Level 3 Somatic Movement Dance Therapy Training Course

somatic movement dance therapy level 3 course
somatic movement dance therapy level 3 course
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Level 3: Somatic Movement Dance Therapy Training

Connection to Body, Breath, Earth & Community
Become a Registered Somatic Movement Dance Therapist.

In level 3 students are invited to bring SMDT to community, widening access and participation. Students are invited to form a community group and find two clients to work with in their geographical area. They are also invited to revisit and synthesise knowledge from across the course, working with the principle that health is not something we achieve, but rather health needs ongoing support and can be nurtured via daily self-regulatory practice. Level 3 invites students to develop as somatic movement dance artists, taking their work out into the community, with support from peers and staff. Somatic knowledge settles in the body-mind through continued experiential practice, and hence revisiting and layering knowledge in cyclical and spirilloid ways is key to this level.

About this course

This Level 3 training course in Somatic Movement Dance Therapy accredited by International Practitioners of Holistic Medicine and in association with The Association for Somatic Movement Dance Therapies United Kingdom, is designed for qualified and experienced practitioners who have completed the 100 hour Foundation Course (or equivalent) and Level 2 100 hour Intermediate training (or equivalent), and wish to refine their skills and expand their community practice.

Applied and adapted from the pioneering research and trainings of Dr. Amanda Williamson, and based on her book Somatic Movement Dance Therapy: The Healing Art of Self-Regulation & Co-Regulation, this training revisits and synthesises knowledge from across all levels of the somatic movement dance therapy course, working with the principle that health is not something we achieve, but rather health needs ongoing support and can be nurtured via daily self-regulatory practice.

What is Somatic Movement Dance Therapy?

Somatic Movement Dance Therapy, coined by Dr Amanda Williamson, is a somatic therapy originating from the field of Somatics. It is a bottom-up therapy offering self-regulation and co-regulation for your clients. Rooted in the somatic arts, it blends Polyvagal theory, eastern disciplines, eco-somatics, experiential anatomy, somatic psychology, somatic touch, cranial-sacral therapy, Jungian psychology, movement meditations, improvisation, authentic movement, art therapy, and embodied practices, offering a recognised and potent approach for healing trauma, disconnection, and chronic pain.

Somatic Movement Dance Therapy Training: A Recognised Pathway

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For those on the path to professional certification in somatic therapy, finding a training that builds progressively—deepening both practical skill and spiritual embodiment—can be a challenge.

This Level 3 Training (300 hours) is designed specifically for graduates who have taken the progression route completing the previous levels of the SMDT Courses, or individuals who have 200 hours equivalent training, and are ready to go further in their development as somatic movement dance practitioners. It offers a structured and supportive route to registration.

Vanessa Tucker Registered UKSMDT

This course is certified by IPHM. On completion of level 3, students can register with The Association for Somatic Movement Dance Therapies, United Kingdom & Éire, as a 'Somatic Movement Dance Therapist’. Through this organisation students can access CPD trainings, find continued community support and connect with other practitioners.

 

Combine this course with Level 1 & 2 to register as a Somatic Movement Dance Therapist with UKSMDT

Level 1 Foundation Training

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Level 2 Intermediate Training

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Level 3 Course Structure & Modules

Level 3 has two interrelated supportive modules:
 
Module 1 comprises 150 hours, 120 hours practical, 30 hours  reading, reflecting, on-line lectures, seminars and contemplative peer support groups. The modules requires students to develop daily practice at home with applying somatic journalling as a central reflective and contemplative tool. Students are required to travel to Cornwall for 3 five-day retreats, dates TBC.  
Assessment is practical, comprising continued self-assessment and supervisory support in the studio.
 
Module 2 comprises 100 hours student-led facilitation in the community (to include meetings, ethical considerations, reading, preparation, reflection, publicity etc., ) and a further 50 hours that are on-line and staff-led, to include lectures and seminars covering the vital importance of arts-based therapeutic research and qualitative embodied research in the  field.
Guest lecturers: Vanessa Tucker, Karin Rugman, Rebecca Sillence  

Module 1: Contemplative and Integrative Learning

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Dates TBC  

This module is an integrative module that revisits key areas offered in level 1 and 2, with the aim of synthesising course content and layering knowledge. The module provides time to hone facilitation skills in key areas such as body-mind health, movement meditations, slow-time community health, gravity, breath, heart and earthing, cranio-sacral movement, somatic touch, matrifocal spiritualities, principles, values and processes, and key dyadic and group facilitation skills.

The module provides time for revisiting, layering, reflecting, contemplating and integrating somatic knowledge. This is a staff-led module where students will have time to practice one-on-one and in groups, in preparation for module 2. Students will learn through lectures, seminars and studio-practice, and additionally explore how to document practice and collect qualitative embodied data in unique creative ways. This module holds the students in a supportive environment, and offers opportunities for students to meet other staff and practitioners from uksmdt.com

Module 2: Slow-Time Community Health

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Dates TBC

This module invites students to set up a practice group in their geographical area, with peer support and staff supervision. The students are invited to offer work within their local community, offering 4 group sessions and 4 one-on-one sessions. The students will also  gather reflective data from their participants, in order to share their findings in the form of a presentation, leading to graduation.
 
This module comprises 100 hours student-led facilitation in the community (to include meetings, ethical considerations, reading, preparation, reflection, publicity etc., ) and a further 50 hours that are on-line and staff-led, to include lectures and seminars covering the vital importance of arts-based therapeutic research and qualitative embodied research in the  field. Visiting staff from uksmdt.com will offer guest lectures, expanding awareness of how somatic movement/dance is applied in different contexts across the UK.
Assessment: ongoing self-assessment with supervisory support, and presentation sharing findings.

Meet Your Teachers

Vanessa Tucker and Amanda Williamson set the intention to make Somatic Movement Dance Therapy more accessible, while maintaining a high professional standard.

In response to the growing demand for embodied, trauma-informed approaches, they recognised that most professional trainings span two years and cost between £6,000 & £8,000 placing them out of reach for many. To address this, they developed a flexible three-level training pathway: Level 1 (100 hours) and Level 2 (100 hours) can each be taken as standalone courses, or followed by Level 3 (300 hours), which completes the 500 hours required for professional registration. This structure ensures both accessibility and depth, making this vital work more available to those committed to healing and transformation in their communities.
soamtic movement dance therapy meet the teacher

Dr. Amanda Williamson is the founder of Somatic Movement Dance Therapy and the primary lecturer on this Level 3 course.

Amanda works with a wide range of people experiencing back pain, joint pain, grief, migraines, addiction, stress, anxiety and depression, as well as people with no specific conditions, but feeling isolated, low and disconnected.

She is one of the pioneers in the field of Somatic Movement Education & Therapy and works across continents supervising PhD. students. She is a ‘Master Somatic Movement Educator and Therapist’ (ISMETA) and registered ‘Somatic Movement Dance Therapist (UKSMDT).

Amanda publishes extensively through practice-as-research, traversing areas such as experiential anatomy and physiology, the spiritual elements in the healing process, socio-cultural theory. Amanda is an Honorary Professor at ‘The Centre for Dance Research (C-dare).

Her most recent book, of which this course is based upon, is Somatic Movement Dance Therapy: The Healing Art of Self-regulation and Co-regulation, Intellect. 

Vanessa Tucker

Vanessa Tucker is a guest lecturer on the Level 3 course.

A registered Somatic Movement Educator and Therapist (ISMETA)  and a registered Somatic Movement Dance Therapist (UKSMDT) with over 30 years of experience in the healing arts. She created the 3-Level structure in Somatic Movement Dance Therapy, alongside Dr. Amanda Williamson, widening accessibility in the field and offering creative and transformative learning experiences for working with trauma, deepening practice, refining skills, reconnecting with the innate wisdom of the body.

Through her courses, retreats, women's empowerment work and private healing practice, Vanessa has supported countless individuals on their journey toward health, wholeness and empowerment. Drawing from a rich background in expressive and healing arts, in both educational and therapeutic contexts, she brings an integrative and multidimensional approach to her healing, teaching and facilitation.

A lifelong artist of the soul, Vanessa is deeply devoted to the healing of the Earth and the awakening of the human spirit. Her work is rooted in a heartfelt commitment to meaningful healing, personal empowerment, and the creation of compassionate, interconnected communities—spaces where all of life is honoured, and every being has the chance to flourish.

BOOK THIS TRAINING HERE
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