Family &Youth Information Services Conference Action Learning in a Nutshell! 28th March 2014

1. Family &Youth Information Services ConferenceAction Learning in a Nutshell!28th March 2014

2. Institute of Public Care • For well led, evidence-based public care • Oxford Brookes University • Social care, health, education, youth offending, housing • Analysis, implementation and development • Performance management, commissioning, managing practice quality and change • Central, regional and local government, NHS, private and voluntary sector

3. Purpose of this Session • Welsh Government support for continuous shared learning and improvement through action learning: • Families First • Flying Start • Accredited ‘Team Manager Development Programme’ • SSIA Support for Directors • Different approaches, common interests • IPC action learning methodology

4. What will we Cover? • Why action learning? • IPC methodology - how does it work? • Structured conversation • Key roles and skills • Components of successful action learning • Some ground rules • The methodology in practice

5. What are the Benefits? An opportunity: • Individual learning and growth • Valuable feedback and support • Better managerial solutions • Adopt different styles and processes • Take risks, learn from mistakes as well as success • Action and progress on problems

6. What is Action Learning? • Developed by Reg Revans as a method of management and organisation development • Learning by doing: working on real problems, focusing on learning and implementing solutions • Based on premise that “there can be no learning without action” • People work in small groups/sets with a facilitator to tackle important organisational issues or problems • People learn from their attempts to change things • Involves doing something other than what you are currently doing

7. Some Things to Consider • People learn best when working on real problems • People learn best when they share feedback • People get stuck on perceptions, values and feelings • Finding the right problem is as important as solving it • The person with the problem is the real expert

8. The Learning Cycle

9. Key Roles • Facilitator • Issue holder or presenter • Set members

10. Successful Action Learning Sets • Project self-management - people take responsibility for own actions and learning • Consistent, committed membership: commitment to own development, to the set, and to taking action • Members’ problem tasks act as main vehicles for action and learning by individuals • Clear ground rules: agree early on to govern behaviour inside and outside the set • Support people: a good set builds up its ability to offer members support and challenge to their existing views and perceptions

11. Suggested Ground Rules • Confidentiality • Punctuality • Attendance • Listening • Non judgemental • Minimum number of members

12. Key Facilitation Skills • Holding boundaries • Maintaining the agreed ground rules • Listening for emotions • Reflect and summarise • Good questions

13. Each Discussion • ‘presenter’ talks through issue • individuals ask questions of clarity • individual reflection • individuals take turns to feedback suggestions and comments • feedback from ‘presenter’

14. In Practice … In small groups: • ‘presenter’ talks through issue – 5 mins • individuals ask questions of clarity – 5 mins • individual reflection – 5 mins • individuals take turns to feedback suggestions and comments – 10 mins • feedback from ‘presenter’ – 5 mins

15. In Practice … • Your reflections? • Next steps? • How can you use this approach at work?

16. Contact us • http://ipc.brookes.ac.uk • ipc@brookes.ac.uk • 01225 484088