Registered Play Therapist Supervisor

As an APTA Registered Play Therapist and Supervisor you are recognised as having an advanced level of expertise, as evidenced by ongoing practice and continued education, in the field of play therapy. As with one’s primary license, it is important to recognize experience informs supervisory practice and that advanced clinical skills are needed before one may supervise others under the RPT-S designation. This also demonstrates to employers, professional colleagues, parents, clients and carers that an individual play therapist and mental health professional has achieved the professional standard for practice in play therapy as required by APTA. Applicants must agree to abide by the APTA Best Practices Guidelines and are subject to the Complaints Procedure of their mental health professional association.

Note: This membership also infers all of the recognition, benefits, and eligibility requirements of a Registered Play Therapist.

To be accepted by APTA, the applicant must complete Play Therapy training that meets the following requirements:

150 hours of Play Therapy training with a minimum of 100 hours face to face training and no more than 50 hours of distance or online learning

• The 150 hours of Play Therapy training accepted by APTA for Clinical Membership must be Play Therapy specific and focused on Play Therapy as a form of counselling or psychotherapy for children.

• APTA only accepts Play Therapy specific training for clinical member training hours

e.g. A workshop on Trauma and Attachment linked with Play Therapy practice is accepted by APTA whereas a Trauma and Attachment workshop that is general and not relating specifically to Play Therapy is not accepted by APTA for the Play Therapy training hours required for Clinical Membership.

Play Therapy approaches that are accepted by APTA and where the Play Therapy training is focused on specializing in working with children include:

• Child Centered Play Therapy(this may include some hours related to Filial Therapy note, total hours cannot relate to Filial Therapy exclusive

• Narrative Play Therapy

•  Relationship Play Therapy

• Psychoanalytic Play Therapy

•  Psychodynamic Play Therapy

•  Object Relations Play Therapy

•  Jungian Play Therapy

•  Experiential Play Therapy

• Gestalt Play Therapy

•  Structured Play Therapy

•  Adlerian Play Therapy

• Sand Play Therapy

• Synergetic Play Therapy

• • Other – other Play Therapy modalities will be considered where the Play Therapy modality is a form of counselling or psychotherapy for children such as Theraplay. 

All applicants for APTA Registered Play Therapist must demonstrate completion of approved Play Therapy specific training in the following areas and meet the following criteria:

• Social - emotional developmental stages of children linked with play therapy

•  Ethical issues in working with children in play therapy

• Theoretical model/s of play therapy and the application of 1 or more systematic model/s to the practise of play therapy

•  Play Therapy skills based training

• The therapeutic relationship including issues of transference and countertransference in the play therapy relationship

•  Attachment theories linked with play therapy

•  Play therapy case conceptualisation and assessment

• History of Play Therapy

Eligibility Requirements

The Australian Play Therapists Association confers the designation of Australian Play Therapists Association Registered Play Therapist Supervisor (APTA-RPT-S) to individuals who have provided APTA with documentation that they have:

1. Mental Health qualification.

2. Registration with a regulation body related to Mental Health qualification. Level 3 ACA, Clinical Member with PACFA, AASW, AHPRA, ANZATA, ACATA.

3. WWCC or National Police Certificate.

4. Professional Indemnity Insurance.

5. 150 hours Play Therapy training. 100 hours live contact, 50 hours non contact. RENEWAL 10 hours PD

6. 300 hours post training Play Therapy specific client hours. RENEWAL 50 hours

7. 50 hours post training Play Therapy specific supervision (max. 10 hours group supervision may be included) Your Supervisor must be a Registered Play Therapist or Registered Play Therapist Supervisor of APTA, APPTA, APT, or BAPT.

8. 22hrs training in field with 6hrs PT or 24 hrs PT supervision training

9. RENEWAL for Registered Play Therapist Supervisor– 10hrs OF SUPERVISION OF YOUR SUPERVISEES, & 10hrs of Play Therapy supervision with a Registered Play Therapist or Registered Play Therapist Supervisor of APTA, APPTA, APT, or BAPT.

   3HRS PD related to PT supervision, 10HRS PD related to Play Therapy

*Supervision training can be delivered online but must be synchronous. Pre-recorded videos, readings and other self-paced course materials will not be counted towards the total hours.

The designation as an APTA-RPT-S does not certify, imply, or affirm the knowledge or competency of such individual but only confirms that the education and training requirements identified herein have been satisfied.

Benefits of Membership

• Advertise their membership status with the post nominals Australian Play Therapists Association Registered Play Therapist (APTA-RPT-S).

• Advertise as a RPT-S of the Australian Play Therapists Association.

• Listing on the APTA Register of Play Therapists “Where to Find a Registered Play Therapist” indicating you have met the professional standards, clinical experience and maintain ongoing professional development to work as an APTA Registered Play Therapist.

• Advertising of your professional details on the APTA “Where to find a Registered Play Therapist” webpage.

• Voting rights at APTA meetings and eligibility for membership on the APTA committee.

• Display APTA’s logo on advertising material.

• $245 per year on acceptance of the RPT-S Application

• Membership fees are set according to the category application. Membership will run for (1) year from the date the application is approved.