Solutions-Focused Practice:
From Problems to Possibilities

A CPD WORKSHOP FOR SOCIAL WORKERS:

Explore the Foundations of Solution-Focused Brief Therapy,
it’s core techniques and applications, and related approaches

29 & 30 July 2026
13h00 – 16h00
4.5 CPD Points
SACSSP
Special Once-Off
Introductory Price
Register Here

We were trained to assess problems. But what really helps clients change?

South African social workers operate under enormous pressure: high caseloads, resource constraints, and clients navigating poverty, trauma, and structural inequality. Traditional therapeutic models often compound the difficulty by anchoring every session in what is broken.

Problem saturation
Deficit-focused assessments often deepen client helplessness rather than building the confidence and motivation needed for meaningful change.
Time and resource pressure
With large caseloads and limited session time, approaches that require extensive problem histories are simply not sustainable in practice.
Missing the client’s strengths
Clients arrive with existing resources, resilience, and exceptions to the problem. Most approaches don’t provide a framework for finding and building on them.

Solution-Focused Brief Therapy

Developed by Steve de Shazer and Insoo Kim Berg, SFBT is a strengths-based, goal-directed therapeutic approach that begins not with the problem, but with the client’s preferred future and existing resources. It is brief, collaborative, and evidence-based – recognised internationally by the SFBTA and EBTA. It aligns directly with social work values: human dignity, self-determination, and empowerment.

  • Clients are capable and resourceful
    Every client already has strengths. Solutions-focused intervention helps practitioners find and build on them, rather than cataloguing what is absent. When clients experience themselves as capable and resourceful, they are strongly motivated to make positive changes.
  • Change is invevitable
    Solutions-focused intervention assumes that small, positive changes are always happening. The task is to identify and amplify them. Clients may feel so stuck in their problems, that they are not even aware of the small changes and opportunities that can be utilised.
  • Small steps lead to big change
    Solutions-focused intervention focuses on what is possible now, building momentum through achievable, specific goals rather than large transformations. We build on the idea that big problems don’t always need big solutions.
  • The client is the expert of their own life
    The practitioner leads from one step behind – curious, collaborative, and non-prescriptive. This partnership approach gives the client more control and choice and allows them to take control of their situation.

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN

Practical competencies, not just theory

This workshop is competency-focused. By the end, you will be able to apply SFBT skills in real practice scenarios – not just describe them on paper.

Distinguish SFBT from traditional approaches
Understand how solution-focused practice differs from problem-centred models and why that distinction matters for client outcomes. Also explore the origins of SFBT through related approaches like Brief Strategic Therapy.
Apply core SFBT strategies in practice
Use the Miracle Question, scaling questions, exception finding, coping questions, and complimenting with confidence in realistic scenarios to give cients control and choice.
Adapt SFBT for the South African context
Apply SFBT sensitively across cultural contexts, high-poverty settings, and diverse practice environments including child protection, GBV, schools, and corrections.
Navigate ethical considerations
Identify and address the ethical complexities of SFBT practice, including informed consent, avoiding toxic positivity, and knowing when SFBT is contraindicated.

Logistics and Investment

Format: Online via Zoom

Duration: Two half-days (3 hours each)

Next Dates:

  • Wednesday, 29 July 2026: 13h00 – 16h00
  • Thursday, 30 July 2026: 13h00 – 16h00

CPD Points: 4.5 Points for Social Workers (SACSSP)

Includes: Workshop Notes, CPD Certificate

Investment: R650

Technical Requirements:
The workshop is facilitated fully online via Zoom. Participants are required to remain on camera for the full duration of each session and should ensure that their equipment and internet connection is suitable for this kind of interaction. Attendance with a phone or tablet isnot recommended – it is recommended to use a PC or laptop since some of the screens that will be shared may include text or diagrams that would be too small to read on a cellphone screen. It is recommended that each participant should attend from a suitable physical space (for example, not while travelling or while sharing office space with others). The use of headphones is recommended – alternatively participants should be in a space not shared with others. It is not ideal for participants to share a device, since it will limit their interaction and participation.

YOUR FACILITATOR

Werner is a Clinical Social Worker registered with the South African Council for Social Service Professions (SACSSP). He offers counselling, consulting and training – with a focus on meaningful, evidence-informed therapeutic work delivered entirely online.
His approach is relational and strengths-based – meeting clients where they are, and helping them build the insight and resources to move forward.
Werner holds master’s degrees in both Psychology and Clinical Social Work, is registered as a Clinical Social Worker with SACSSP and SAASWIPP, and trained in EMDR, NLP and Hypnotherapy.
He brings over 30 years of practice experience to his engagement with clients, and has authored numerous articles, book chapters, and published a book on Building Resilience in Children.

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