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Accessibility statement

An image to illustrate Online counselling: advancing your knowledge short course

This 25-hour CPD course supports counsellors, psychotherapists and trainees in developing their skills for safe, effective video and phone-based counselling. It offers research-informed guidance on key areas such as setting the therapeutic frame remotely, understanding the psychological impact of virtual spaces, emotional containment, risk management and creative client engagement. Developed by the OU with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and in partnership with the Counselling and Psychotherapy Central Awarding Body (CPCAB), the course is designed for those with prior remote experience or training in online and phone therapy. A CPD certificate is awarded upon successful completion.

This course has been developed by the OU with the BACP and in partnership with the CPCAB

This CPD course will focus on research-informed knowledge and support that will help counsellors and psychotherapists to advance their knowledge and improve the effectiveness and safety of the counselling and psychotherapy they are offering remotely.

The course is split into the following six units:

Unit 1: Introduction sets up the course and invites you to evaluate your own strengths and weaknesses as a remote counsellor.

Unit 2: The challenges of managing the frame in video and phone therapy focusses on the challenges of managing and maintaining the therapeutic frame when providing video and phone counselling and psychotherapy.

Unit 3: Impact of being virtual and remote introduces you to theories around human behaviour as it appears in an online environment, with a specific focus on the ways in which the psychological impact of being virtual can play out in remote counselling.

Unit 4: Relating, emotional containment and risk in video and phone counselling focusses on how being in a virtual and/or remote space can impact relationships, creating potentially more intense client emotions or distress that is more difficult for a counsellor to hold therapeutically.

Unit 5: Working creatively in video and phone counselling introduces you to engaging in creative and imaginative ways of working remotely in an online environment and on the phone.

Unit 6: Conclusion prompts you to reflect on what you have learned on this course, and to assess yourself against current training needs/requirements for delivering remote counselling.

The course content has been jointly developed by The Open University, the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and the Counselling and Psychotherapy Central Awarding Body (CPCAB) who recognise this course as one of the pre-requisites for the CPCAB Level 5 Award in Online and Phone Counselling Practice. Course completion will advance knowledge and confidence and help counsellors and psychotherapists to provide video- and phone-based counselling effectively and safely in their regular practice.

Please be aware that Online counselling: advancing your knowledge has replaced the previous course, Video and phone counselling 2.0: advancing your knowledge, which was hosted on OpenLearn Create. It's important to note that the course content remains mostly unchanged. If you've already completed Video and phone counselling 2.0: advancing your knowledge, there is no need to retake the course, unless you wish to revisit the material.

By doing this CPD course, you will gain:

This course will help counsellors and psychotherapists to advance their knowledge and understanding of how to provide video- and phone-based counselling effectively and safely.

This CPD course has been jointly developed by The Open University and the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and in partnership with the Counselling and Psychotherapy Central Awarding Body (CPCAB) to support counsellors and psychotherapists in delivering therapy remotely (via video/phone).

This short course offers online learning and contains self-study materials to be studied at your own pace. There is no learner support from learning advisers available on this course.

There is no formal assessment on this course. The course includes multiple ‘pauses for reflection’ designed to promote reflexivity which is a professional skill for counsellors. The course also includes an end-of-course multiple-choice quiz.

In total, this course will require around 25 hours. Learners are advised to complete within two months.

You can begin at any time during the life of the course and study at your own pace. The course will be open to you for a time period of between 6 and 18 months, depending on your course registration date, and you will be advised of the specific time limitations upon enrolment.

All learning materials are delivered entirely online. You’ll have access to a course website, which includes:

As a student of The Open University, you should be aware of the content of the academic regulations, which are available on our Student Policies and Regulations website.

There are no formal entry requirements. This course is designed for counsellors and psychotherapists who have completed their training and are accredited/registered with an appropriate professional body, or are students in training. This course is designed as CPD for those who already have some experience of working remotely and/or have completed online and phone training. Completion of this short-course is not a substitute for a core Online and Phone Therapy course (BACP).

If you have any doubt about the suitability of the course, please contact us.

The course is delivered online and makes use of a variety of online resources. If you use specialist hardware or software to assist you in using a computer or the internet you are advised to contact us about support which can be given to meet your needs.

The OU strives to make all aspects of study accessible to everyone and this Accessibility Statement outlines what studying DGXS001 involves. You should use this information to inform your study preparations and any discussions with us about how we can meet your needs.

Start	England fee
At anytime before 31/07/2026	£200
At anytime before 31/07/2027	Not yet available

We accept American Express, Mastercard, Visa and Visa Electron.

If this course is geared towards your job or developing your career, you could ask your employer to sponsor you by paying some or all of the fees. Your sponsor just needs to complete a simple form to confirm how much they will be paying and we will invoice them.

The fee information provided here is valid for short courses starting in the 2025/26 academic year. Fees typically increase annually. For further information about the University's fee policy, visit our

Fee Rules

You can start this course anytime.