Clean Coach Certification Programme (ICF ACC)

The Clean Coach Certification Programme consists of:

15 training sessions - all on Tuesdays, 9am to 1pm UK time:

November 5, 12, 19. 26

December 3, 10, 17

January 14, 21, 28

February 4, 11, 18, 25

March 4

2 small group mentoring sessions - also on Tuesdays 9am to 1pm UK time:

Either:

April 1 or 15 2025 (you choose)

May 6 or 20 2025 (you choose)

One-to-one Mentoring:

3 x 1-hour sessions on days / times to suit you

Performance Evaluation:

Any time after your one-to-one mentoring is complete.

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Description

If you're a coach or interested in becoming one, you've probably noticed the vast array of coaching approaches available. What unites participants in our courses is a shared belief: everyone has the inner wisdom needed to solve their own problems and achieve their goals. They are drawn to Clean Language because it provides a clear way to help clients access this inner wisdom without imposing their own ideas, opinions, or judgments, or falling back on leading questions.

If this philosophy resonates with you, we’d love to support you to learn this powerful coaching methodology.

Clean coaching utilises Symbolic Modelling to focus on the metaphors clients use, developing them into a 'metaphor landscape' with its own structure and logic. We all use metaphors regularly, often without realising it. For example, words like "approaches," "tap into," "keep," "resonates," and "support" are metaphorical. Even abstract words like "wisdom" and "opinions" can be explored - and developed into metaphors - through clean questions: Is there anything else about wisdom? What kind of wisdom is that wisdom? Whereabouts is that wisdom?

By sticking to simple clean questions, you, as a coach, minimise the risk of interfering with your client's process. This ensures that the wisdom you are helping them to develop is theirs alone. Clean coaching with metaphors helps to evoke insights, awareness and shifts in perspective, while the practice of asking clean questions also encourages you to listen deeply and with curiosity, allowing clients to explore their metaphor landscapes and to delight in the changes that occur both during and after their sessions.
 

Training that leads to ICF accreditation

We offer several approaches to learning Clean Language, and this, our most in-depth course, leads to ICF accreditation. We understand that many people seek accreditation for their coaching, so we partnered with experienced ICF coaches Søren Holm and Lena Sobel to develop a programme that culminates in this accreditation - thus providing you and your clients with the assurance that your coaching meets high standards.

The ICF is the leading global organisation for coaches and coaching, dedicated to advancing the coaching profession by setting high standards, providing independent certification and building a worldwide network of trained coaching professionals. ICF accreditation is often required by those procuring coaching services - as a guarantee of quality.

The ICF defines coaching as: Partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximise their personal and professional potential. This definition aligns well with what happens during clean coaching sessions, and our accredited course enables you to use Clean Language and Symbolic Modelling effectively within your practice.
 

During the course you will:

• Establish Definitions: Define coaching, Clean Language, and Symbolic Modelling, and learn how they combine to produce powerful and often life-changing experiences for your clients.
• Learn Clean Questions: Understand the basic clean questions of David Grove and how to use them effectively.
• Practise Clean Set Up: Use Caitlin Walker's Clean Set Up model and explore its applications in coaching contexts.
• Reach Agreements: Discover how to use clean and clean-ish questions to reach and maintain agreements with your clients. 
• Identify Key Statements: Recognise problem, remedy, resource and desired outcome statements and learn how to use clean questions to direct your client’s attention towards their desired outcomes.
• Explore Metaphors: Determine the best clean questions to move a client's attention from their everyday world to a more metaphorical or symbolic expression of that world.
• Clarify Thinking: Help clients clarify their thinking by developing the unconscious metaphors they use.
• Understand Metaphors: Gain a deep understanding of the importance of metaphors in everyday communication and coaching.
• Cultivate Trust: Learn how Clean Language naturally cultivates trust and safety with your client.
• Participate in Practice Sessions: Engage in coaching practice sessions that foster personal development—an essential component of becoming a coach.
• Enhance Listening Skills: Improve your listening skills and develop a strong coaching presence.
• Design Goals and Actions: Partner with your client to design goals, actions, and accountability measures that integrate and expand new learning.
• Relate Skills to ICF Competencies: Learn how Clean Language and Symbolic Modelling relate to the ICF Core Competencies.
• Understand the ICF Code of Ethics: Understand the ICF Code of Ethics and how to apply it in your coaching practice.
• Access Online Resources: Gain access to an online manual and the Clean Campus—our online community of practice—where you can connect and practise with others on the course and participants from other clean courses.

This Clean Coach Certification Programme is accredited as an ICF Level 1 programme. It includes 52 hours training, 10 hours mentoring and your performance evaluation (where you record and transcribe a coaching session and submit this for evaluation). To gain the ACC accreditation you will also need to do 100 hours of client coaching and pass the ICF Credentialing Exam. Please note that there is an additional fee, payable to the ICF, for the credentialing process.

This training will take place over 15 x 4-hour sessions via Zoom. Some sessions will be devoted to practice where you will receive feedback from experienced clean coaches who have already gained their accreditation with the ICF. During other sessions there'll be teaching, discussion, shorter practice activities, demonstrations and time for reflection. Once the training is complete there will be a further two sessions devoted to group mentoring and you will also receive 3 hours of 1-2-1 mentoring. The final performance evaluation is also included in the price.

We understand that committing to a training program like this is a big decision. That's why we don't offer online bookings. Instead, we invite you to have a conversation with Marian, our Education Director, to ensure the course is the right fit for you.

We know you may have questions, and this informal chat will give you the chance to express your thoughts and concerns. Consistent with all clean practices, Marian's goal is to assist you in making the best decision for yourself, not to sell you on the course.

If you’re keen to find out more, book your free call with Marian here.

Our mission / vision for being an ICF accredited coach education provider (docx 14KB)

Our learning philosophy (docx 15KB)

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Your trainer(s)

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Venue