Relationship Health and I Matter Informed Professional & Practitioner Roles

To take forward a relationship health and I Matter informed development strategy in your school or team or practice requires that a team develops some roles that can support safe and time effective practice.   Below you will find information about the key roles.

I Matter Practitioner Roles & Governance 

Purpose

This page aims to set out who can support I Matter learning including how supported learning works, and what organisational safeguards are in place. The aim is to ensure safe, scalable delivery while maintaining quality and alignment with safeguarding requirements.


What is the I Matter Learning Journey?

The I Matter Learning Journey provides a carefully structured psychoeducational programme designed to develop understanding of relationship health theory and its practical application in everyday and professional contexts.

It is a learning and development programme.
It is not therapy, counselling, legal advice, safeguarding investigation.  It is not intended as a crisis intervention though this is where it started.

Our goal is to make it easier for professionals and non-professionals to access timely training for preparation, prevention and early intervention.

Educational Nature of the Programme

Participation in I Matter:
+ Does not create a therapeutic relationship
+ Does not replace statutory services
+ Does not constitute supervised clinical practice
+ Does not authorise decision-making beyond existing roles

Learners remain responsible for acting within their own roles and responsibilities, professional registration, organisational policies, and legal duties

Because this is a project still in development all practitioners are asked to highlight any concerns impacting implementation as early as possible so they can be addressed.

Organisation Leadership

1. Senior Link

• Has ideally completed I Matter Fundamentals with the full set of worksheets in last 24 months

• Acts to ensure that relationship health practice is embedded into the organisation development plan
  

• Provides general oversight for staff members does not facilitate structured study support

• Encourages development of a whole school approach over time

• Accepts terms and conditions on behalf of the organisation based on
• Ensures there is alignment between I Matter Values and Organisation values.

• Oversees development of safe and impactful local practice
  
  

Practitioner Roles

1. Relationship Health and I Matter Informed Professional

• Has Completed I Matter Fundamentals in last 36 months

• Acts as the organisation’s first point of contact for participants accessing self-help resources

• Provides general guidance only; does not facilitate structured study support

• Supports participants to use worksheets and reflections effectively

• Escalates any safeguarding or risk concerns to their Lead or the organisation’s safeguarding lead

Key function: Navigation, signposting, and basic support; purely educational.

2. Link – Informed Point of Contact

• Has completed I Matter Fundamentals with the full set of worksheets in last 24 months

• Acts as the organisation’s first point of contact for participants accessing self-help resources

• Provides general guidance only; does not facilitate structured study support

• Encourages  participants to use worksheets and reflections effectively

• Escalates any safeguarding or risk concerns to their Lead or the organisation’s safeguarding lead

Key function: Navigation, signposting, and basic support; purely educational.

3. Lead – Licensed Study Support

• Completed I Matter Deep Dive and/or Fundamentals in last 12 months (to ensure familiarity with content) 
  

• Applied to I Matter for permission to faciliate in house discussion of 

• Supported by their organisation to provide study support
  

• Study support can be
•   part of a preparation for a role (eg becoming a parent)
•   part of addressing some current challenges
  

• Can:

  • Run Get Started or Responsive Workshops for small groups using I Matter Resources

  • Support access to online learning

  • Facilitate discussion of key ideas in 1:1 or small group

  • Support participants to apply I Matter concepts to real-life situations

  • Monitor engagement and emotional safety

• Leads must be assessed by their own organisations as being competent to run study support for the identified group 

• Must operate within their organisation’s documentation, safeguarding and insurance frameworks
  

Key function: Structured educational support, reflection guidance, and light oversight.

4. Lead Plus – Oversight & Governance

• Relevant in larger organisations or more complex contexts

• Must have a minimum of Fundamentals and ideally Deep Dive

• Provides supervisory support to Leads and to wider team

• Ensures adherence to safeguarding protocols, boundary clarity, and escalation pathways

• Acts to ensure quality assurance role within the organisation

Key function: Oversight for multiple Leads or higher-risk scenarios.

5. Linked Independent Lead Practitioner (Optional / Advanced)

• Has Completed I Matter Fundamentals and Deep Dive and holds therapeutic or clinical qualifications

• Delivers enhanced support independently, with their own professional indemnity

• Works outside organisational delivery but remains aligned with I Matter principles

• Cannot replace statutory or therapeutic services already in place

Key function: Optional advanced support for individuals requiring therapeutic input; operates fully independently.

Minimum Requirements for Organisations

• At least 2 Links per organisation must have completed the Fundamentals in last 12 months before bulk accounts are purchased or being used

• Leads are optional unless structured small group study support is offered

• Lead Plus are advised only in larger organisations or for complex participant groups

• Linked Independent Practitioner is optional and only if therapeutic expertise is needed
  
  
  

Self-Help and Worksheets

• All participants can access self-help resources and complete worksheets independently

• Worksheets are key to reflection and learning; practitioners support their use without providing therapy

• Leads or Lead Plus can offer guidance on reflection, but do not diagnose or treat

Organisational Governance & Safeguarding

• Organisations confirm:

  • They have an up-to-date safeguarding policy

  • Named Safeguarding Lead is in place

  • Participants are suitable for self-help and any optional supported learning

  • Leads operate within organisational safeguarding frameworks

• Escalation process:

  1. Links escalate any concerns to Lead or safeguarding lead

  2. Leads escalate unresolved issues or higher-risk concerns to Lead Plus

  3. Lead Plus ensures adherence to safeguarding and quality protocols