What we do
Community of expertise
We are a community of expertise
ICBS is building and facilitating a network of expertise for quality CBS implementation and research. This community comprises organisations implementing CBS and experienced CBS practitioners and trainers dedicated to advancing sociotherapy. The purpose of this community of expertise is knowledge-sharing, skill development and collaborative efforts to promote peace and wellbeing through sociotherapy.
Quality standards
Quality is one of our
top priorities
ICBS is working with partners developing an implementation guidance and training manuals to ensure consistent quality of the training. By establishing clear benchmarks for training, the facilitators and trainers acquire necessary skills and knowledge to meet the desired quality standards. Quality standards ensure that community-based sociotherapy remains a powerful tool for healing, empowerment and social cohesion.
CBS implementation
Training and accreditation
One of the ambitions of ICBS is to improve advanced competencies in community-based sociotherapy (CBS), with rigorous quality standards and proven effectiveness. ICBS ensures the highest quality of both training and implementation of the CBS approach. We aim to establish a robust accreditation framework that adheres to international standards while honoring local expertise.
Our training programme is designed to train people working and living in conflict or disaster-affected communities to become CBS group facilitators. A selection of these facilitators is subsequently trained to become trainers and some of them as trainers of trainers. Training manuals guide the trainers, but leave ample room for adaptations to the specific context in which CBS is to be implemented.
Knowledge development
Making implicit local knowledge explicit
ICBS collaborates with its members to further develop the knowledge framework that directs the implementation of CBS, to identify and study issues in community that require attention in CBS implementation, to monitor implementation and evaluate its impact among group participants and in the communities where they live. We do all this through localised mixed-method research in cooperation with local partners and academic institutions. Currently, we work together with our partner CBS Rwanda on a research tool to measure ‘social dignity’ as the main indicator of the effect of CBS among its group participants. This tool will be subsequently used in a clustered Randomised Controlled Trial (c-RCT), complementing ongoing and to be developed qualitative research on the different dimensions of CBS.
CBS implementation
Where do you get access to CBS?
ICBS is established to bring together knowledge and expertise of the CBS methodology. We work with CBS trainers and experts, both our own staff, independent trainers or those of partner organisations. Our aim is to train interested partner organisations that are already active in the field of mental health and psychosocial wellbeing and/or peacebuilding. Our experience is that by training staff from organisations who are established in the localities where the CBS is desired and meant to stay there is the most effective. ICBS supports organisations implementing CBS or planning to integrate CBS into their programmes with technical support in planning, design, implementation and monitoring and evaluation of CBS, based on set quality standards. The aim is that organisations become self-reliant in implementing CBS.