About the training

This training is full RSVPv2 training aimed at those who need full RSVP training (rather than being aimed at very experienced users of RSVP version 1 who require an update to version 2 although such attendees are more than welcome to book).

Practitioners and clinicians are often required to assess risk and to formulate plans to reduce or manage the risk of sexual offending that an individual may present. For example, sexual risk assessment may be crucial to pre-sentence reports, parole assessments, community management plans such as MAPPA or community mental health teams, in-patient services managing restricted patients, tribunal reports – the list is endless!

This two-day training event focuses on the Risk for Sexual Violence Protocol version 2 (RSVPv2; Hart et al., 2022). The RSVPv2 is a sex offender risk assessment tool that follows the structured professional judgement approach to the assessment and management of sexual violence risk. This structured professional judgement approach is similar in nature to that taken by the popular HCR-20v3. The RSVPv2 guides the assessor in considering information, identifying risk factors that are present and relevant, formulating risk, generating potential future risk scenarios and creating appropriate risk management plans. The SVR-20 version 2 (2017) is a similar tool, and the training will provide an overview of this tool so that participants feel confident in applying both tools (only RSVPv2 manual will be provided and delegates can be signposted to where they can purchase the SVR-20v2 manual).

It is widely accepted in forensic risk assessment that structured professional judgement performs better than clinical judgement alone, and appropriate training is the key to thorough and defensible assessment.

As a guide the training will cover the following:

• Structured professional judgement approach
• Background to sex offender risk assessment tools
• Administration of RSVPv2
• SVR-20v2 overview and update
• Practice case

The primary aim of the workshop is to ensure that delegates feel confident when assessing clients using the RSVP and to develop awareness of how risk management plans can be formulated. The training event does not aim to cover broad theories of sexual offending, as the focus is risk assessment. A certificate will be provided for evidence of attendance at this workshop, which may contribute to your continuing professional development (CPD).

Who should attend this workshop?

This workshop is designed for professionals (or in-training professionals) who may work with this group or are likely to do so in the future.

This is likely to include psychologists, psychiatrists, Offender Managers/Probation Officers, nurses, social workers, occupational therapists, forensic speech and language therapists, Police or Prison Officers, Panel members, other types of therapist, and those in professional training in these roles. Those invovled in research into this tool may also attend. The workshop is for clinicians and not academic students but please enquire if you are unsure if this training is for you.

About the trainer

The primary trainer for this event is Dr Ruth Tully. Ruth is a HCPC Registered and BPS Chartered Forensic Psychologist. Ruth is Clinical Director at Tully Forensic Psychology Ltd, and has been assessing the risk of sexual and violent offenders for a number of years both as an individual professional and as part of multi-disciplinary teams. She has published in peer-reviewed journals in the area of sex offender risk assessment, most notably a systematic review on this topic alongside empirical research, and she is an invited speaker at national and international conferences on this topic. Ruth is actively involved in the risk assessment, management and treatment of sexual offenders both as a practitioner and consultant to services. Ruth has extensive experience working with sex offenders in prisons, hospitals, and the community and with working in complex cases e.g. people who may pose risks who also present with personality disorder, learning disability, multiple paraphilias, or mental illness. Ruth is an experienced trainer and has delivered this event to hundreds of professionals of varied professioknal disciplines over the last few years.