Richard Hougham, MA

Richard Hougham started teaching at Central in 1997, after working in mental health and forensic psychiatry as a dramatherapist. He continues to have a special interest in the application of dramatherapy in mental health and the role of the Sesame approach with people with serious mental health issues.

He has been involved with the development of the profession of dramatherapy in the UK through the development of the standards of proficiency for the HCPC. He has published articles on dramatherapy training, ritual and working with myth.

Richard's current research is looking at group processes in relation to teaching practices and dramatherapy clinical practice.

Richard is an Executive Board Member of European Consortium of Arts Therapies Education (ECArTE), contributing to the design and development of international conferences and hosting the most recent conference at Central in September 2009.

Research Areas

Group processes in educational and dramatherapy practice
The notion of presence in actor training and a therapeutic context.

PhD Supervision

Supervision offered in the areas of role of the sacred in actor training, issues of the body and participation, development of a dramatherapy based model for assessment of young people with depression

Funding awards

AHRC Collaborative Doctorate award 2009.

External Memberships

Member of the British Association of Dramatherapists (BADth)
Ex-Officio council member of the Sesame Institute UK
Executive Board Member of ECArTE.

Publications

2012 ‘The Matrix, Group Processes and Dramatherapy’, The Arts in Psychotherapy 39, Elsevier: 60-65

2009 ‘The Stone Soup: Towards a Mythological Intelligence’, The Arts in Arts Therapy, A European Perspective, Plymouth, University of Plymouth Press

2009 'A European Perspective’ , ECArTE publication, University of Plymouth Press

2006 ‘Numinosity, Symbol and Ritual in the Sesame approach’, British Association of Dramatherapists Journal 28: 2

2005 ‘Track the deer, catch it and then let it go: A model of Dramatherapy supervision’, British Association of Dramatherapy Journal 27: 3

2004 ‘The Apollonian Spell: Developments in the regulation of dramatherapy in the UK’, Sesame Institute Journal 4

Conference papers:

2006 Keynote address: ‘Numinosity, Symbol and Ritual in the Sesame Approach’, The British Association of Dramatherapists Conference, University of Nottingham

2004 Keynote address: ‘Building Bridges in the Sesame Approach’, The Arts in Therapy Conference, Hong Kong University