked to listen to someone in difficulty long before anyone shows us how. Counselling skills are the trained version of that: giving full attention, reflecting back what you hear, asking questions that open rather than steer, staying with silence, and holding the boundaries that keep a conversation safe for both of you.
This course covers what a beginner needs to use those skills well: what counselling is and is not, the core skills with worked examples, the habits that block listening, confidentiality and its limits, and when to signpost someone to a GP, a helpline or a qualified counsellor. It is also the quickest way to find out whether counselling training is for you before committing to the regulated Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills.
- Explain the difference between counselling, counselling skills, advice and befriending
- Give full attention and show it, in person, by phone and online
- Reflect, paraphrase and summarise so that the other person feels heard
- Ask open questions and use silence without steering the conversation
- Recognise the common blocks to listening, including the urge to rescue, fix and advise
- Hold confidentiality and its limits, keep boundaries, and signpost when a conversation needs more than you can offer
5 short modules, 4 hours in total.
What counselling skills are, and what they are not
Counselling, counselling skills, advice, befriending and mentoring, the difference between them, who uses counselling skills at work, and why a trained listener does not give advice.
Knowledge checkAttending and active listening
Giving full attention and showing it: posture, eye contact, minimal encouragers, tone and pace, and how the same skills work by phone and on a video call.
Knowledge checkReflecting, paraphrasing, summarising and questions
The core responses that help someone hear themselves: reflecting feeling, paraphrasing content, summarising, open and closed questions, and staying with silence.
Knowledge checkBlocks to listening and self-awareness
The urge to rescue, fix, advise and reassure; judging and comparing; your own triggers and values; and why counselling training always starts with the helper.
Knowledge checkBoundaries, confidentiality, safety and signposting
Keeping a helping conversation safe: confidentiality and its limits, time and role boundaries, when someone needs more than you can offer, and how to signpost to a GP, a helpline or a qualified counsellor.
Knowledge checkFinal test and your certificate
Multiple choice, 80% to pass, unlimited attempts. Your CPD Standards Office accredited certificate is issued the day you pass.
This course is for you if
- You work in care, support, housing, education or youth work and are asked to listen to people in difficulty
- You manage people and want to handle difficult conversations without rescuing or advising
- You volunteer, or want to, with a helpline, charity or community group
- You are thinking about counselling training and want to try the skills before taking the regulated certificate
- You want to be a better listener for the people in your own life
Want the regulated qualification with a named UK tutor? The TQUK Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills takes everything here further, with recorded skills practice assessed by your tutor.
Your CPD accredited certificate, issued the day you pass.
Your certificate names Introduction to Counselling Skills and shows 4 hours of learning. It also shows your completion date and a recommended refresh date 3 years later.
- One price, £19.99. One payment, one learner, no subscription.
- Short modules with a knowledge check after each one and a final test. Instant results.
- 80% to pass, with unlimited free retakes.
- A CPD accredited certificate as a PDF the same day you pass, carrying the CPD Standards Office mark, our provider number 51289, a unique number and a verification link.
- Access for as long as Lift College offers the course, and never less than 3 years from the day you buy.
- A free refresher when your recommended refresh date arrives. Changed your mind? Ask within 14 days of paying and we refund you in full.
LC-CPD-SAMPLECertificate numberAccredited continuing professional developmentCertificate of CompletionThis is to certify thatAlex Johnsonhas successfully completed the CPD course
Dr Kate StrohmManaging Director, Lift CollegeSample certificateAn example only. It has no numberand cannot be verified.LC-CPD-SAMPLELift College Limited is a CPD Standards Office accredited provider (number 51289). This course is an accredited CPD activity.This certificate confirms completion of a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) course. It is not an Ofqual-regulated qualification.Lift College Ltd · Registered in England and Wales, Company No. 17337303 · Unit 3 E/F Suffolk House Business Park, Ashwells Road, Brentwood, Essex, CM15 9SG · liftcollege.co.ukA sample. Yours carries your name, the date you pass and a unique certificate number with a QR code anyone can scan to check it, or check a certificate at liftcollege.co.uk/verify.
The law this course supports
BACP: Ethical Framework for the Counselling Professions
The ethical framework followed by most UK counsellors. Its principles of trustworthiness, respect for autonomy, confidentiality and working within your competence apply to anyone using counselling skills in a helping role.
Read the legislation →Data Protection Act 2018 and UK GDPR
Anything you record or write down about a person you are helping, including notes of a conversation, is personal data and must be kept securely, used only for the purpose it was collected and shared only when the law allows.
Read the legislation →NHS: Get help for mental health
Where to signpost someone who needs more than a listening conversation: a GP, NHS talking therapies, and urgent help lines when someone is at risk.
Read the legislation →Buying Introduction to Counselling Skills for a team?
Open a free organisation account, buy places and give each person their own login. The price falls the more places you buy.
Multiple enrolment discounts
The price of a place is set by the places in one order, on this course or any mix of our CPD courses. Saving against the £19.99 single place.
| Places in one order | Price a place | Saving |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 9 places | £16.99 | 15% off |
| 10 to 49 | £14.99 | 25% off |
| 50 to 99 | £12.99 | 35% off |
| 100 to 249 | £10.99 | 45% off |
| 250 or more | £9.99 | 50% off |
What would your team cost?
Training each person on several courses? A sector pack or the annual plan can cost less. Your quote compares all three for you.
Prefer to talk first? Request a call back
- 1
Your own training portal in 2 minutes
Open a free account with your work email. No sales call, and no minimum order.
- 2
See where everyone stands
A progress dashboard, a training matrix and an Excel progress report for your records.
- 3
Reminders sent for you
Welcome emails, nudges for anyone who stalls, and refresher dates so nobody goes out of date.
- 4
Pay by card or invoice
Card, or invoice on 30-day terms with your PO. Places stay valid for 3 years.
- 5
A human tutor with every course
Real tutor support for your staff, unlimited free retakes and a certificate the day they pass.
- 6
Accredited by the CPD Standards Office
Provider 51289. Every CPD course is an accredited CPD activity.
Check any learner's certificate in our register →
What our learners say
Stories from Lift College learners on our qualifications, in their own words.
“I had been a care assistant for four years without a formal qualification. Lift College made the whole process straightforward, my assessor visited regularly and I completed my Level 3 Diploma in Adult Care in just over a year. I was promoted to senior care worker the month after I qualified.”
“My employer was clear, I needed GCSE English to move into a supervisory role. Lift College helped me find the right exam board and an exam centre five minutes from home. Passed grade 4. Got the promotion.”
“My employer needed me to have Level 2 maths before they could register me on the Level 3 apprenticeship programme. Lift College was fast, the tutor was brilliant, and I resit my maths once after a near-miss and passed the second time. The whole thing took twelve weeks.”
Questions about Introduction to Counselling Skills
Is this a counselling qualification?
No. It is a CPD short course with a CPD Standards Office accredited certificate, designed to teach the basics in an evening or two. If you want a regulated qualification, take the TQUK Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills, which is on the Ofqual register and is marked by a named UK tutor. Neither course qualifies you to practise as a counsellor; that needs Level 4 or higher training with supervised placement hours.
Is this course CPD accredited?
Yes. Introduction to Counselling Skills is an accredited CPD activity with the CPD Standards Office, the UK's research-led CPD accreditation body. Lift College Limited is a CPD Standards Office accredited provider (provider number 51289), and your certificate carries the CPD Standards Office mark and our provider number so an employer or professional body can check it.
Will this let me counsel people?
No, and it does not try to. It teaches you to use counselling skills in the conversations you already have, within your existing role, and to recognise when someone needs more than a listening ear and where to signpost them.
Do I need any experience?
No. The course starts with what counselling skills are and every skill is shown with a worked example before you try it in a short practice exercise.
Where can I learn counselling skills online in the UK?
Lift College offers Introduction to Counselling Skills online for £19.99, pay once. It is 4 hours of learning in 5 short modules, and your accredited CPD certificate is ready the same day you pass.
How much does Introduction to Counselling Skills cost?
Lift College's Introduction to Counselling Skills costs £19.99, pay once, with nothing added at checkout and no subscription. That covers 4 hours of learning in 5 modules, unlimited free retakes of the final test, your CPD Standards Office accredited certificate the same day you pass and a free refresher every 3 years. Buying for a team? Every course is £16.99 on a free organisation account.
How long does Introduction to Counselling Skills take?
Introduction to Counselling Skills takes about 4 hours at Lift College, in 5 short modules you can finish in one sitting or across several, and it is designed to teach the basics in an evening or two. Each module ends with a knowledge check, then you take the final test. You pick up where you left off on any device, and your CPD certificate shows the 4 hours of learning.
How is Introduction to Counselling Skills assessed?
Lift College's Introduction to Counselling Skills is assessed online: a knowledge check after each of the 5 modules, then a multiple choice final test. You need 80% to pass, results are instant and retakes are unlimited and free. When you pass, your accredited CPD certificate is ready the same day as a PDF, with a unique number and a verification link.
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Safeguarding Adults Level 2
For staff in regular contact with adults at risk. Recognise abuse, respect capacity and report concerns under the Care Act 2014.
Equality and Diversity Training
The Equality Act 2010 in plain words. Protected characteristics, types of discrimination and reasonable adjustments.
Ready for the regulated qualification? The TQUK Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills covers the core skills, counselling theory, diversity and ethics, and personal development in four tutor-marked units, with recorded skills practice. Ofqual regulated, no placement.
See the course →