Trauma-informed practice: Training for barristers

About the course

You operate in high-pressure environments – tight deadlines, high stakes and complex human dynamics. That pressure alone is intense. When combined with emotionally charged proceedings or clients with challenging personal histories, it can push you and your clients into heightened states of anxiety and distress, often without conscious awareness.

This training addresses what has been previously overlooked: the effects of trauma and distress in the legal sector, and how to respond effectively.

This interactive training empowers you to navigate human responses with increased awareness and skill. Trauma-informed practice is increasingly being recognised as a core competency that strengthens:

• Legal strategy, judgment and decision-making
• Witness handling and interviewing
• Leadership, culture and team dynamics
• Resilience and retention
• Psychological and physiological safety and wellbeing

Whether you’re just starting out or have years of experience, our training will provide valuable insights, language and practical tools to support both your wellbeing and your professional practice.

Why attend?

• Protect your wellbeing: Learn how to identify and manage the impact of vicarious trauma, stress and burnout
• Strengthen the integrity of evidence and outcomes: Understand how trauma impacts memory, attention and communication, including how small changes in approach can safeguard best evidence and strengthen the integrity of proceedings
• Enhance client care: Understand how trauma and distress can shape communication, memory, and behaviour, so you can respond with skill and empathy
• Future-proof your practice: Trauma-informed approaches are increasingly being recognised as a core competency across the legal sector

What the course covers

Session one – Wednesday 21 January:

Navigating self-care and vicarious trauma

• Spotting the signs (including the less obvious ones) of distress and trauma in yourself and others, including real life examples
• Introducing the neuroscience behind effective self-care and support for others in relation to overwhelm and trauma (including vicarious trauma)
• Strategies to resource yourself before, during and after difficult interactions
• Knowing when and how to signpost for additional support

Trauma-informed communication and client care

• Exploring the foundations of trauma-informed practice, including understanding how trauma can affect memory, behaviour and communication
• Building your confidence in trauma-informed communication skills to provide effective support in the moment
• Learning how to respond when clients are distressed, anxious or struggling to engage, while maintaining professional clarity and boundaries
• Strengthening client relationships by recognising how trauma and distress show up in the dynamics of proceedings

Session two – Tuesday 3 February:

Trauma-informed witness handling andbest evidence

• Understanding how trauma shapes recall, concentration and evidence
• Developing practical approaches to interviewing and witness handling that support best evidence
• Applying trauma-informed strategies to reduce re-traumatisation risks and strengthen the integrity of outcomes

Format

• Online
• Session one: Wednesday 21 January 2026, 9am to 1pm
• Session two: Tuesday 3 February 2026, 5 to 7pm

• Group size: Limited to 25 participants to ensure meaningful discussion, interaction and tailored support

Who is it suitable for?

• Barristers
  • All practice areas
  • All years of call

We see the impact of trauma and distress across all practice areas,for example in the commercial sphere where high stakes and relentless pressure can drive burnout; in family and crime where barristers are immersed daily in human trauma; in private client and probate where the complexity of relationships often activates deep-set emotional responses and in personal injury and clinical negligence where lives are turned upside down.

Price

Standard: £470 (plus VAT)

BRF subscribers: £376 (plus VAT)

Book

Before you book

Please read our terms and conditions and privacy statement before booking.

All Bar Council online training is held on the Zoom videoconferencing platform. Please ensure you read our Zoom statement before booking.

Due to changes in VAT regulations effective from 1 January 2025, we will no longer be offering online events to attendees based outside of the United Kingdom (UK). As a result, this event is only available to individuals and organisations that are based within the UK. By booking this online event you are confirming that you are based within the UK.