Welcome to September, witha 10% discount on any of my 2025 & 2026 courses by registering before Tuesday 30 with the promo code SeptemberSale!
I am pleased to announce my new 2026 schedule of public ICA:UK ToP facilitation training courses in London and Brussels, and this year also in the beautiful and historic resort town of Sitges, just down the coast from Barcelona, in March and October. Why not plan to stay for the weekend, and book yourself some early spring sunshine now?
Twelve new courses now scheduled for 2026 include, again:
Group Facilitation Methods – introducing the foundations of the ToP approach, two powerful techniques for structuring effective conversations and building group consensus – 2 days, in London, Brussels & Sitges
Action Planning – participatory planning for short-term projects and events – 1 day, in London & Brussels
I am excited to be offering pre-conference training again this year in conjunction with the UK’s premier facilitation learning event, the IAF England & Wales annual Annual Conference Facilitate2025, held Friday 25 and Saturday 26 April in Birmingham.
Facilitate2025 is an opportunity for facilitators to come together to share, learn and develop understanding, skills and practice. Everyone interested in facilitation is welcome, whether you are brand new to this work or have been doing it for years, whether you work in-house or externally and whether you facilitate some or all of the time. As part of the 2025 programme there will be a thread on anti-racism and what this means for us as facilitators.
There will be a number of facilitation training courses being offered in the same training venue the day before the conference, at an additional cost. You can check them out and find the booking links here.
This one-day master-class is suitable for all those who want to be able to involve people more effectively in dialogue, learning, consensus & change, including team leaders and managers within organisations, those working with Boards, management teams, partnerships and external stakeholders, youth and community workers and independent facilitators. The course has no pre-requisite.
This course will introduce two foundational methods of ICA’s ‘Technology of Participation’ (ToP) methodology, and two that adapt and apply these foundations to strategic review, planning and change:
ToP Focused Conversation provides a structured, four-level process for effective communication which ensures that everyone in a group has the opportunity to participate
ToP Consensus Workshop is a five stage process that enables a facilitator to draw out and weave together everybody’s wisdom into a clear and practical consensus
ToP Historical Scan (or ‘Wall of Wonder) is a powerful tool to enable a group to share and learn from their varied perspectives of a journey through history, and in context, to review the past in order to prepare for the future
ToP Participatory Strategic Planning is a structured long-range planning process which incorporates ToP Consensus Workshop for building consensus, ToP Focused Conversation for effective group communication, and an implementation process for turning ideas into productive action and concrete accomplishments.
Register now in Eventbrite for this and other upcoming public courses in London, Brussels & elsewhere – scroll down for dates & locations.
Discounts: IAF members enjoy a special 10% discount – see Exclusive Offers for IAF Members. Conference attendees enjoy a 25% discount (IAF members and non-members).
Kickstart the New Year with a commitment to your personal and professional development – enjoy a 10% discount on any course by registering with the promo code EarlyBird before Monday 13 January.
I am excited to announce the ICA:UK 2025 schedule of public ToP facilitation training courses in London, Manchester, Birmingham & Brussels, including:
Group Facilitation Methods – introducing the foundations of the ToP approach, two powerful techniques for structuring effective conversations and building group consensus – 2 days in London, Manchester & Brussels
Action Planning – participatory planning for short-term projects and events – 1 day in London & Brussels
Enjoy a 10% discount on any course by registering with the promo code EarlyBird before Monday 13 January.
“If you have ever wondered what questions to ask, or in what order to ask them, to lead a conversation that is focused, intentional, inclusive, and productive, let this book be your guide.” – Martin Gilbraith
Thank you again to the 100 attendees who participated in yesterday’s free facilitation webinar, and especially to fellow ICA:UK ToP facilitation trainers Megan Evans and Dawn Williams for co-hosting with me. Apologies to anyone intending to join who found the meeting room full to capacity! Here below you will find the session recording and other outputs.
This was the first of two sessions scheduled in partnership with ICA:UK as part of its new Online Focused Conversation Series: Taking time to connect, learn and reflect.
The aim of all these sessions is for participants to connect, share and learn with others sharing their interest the topic, while experiencing ICA’s ToP Focused Conversation method.
In this session the method was adapted to accommodate the number attending, using only the basic tools within the Zoom platform – audio, video, text chat, break-out rooms, screen sharing and polling.
For more on ICA’s Technology of Participation and facilitation online, register now for these further upcoming training & learning sessions:
Introduction to Facilitation Online – Introducing the role of the facilitator and the ToP approach, plus some key tips & tools, 2.5 hours, starting in June & July
Facilitating Virtual Events I Online– Learn and practice ways to make online events participatory, engaging and productive – a series of 6-7 x2 hour sessions, online
Group Facilitation Methods Online – Introducing the foundations of the ToP approach, two powerful techniques for structuring effective conversations and building group consensus – a series of 6 x2 hour sessions in June/July.
Your long-planned meeting, workshop or event, or that of your client, can no longer be held face-to-face. So it is decided to hold it online instead. What could possibly go wrong? What are some tips & tools that can help you – not to just make the best of it, but to make it the best? More inclusive, engaging and productive than ever before?
The recording and the slides with chat transcript follow here. Thanks also to Dave Hider for the lovely feedback on LinkedIn!
Looking for accredited learning?Group Facilitation Methods, Action Planning and Participatory Strategic Planning are accredited by the Institute of Leadership and Management for an ILM Development Award.
Interested to join IAF? Participants in all these ICA:UK ToP courses are eligible for a 50% discount on their first year’s IAF membership, a requirement for CPF certification.
Most courses are scheduled in pairs to allow 1, 2, 3 or 4 days of training at once. Follow the links below for further details and to register for each course.
*With regret, courses shown in italics have been cancelled due to Covid-19. New online courses will be announced soon (April/May 2020).
Group Facilitation Methods – introducing the foundations of the ToP approach, two powerful techniques for structuring effective conversations and building group consensus – 2 days
“I found it really helpful. Martin established a really good group learning process and displayed mastery of his subject. I am very glad I went on it and very glad he ran it!” – Mike Pounsford, Employee engagement, communication and change specialist
“As a diverse, transnational, multilingual membership network, successful meetings are key to our internal and external successes. Many of our staff mentioned Martin’s training as a highlight in their end of year reviews – several said it was the most useful training they had ever attended.” – Eve Geddie, Deputy Director at Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants (PICUM)
Action Planning – participatory planning for short-term projects and events – 1 day
“Martin is a very inspiring trainer, he is very skilled and knows how to facilitate facilitators in a structured and insightful way. I have been able to succesfully use his personal advice and facilitation techniques straight away!” – Miriam Elst, Facilitator Design Thinking and LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY®, Lead UX researcher & strategist, Service designer
Meetings That Work – practical tools to design and lead effective meetings – 2 days
“Meetings That Work ticked all the boxes. It was very interesting to hear the theory and useful to have to put it in practice during the many exercises. I use the templates and ideas from this course on a weekly basis. It improves planning and preparing for our 20 meetings (annually). Feedback on the improved meeting format is excellent.” – Peter Van Roste, General Manager CENTR
Facilitating Client Collaboration – practical tools to design facilitation approaches with your client – 2 days
“I got confidence in how to deal with my clients. I had not expected that this course would boost me up to be more open to the customers and speak with them more freely, but it did. The methods and processes will not only be helpful in my regular work, but also in solving my family, community and society problems.” –Neha Shrestha
I may be joined for one of these courses again by Bill Staples of ICA Associates Incas guest trainer. Bill is one of the founders of ICA’s Technology of Participation, a principal partner of ICA Associates Inc. and the main designer of Facilitating Client Collaboration.
Participatory Strategic Planning – bringing people together to create strategies for action – 2 days
“Martin created a good atmosphere in an international group. His presentations were crispy clear, illustrated by carefully chosen, practical examples from his rich facilitator experience. Martin helped me to understand countless details of preparation and running a successful Participatory Strategic Planning session for various customers.” – Marzena Dębska-Matuszak, Experienced Trainer, Facilitator and Coach
For early bird rates, register by 5 January 2020 on Eventbrite.
Register on two or more courses at once to enjoy a 10% discount on each – please contact me to ask for a promotional code for the multiple bookings discount. Enter the code as you register on Eventbrite for your chosen courses to reveal your discounted rates.
Additional discounts are available all year to members of Social Platform and other European NGO networks, and to members of ICA, IAF & IABC. If you have not received a promotional code directly from them, please contact me.
