Eight days · OCN and IMI accredited · Mediation House or online
Mediation Theory & Practice
The qualification for people who want to practise as mediators — and it’s recognised internationally, not just in Northern Ireland.
Eight days, assessed, and accredited by both the Open College Network and the International Mediation Institute. Very few providers anywhere on these islands can offer that.
Who it’s for
People who intend to mediate: as a practitioner, as part of a professional role, or as the person their organisation turns to when something has broken down.
Solicitors and HR professionals adding mediation to their practice. Community and youth workers dealing with disputes that never reach a formal process. Housing and public sector staff. People who have done shorter courses with us and want the qualification behind the skills.
It’s a serious commitment — eight days and assessed work — and it’s meant to be.
What the eight days cover
Foundations. What mediation is and is not. The theory underneath it — why a neutral third party changes what’s possible in a room, and the ethical framework a mediator works inside.
The process. The five-stage mediation process, worked through stage by stage: from first contact and assessment, through separate meetings, to joint session and written agreement.
The skills. Listening in a way that changes what people say next. Managing strong emotion without shutting it down. Holding neutrality when you can see who’s in the wrong. Writing agreements that hold.
The practice. Extended supervised mediations with feedback from practising mediators, and assessment against the standard.
What you leave with
- A qualification accredited by the Open College Network
- Recognition from the International Mediation Institute — a standard that travels
- Supervised practice hours and assessed competence, not just attendance
- A route into our practitioner community: supervision, CPD, and the associate panel
Who teaches it
We’ve been mediating for over thirty years. Our mediators work on live workplace and community cases across Northern Ireland — including neighbour, community and anti-social behaviour disputes — and internationally, through work with the OSCE, UNHCR and UN agencies across the Balkans, Africa and Asia.
You’re taught by people who mediated last week, not people who studied it.
Run this course for your own team
This course also runs in-house, for one group in your own setting or online, at a day rate rather than per seat. That is separate from booking a place on a public date above.
Having trouble with this form? Call us on 028 9043 8614 or email info@mediationni.org and we will take the details.
Would rather talk it through? Book a 30-minute call.
A taste of the course
This is The Conflict Puzzle, one of the modules from the course, taught in full and free to watch.
The Conflict Puzzle
A framework for taking a conflict apart before you try to fix it: the people, the problem, the process and the history. Mediators use it to work out what they are actually dealing with.
One module from the course, free and in full. More free tools.
Cost and dates
- 8 October – 26 November 2026Mediation HouseBook a place
- 21 January – 11 March 2027Online (Zoom)Book a place
£1,850 per person. Runs at Mediation House and online, booked separately.
Common questions
Do I need to have done other courses first?
No formal prerequisite. Many people come straight to it, though some prefer to start with a one-day course.
How are the eight days arranged?
TO CONFIRM — consecutive, weekly blocks, or spread across months.
What does IMI accreditation actually mean?
The International Mediation Institute sets competency standards for mediators worldwide. A qualification accredited against those standards is recognised well beyond Northern Ireland — which matters if you may practise elsewhere, or work with international organisations.
Can I mediate professionally after this?
TO CONFIRM — what the qualification entitles someone to, and what further steps registration requires. This is the question that decides the purchase, and the answer must be precise.
Is funding available?
TO CONFIRM — including the Brendan McAllister Scholarship.
After the qualification
Qualifying is the beginning. We run practitioner supervision, CPD events, and an associate panel for mediators working with us on live cases.
TO CONFIRM — most important on this page: the four-part syllabus above is written from the general shape of an accredited eight-day mediation programme, not from your course outline. It reads plausibly, which is exactly why it needs checking line by line before this page goes anywhere near the public.