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Lillian came to the I Matter Project as both a professional and as a parent of a young person with a diagnosis of autism.  As she now recounts, she had done a lot of training and attended a lot of appointments. but nothing had prepared her for the intensity of her son's behaviour and life had reached a point in which life at home was dangerous and out of control.  Today Lillian and her son have a good relationship and he is at University, getting on well with a wide range of people.   Lillian  says she does not believe this would have happened without the ideas she learned through the I Matter Project. 

EVERY parent and teacher would benefit from this course. Parent carers are a group of people I would like to get this to. This would be a fantastic opportunity to bring a very isolated group of people together to improve the situation they are in.          Carer support professional

Thanks to I Matter Training, lots of families including mine will have a lovely happy Christmas.  I see my patients differently now  - both the children and the adults.   I am looking forwards to studying further with you                                                                                                                       GP and Parent

iMatter training fits perfectly with my therapeutic training.  It has many areas of commonality with family therapy training, eg helping families to correct relationship dynamics which have gone askew, enabling all family members to be heard, valued & responsible.   Family Therapist and Experienced Social Worker

I think all teachers should do the course. I have learned SOOOO much that I can and will apply to my professional and personal relationships..  It has definitely made me more tolerant/understanding of children when they are showing complex behaviours in class.      Teacher and HLTA

The course has definitely met all the Learning Outcomes.  I have enjoyed learning online and found the modules manageable with enough to be stimulating.  I really enjoyed the dynamic of the group - it was interesting hearing everyone's varied experiences.   I have made changes that have benefited me personally, and my family and my professional role.  I want to carry on and learn more.                  General Practitioner

I am a HLTA but also a parent and foster carer. I work with primary aged children, have 3 teenagers, and foster toddlers! This course has been so valuable for each and every relationship I encounter on a daily basis.                                                     HLTA, Foster Carer and Parent

As the weeks are moving on I am thinking about theory and strategies from this course on a daily basis in my professional role.  Teaching Assistant

I have found the Foundation B  very valuable, it really helped with ideas and advice. It's been extremely helpful!  It's a real journey.   Teaching Assistant caring for 6 yr old adopted child with ASD traits

Foundation B - Summer 2017 - Pastoral Worker - Secondary School - Kendal Integrated Care Community
I would highly recommend trying this training.  ​I took part in this course as both a parent of a complex child with medical and behavioural issues and a professional working in a secondary school.   As a professional I was taking part in this with a view to helping parents of our students that ring me when they are at their wits end with their child. We learnt about the model of IMATTER and then went on to discuss how we look after ourselves.  We met regularly and this helped being able to talk though some ideas which can either be new to you or recap what you may have already known. The computer part of the course was easy to complete and backed up the meetings with videos. I look forward to becoming a study supporter and taking this further.  As  a parent it has made me take a step back and look at how my family interact and put little key words into place and become more conscious about sticking to a strategy. The results speak for themselves and I can see improvement in my own child over the weeks I have been implementing IMATTER.    It is easy to understand and its something that you can add into your life as its not a 'do this do that when that happens approach'. Instead it gives you the tools you need to look after all the family and their wellbeing and guides you with certain issues so you understand why they are happening.

Foundation A and B Three things I liked  - GP + Kendal Integrated Care Community
In the Foundation B course, I have really enjoyed being able to implement what I had learnt through IMatter with support from Cathy and the group It has been a privilege to learn more about other people's experiences through reading about their particular situation, how they interact with their children and manage their own feelings and wellbeing. Our group was very varied in terms of age groups and family set ups. Everyone was very honest and open but it was anonymized to protect the children which felt very safe  I valued how it also helped me to create a daily practice of making time to connect with my child and spend time quality time with my family

Foundation A and B - SENCO - Kendal Integrated Care Community
I have really enjoyed both courses and am keen to be involved further in supporting other parents. Thanks very much Cathy for all your support, ideas and great resources!

The Headteacher and other staff now come to me.  They are starting to spot the families who would be helped by some I Matter Training. I have worked flexibly - sometimes just with the parents and sometimes with the parent and child together..  We use the posters and I can see the moments when the pennys start to drop. This is a new way of working for us.  I  find it exciting to see the changes that happen.  I Matter Lead Professional and Reception Teacher

I set off on a road that I thought would lead to a child I was working with (and my own children) changing - I thought I would learn behaviour strategies and didn't think it was anything to do with me. I was a bit surprised when I realised that to begin with, it was all about me, my stress levels, the beliefs I had about myself, the way I reacted to stimuli. I was the visitor. As I made my way through the early modules, I thought that problems with my son's behaviour would only get better if he changed. I was the complainant. Now in the Intermediate course, I can see improvements in my relationship with my son have come about due to the changes I have made - as the customer, I have totally bought into this concept. It's not easy because you have to change the way you see your relationships and I feel I have had to put a lot of extra effort in which can be quite draining. It's definitely worth it though. It has also enabled me to change the way that I talk to myself.    Teaching Assistant and Parent  July 2019

“I have learned so much from this course.  I think it would really benefit new and newly qualified staff who are working 1:1 with complex children.”   Rachel Braithwaite, Teaching Assistant, Ghyllside Primary School

The course has been fantastic and has certainly widened my understanding of the difficulties and inner complex thoughts of a child such as the one I have focused on. I am really keen now to go back to school to try new things and to put ideas into practice to support him.    Tori House, Assistant Headteacher, Ryelands Primary School, Lancaster


" I have really enjoyed the clear structure and the way in which all elements have contributed to the general picture. I have especially enjoyed learning about attachment and brain development.   I have already recommended it to others and will continue to do so"      Matt Towe, Deputy Head, Ryelands Primary School, Lancaster

"It has been a really good experience. I have much preferred.. learning online.. to sitting in a room with other people. I am quite a private person, so having the chance to think about things myself has been better for me. Sharing of ideas, as you feel obliged to in a small group would have made me more uncomfortable.     It is not often that a course makes me think this much about myself and how previous experiences that I have had shape the way I now create relationships... Taking a step back and thinking about how children react, and why, has helped me see some children differently.   The questions are well thought out and the mix of video and text has been supportive to my learning methods."                                                                              Wouter Rausch, Primary SENCO, Ryelands Primary, Lancaster

The Course has been very good value for money.  I would definitely recommend it to my colleagues. The course has given me the theoretical evidence behind the practices which have been developed in the programme. It has explained why complex children display the behaviours that they do and also explained the importance of the key adult having inner well being.    Thank you very much for a super course!"
Julia Hartley, Teacher with Special Education Focus, Ryelands, Lancaster  


This course has been fantastic and will really help me to understand and continue to be curious about, and try to help, our complex children. I often try to tell people about this course and its key ideas but once I start I don't know where to begin or how to get it across concisely as there is SO MUCH to take in and wrap your brain around.   Thank you for opening my mind , I have great confidence in saying that what I have learned will benefit many children, and myself, for years to come.

One of my HLTA started I Matter training with Dr Cathy Betoin in 2009.   She attended several classes as a professional and then started to accompany parents from our school.  Since then Lorraine has progressed to running groups in school for both parents and for staff using Cathy’s taped resources.  The parents and staff love the materials and I see the significant changes that parents and teachers implement on a daily basis to help our pupils.  I Matter has changed the way in which we work with parents and pupils at many levels.  Our school is a happier more accessible place”.        Michelle Gaydon:  Headteacher Archbishop Huttons Primary, Warton.

“Jane Meacham, my deputy head was the first of my staff to take part in I Matter training.  She came back buzzing and since then we have invested in sending further members of our team.  I have attended the training myself and felt reinvigorated and inspired by what I learned.  The course has helped empower us all to shift our practices towards much closer work with parents.  Using the materials, we are now running small groups with parents who are eager for more knowledge and understanding of how to help their complex child”.    Alison Cannell, Stepping Stones, short stay school, Lancaster

“I have found the course tremendously useful and my house does seem calmer. I continue to refer to your techniques as I come across testing times. ”       Professional and parent.                                                                                                                                  

“The foundation course was very interesting, but the intermediate class brought it to life. It’s given me an understanding of how to work with complex children. Before I may have done the right thing by gut instinct, but I didn’t always know why”     Primary Deputy Headteacher