Book excerpt: As a supervisor, how do you best support growth, learning and improved practice? This book is designed to equip all those in the helping professions who are starting out in supervision with the theoretical, practical and psychological base needed for effective practice. Covering everything you need to know, from how to build a trusting and respectful relationship with your supervisee, to offering effective feedback and shaping a supervision session, this book will help you support and encourage those engaged in emotionally demanding tasks. Particular attention is devoted to the ethics of supervision and reflective practice, as well as to the challenges of supervising and appraising trainees. Practical suggestions for using creative methods and working with unconscious processes, and short exercises to support learning and development are included throughout. Concise and jargon-free, this introduction to supervision is ideal for new supervisors in social and health care, early years services, psychology, coaching and therapies of all kinds, as well as students on supervision training courses.