The Shapes Academy closes on 7th May 2026. The next time you can join is November 2026
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"It rescued me last year..."
"One of my colleagues went off with burnout - it could have happened to any of us.
It rescued me last year, I have to say. Now, I'm better at managing my time. I'm better at saying no and I don't feel so guilty about doing it.
It should be part of our mandatory training."
Jayne - Consultant Physician, Shapes Academy member
The Shapes Academy is for you if...
✅ You lie awake replaying the day - worried you missed something, made a mistake, or let someone down.
✅ You're working in a broken, overwhelmed system that keeps asking more - and because you're conscientious and responsible, you absorb all of it without even thinking.
✅ You know the theory - but knowing it and living it in a 13-hour day are two very different things.
✅ You're a doctor, nurse, allied health professional or senior leader in health and social care - and you really want to enjoy what you do again.
Imagine if...
The things that used to stop you didn't anymore - the guilt of feeling like you've let someone down, the fear of what people will think if you say no - or that something bad will happen if you do, and the shame of believing that setting boundaries makes you selfish or a bad doctor. Or the perfectionism that means nothing is ever quite good enough, and the people-pleasing that means everyone else's needs always come before your own.
You finish the day and actually feel like you've done a good job. Not perfect, not everything. But enough.
Your team is thriving - not because you're holding everything together, but because you've learned to lead in a way that brings out the best in them.
And because the workload feels manageable and the job feels do-able again, you're less cynical, the compassion comes back and you feel like yourself again - at work and at home.
The Shapes Academy will show you how - and it's powered by our unique Shapes Toolkit™ system
Think of it like an Advanced Life Support course - but for the difficult, emotional, stressful situations you face every day at work. A clear, memorable framework you can follow even on your worst day.
There are seven simple shapes, covering topics such as productivity, stress reduction, conflict and difficult conversations, wellbeing, control, coaching and boundary setting. Each shape is designed for a specific challenge - managing your workload, protecting your energy, having the conversations you've been avoiding, and supporting your team without rescuing them.
Each shape comes with tools you can use straight away, in your own one-to-one conversations and team meetings. So you're not just developing yourself - you're changing how your whole team works.
Thousands of clinicians and leaders across the NHS use the Shapes Toolkit every week to set boundaries that hold, lead with more confidence, and go home feeling like they've done a good job.
"Much more in control of my NHS overwhelm..."
"As a busy GP and PCN Clinical Director, the Shapes Academy has been absolutely brilliant. I feel much more in control of my NHS overwhelm. I plan time for the things that are important to me - including my non-work interests, which I find I am doing more and more of since putting the Shapes into my daily practice. Rachel and the team just get what it is like working in the NHS in a high-stress job."
Laura - GP and PCN Clinical Director
In the Shapes Academy, everything is designed to work around your life - not the other way around.
Each month we focus on a different shape. The content is delivered direct to your inbox and you can choose how deep you go. Everything is always there in your members online resources area whenever you need it.
What arrives each month:
Shapes Booster Video
In less than 5 minutes, one aspect of one shape with one practical insight you can use immediately - a quick action and a reflection question to sit with.
Watch it on your commute, in a spare moment between patients, or whenever you can find a couple of minutes.
Want to go further? Each Booster comes with a ready-made team activity - five, twenty or forty minutes - so you can watch it together and open the conversation with your team straight away. No preparation needed.
Work Well Webinar
A focused 45-minute session on the issues that matter most to leaders in health and social care right now - using the Shapes Toolkit to give you practical, immediate answers.
Join live and ask questions in the chat, watch on demand, or listen as a podcast on your commute. No homework. No pressure. Just something genuinely useful whenever you can fit it in.
What arrives each quarter:
Advanced Shapes Training Masterclasses
A deeper 90-minute dive into the Shapes Toolkit, and how each shape applies to your specific situation for example how to navigate conflict, difficult conversations and the more complex challenges of leadership in health and social care.
Includes the replay, a CPD log and a workbook so you can go back to it whenever you need it.These masterclasses are available to non-members - as a member, your annual pass is included.
Team Leaders' Group Coaching Workshops
This is where the real leadership work happens. A live 90-minute session with a small group of leaders who are navigating exactly what you're navigating. With breakout rooms, real conversations and guided self-coaching using the Shapes tools giving you practical frameworks you can take straight into your own one-to-one conversations with your team.
This isn't a webinar you watch. It's a space where you do the work - with people who truly understand your world.
Members tell us this alone is worth the membership.
What's always there from the moment you join:
The "Leading with the Shapes Toolkit" Course
Nine short video modules - one for each shape, plus an introduction and a closing session. Work through it all at once, or take one module at a time over nine weeks.
Either way, you'll finish with a deep understanding of the entire Shapes Toolkit system - how it works, how it applies to your life, and how to use it under pressure.
Comes with a full workbook and all the Shapes Toolkit resources as a permanent reference you can return to again and again.
The Shapes Booster Library
All our Shapes Booster videos, organised by shape, so you can find exactly what you need, when you need it.
Each one comes with the PowerPoint slides and a ready-made team activity, so you can pick something up on a Tuesday morning and bring it straight into your team meeting that afternoon.
This isn't just a learning library, it's a leadership toolkit you can reach for whenever your team needs something - without you having to create anything from scratch.
Shapes Academy enrolment only open until 7th May
Don't miss your change to join (doors will not open again until November 2026)
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What arrives each month:
✔ The Shapes Booster Video – three minutes, one practical insight, with a done-for-you team activity (5, 20 or 40 minutes).
✔ Work Well Webinar - A focused 45-minute session on what matters most to healthcare leaders right now. Join live, watch on demand, or as a podcast
What arrives each quarter:
✔ Shapes Training Masterclasses - A 90-minute deep dive into the Shapes Toolkit, with replay, CPD log and workbook included.
✔ Live Group Coaching Workshop - Real conversations with a small group of leaders who truly understand your world.
From the moment you join:
✔ Leading With the Shapes Toolkit course - Nine short video modules covering the complete Shapes system, plus CPD workbook and all the Shapes Toolkit resources.
✔ The Shapes Booster Library - All our bite-sized videos, slide decks and team activities, organised by shape and ready to use whenever your team needs something.
What's coming up in The Shapes Academy:
Don’t miss these upcoming sessions – included in your membership. Join live via Zoom or watch the replay.
🗓️ 7th May – Shapes Masterclass: How to Say No, Set Boundaries, and Deal with Pushback
7:30 – 9pm
Join before the Shapes Academy doors close and this is the first session you will attend. Because knowing you need to set boundaries and actually holding them under pressure are two very different things – this masterclass gives you the tools and the practice to do both.
🗓️ 13th May – Work Well Webinar: Why you say yes before you have even thought about it – and how to stop
12:30 – 1:15pm
🗓️ 18th June – Work Well Webinar: How to know what is actually yours to do – and what to do with everything else
12:30 – 1:15pm
🗓️ 24th June – Team Leads Group Coaching: How to move from stuck to thriving
12:30 – 2pm
For enquiries or questions relating to the Shapes Academy, please visit the FAQ below or contact us.
‼️ Want to join with your team or organisation?‼️
Team membership is an affordable way for everyone in a practice or organisation to get access to the tools and start changing the way they work as a collective. If you're responsible for wellbeing, culture or leadership development in your organisation, this is also a way to bring credible, evidence-based training to your people — without adding to your own workload.
Use the button below to contact us to find out how the resources will benefit your organisation, and find out about bulk membership options.
CONTACT US TO FIND OUT MORE
Discover the proven framework that thousands of NHS clinicians and leaders use to set boundaries, lead sustainably, and protect their wellbeing without compromising patient care.
Dr Rachel Morris, creator of The Shapes Academy, explains why senior healthcare leaders are burning out - and what to do about it.
"I actually feel in control..."
"My role is still extremely high pressured — but I actually feel in control.
Using the tools, I can quickly assess what's important, what to prioritise, and what to let go. The Shapes Academy has given me the ability to be assertive, say no and mean it."
Mark Thompson, Development Support Manager
Fund your place through your NHS study budget - and earn CPD at the same time.
Many members claim their Shapes Academy membership through their study budget. The Academy meets appraisal and revalidation reflection needs, is aligned with NHS Leadership Domains, and is self-certifiable for 24+ hours of CPD per year.
✅ Based on the unique Shapes Toolkit™ system - giving you time management, productivity and resilience solutions for the everyday challenges you face as a leader in healthcare.
✅ Includes done-for-you resources, including conversation frameworks and coaching tools, handouts, videos and team activities, to help you share your learning with your team
✅ Meets your appraisal and revalidation reflection needs
✅ Aligned with NHS Leadership Domains:
- Managing performance and resources
- Personal effectiveness
- Creating shared purpose
- Decision-making and systems thinking
✅ Many participants use their study budget or claim NHS reimbursement - download a funding request here.
✅ Self-certifiable for 24+ hours of CPD per year
DOWNLOAD YOUR FUNDING REQUEST LETTER HERE
What healthcare professionals say about the Shapes Toolkit
"They really get what it's like working in the NHS in a high-stress job."
“As a busy GP/ PCN CD The Shapes Academy has been absolutely brilliant.
I feel much more in control over my ‘NHS overwhelm’. Best for me is the prioritisation grid. I plan time for the things important to me, and that includes my non-work interests, which I find I am now doing more and more of since putting ‘shapes’ into my daily practice.
Rachel and the team just get what it is like working in the NHS in a high-stress job. The meetings with them feel safe and personal, and in the breakout rooms, listening to how other people are doing, it is very normalising and reassuring.
I’d recommend this if you just feel too busy and drained, you are saying yes to everything, and never have time to look after yourself.
I’d give this a 5-star rating in every way and am so glad I signed up. Thank you."
Laura - GP
"I'm better at managing my time, better at saying no - and I don't feel so guilty."
"One of my colleagues went off with burnout - it could have happened to any of us. When I talked to my GP, they were supportive, but their advice was basically "the next step is to take time off". But I really wanted to try and do something other than that.
I've always wanted to do something that helps our whole team rather than just me. So I asked my work to fund a place for me at the Shapes Academy.
It rescued me last year, I have to say.
What worked best for me was having a little bit every month, that regular drip feed. Now, I'm better at managing my time. I'm better at saying no. And I'm much better at scheduling time to do non-work things, and I don't feel so guilty about doing it.
It should be part of our mandatory training."
Jayne - Consultant Physician
"I'm now working 9-5 - and not thinking about work when I'm at home!"
"I used to wake at 3 am worrying about my workload, with constant interruptions from the team for me to solve problems, meaning delays to my time-critical work.
Accounts and associated business costs, wages and CCG claims were left right until the last minute, meaning additional stress for me, working late and at weekends.
Having discovered the Shapes Toolkit, I'm now working 9-5 and never checking emails in between. I'm confident the team are handling everything and is empowered to make decisions and take action, knowing what the priorities are. I'm not thinking about work when I'm at home!"
Helen - Practice Manager
"I was prepared and calm!"
“Two weeks ago, we covered the prioritisation grid in the toolkit. As a result, I set time in my calendar to prepare for today's talk and set a timer to ensure I didn't find something else to do whilst I was prepping. As a result, it went really well today, I was prepared, calm and even had time to consider getting a relative to join me to share their story, so thank you. I'm not keen on preparation, I often wing it, but I've learnt that practice and preparation are key to success! ”
- Shapes Academy participant
"Helps to identify and prioritise changes"
"The Shapes Toolkit helps to identify and prioritise changes that will empower people in their everyday work/personal life balance."
- Shapes Academy participant
"I wish I had this information and toolkit for my younger self."
"This stuff is like unveiling the great mysteries of life! I wish I had this information and toolkit for my younger self. Not just as a professional but also on a personal level"
- Shapes Academy participant
"A game-changer in CPD provision"
- Shapes Academy participant
"Valuable reminder as to how to avoid feeling overwhelmed in the current NHS climate"
"Valuable reminder as to how to avoid feeling overwhelmed in the current NHS climate - where workload is increasing and the expectation is to deliver more with reduced resources."
- Shapes Academy participant
"The zone of power has really helped me"
"Talking with others with similar experiences... has kept me going the last 2 years. I accept that the system won't get better, but I want to try so that my local hospital is a great place to be a patient when I am retired (not too many years away).
The zone of power has really helped me recently. A challenge that seemed insurmountable and outside my ZoP actually contained lots of small things that individually were in my ZoP, and tacking it that way meant it's now sorted."
- Shapes Academy participant
FAQ’s - your questions answered
I don't have time for another course - how will I fit this in?
I've tried other ways to support my team—how is this different?
Can I use my study budget to fund this course?
What if I'm neurodivergent?
How long do I get access?
What if it doesn't work for me?
Have more questions?
Fill out the form and we'll do our best to answer them!
