This account of practice discusses how we use action learning (AL) sets as part of the supervision process for quality improvement (QI) projects in healthcare. Reflecting on the synergies between QI and AL reveals that the questioning approach of both links closely with the Calgary Cambridge Communication model, taught in medicine, to guide…

This account of practice focusses on insights from the 'early days' of an action learning set within a leadership development programme in the English NHS. The account describes experiences of forming as a set as an important foundation for trust. Developing trust between set members enabled members to take more risks, sharing current and complex…

This paper examines a Revans led action learning / action research project in services for people with learning disabilities which took place between 1969 and 1972 across seven local authorities in the UK. It explores aspects of social and political history as the project unfolded, including the notable scandals in hospital and social care which…

The practice of Social Prescribing as a means of enabling improved quality of life, especially those with long term conditions, is still a 'work in progress'. Using appreciative action research methods, practitioners involved in commissioning or providing social prescription services can learn important lessons from the experience of…

Action research is participative research, involving all stakeholders in the research process on a voluntary basis. Its main objective is to create practical knowledge, which supports stakeholders in everyday professional processes. The creation and utilization of this kind of knowledge, the facilitation of individual and group level action…

This account of practice provides a practical example of the use of mindfulness practice within action learning which was a component of a bespoke UK Business School post-graduate leadership development programme commissioned by an English NHS Mental Health Trust aimed at improving the leadership capacity of mid-level managers through work-based…

This study demonstrates how action research (AR) that is aimed at scaling-up experiments can be applied to support a strategy formation process (SFP) in a subsidized long-term care network. Previous research has developed numerous AR frameworks to support experiments in various domains, but has failed to explain how to apply AR and action learning…

This paper is based on a study of learning processes within 35 healthcare therapy teams that took action to improve their services. The published research on team learning is introduced, and the paper suggests it is an activity that has similarities with action research and with those forms of action learning where teams address collective…

Green space offers a significant environmental resource that can improve the individual experience of health and quality of life. However, barriers exist that prevent the use of green space, and partnership (multi-agency) working has the potential to overcome these. Current public health policy aims to broaden the range of environmental public…

This account of practice describes the introduction of an accredited postgraduate management qualification which used action learning as a major contribution to a blended learning approach in a fragile cross-border setting on the edge of Europe. Conventional management education has frequently been challenged on the grounds of relevance, efficacy…

This paper argues that learning is a natural social process that leads to the construction of meaning, which involves the creation of experiences of coherence, purpose, identity and competence. Learning that yields a coherent social context, a worthy or compelling purpose, a strong, integrated identity and increasing levels of competence results…

This paper seeks to improve our understanding of the emotional and political dynamics that are generated (and too often avoided) in action learning. The idea at the centre of the paper is a distinction between "learning-in-action" and "learning inaction". The phrase "learning-in-action" represents the value of action…

Can the development, both clinical and managerial, of practitioners involved in healthcare be enriched by connecting action learning principles and practice with research on "tempered radicals"? Might such connection also assist the efforts of patients and their advocates to create more holistic approaches to patient care? This paper…

Advanced clinical practice roles are now an integral feature of many healthcare services and have been adopted in a diversity of areas. However, mentoring of these roles is not well documented in the literature and formal mechanisms of support are limited. An action learning set (ALS) was developed to provide support for consultants currently in…

Action Learning is now a well established strategy for reflective inquiry in healthcare. Whilst a great deal is know about action learning there has been inadequate research on the process of learning that takes place, and the impact that this holds for individuals, groups or organisations. This article reports on the findings of 15-month action…