Learning History

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Learning History workshop guide
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Whats included in the slide pack?
This slide pack with accompanying facilitators
notes has been created to assist the use of the
learning history as a tool and forms the basis of
a four hour workshop. The workshops purpose is
to introduce the learning history, understand the
experiences and lessons learnt and to consider
how to apply this to the future of working in a
holistic way.

• Slides to assist your preparation
• Thinking about what you want to achieve
• Phases of a workshop
• A sample half day workshop
• Using quotes to provoke discussion
• Sample points for discussion

• Slides as a resource for the workshop
• Aims
• Principles of Total Place work
• Starting where you are
• Sections of the report explained
• What is a learning history?
• How its laid out
• Elements of the story
• Kolbs learning cycle
• Action learning cycle
• Pre Work

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The following slides are designed to assist you
in your preparation for the workshop
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Thinking about what you want to achieve

• The workshop will enable the group to use the
  learning history document Places, People
  Politics Learning to do things differently
• Having read the learning history and identified
  those parts that resonate (or irritate) it
  enables workshop participants to relate their own
  experience of Total Place
• The exploration will stimulate ideas for what
  learning might be taken forward
• Actions to take forward may emerge and are the
  tangible outcomes the workshop seeks to promote
• copies available online from
  www.localleadership.gov.uk/current/publications/

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The phases of a workshop

• Setting the sceneInvite someone from senior
  management, a champion or a key player to kick
  the workshop off. This gives value to the
  dialogue about to take place (and the validity of
  the report on which it is based)
• Phase oneWhat happened and why?
• Phase twoSo what? and What next?
• SummarisingWhat will happen next?

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A sample half-day workshop

• Setting the scene
• 9.30 Introduction by a senior leader / local
  champion
• Introduction to the Learning History, the
  session and the group
• Phase 1
• First reactions (small groups)
• What stood out for you when you read the report
  and why? (Surprise, joy, anger,
• sadness, frustration etc.)
• Working on extracts/ quotes/questions (see
  samples, gather some from the group or
• Select some in advance relevant for the group)
• Phase 2
• So what? In small groups participants share
  reactions and thinking about possibilities
• for change within their area of responsibility
• Insight into action What next?
• What can be developed and at what points in the
  system?
• Who, how and when these will be taken forward
• Summarising
• 12.45 Summary of next steps and what will happen
  next
• 13.00 Close

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Sample quotes to provoke conversation

• The good ideas still have to be done regardless
  really and when the dust
• settles, an elections held, whatever we do were
  going to keep coming back
• to this area?
• Oh I could do it every day of the week I just
  find it fascinating because its
• inspiring isnt it looking at how you change
  things. I find that the concept of
• Total Place is a really liberating one in terms
  of freeing you up to think about
• things in a different way.
• (Select other quotes more carefully or gather
  some from
• participants to be the focus for discussion)

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Sample points for discussion

• What did you notice from the quotes that you
  recognised or that connected powerfully with
  your own experience?
• From your perspective, what is new and what
  isnt? (Things that you have thought and how you
  have behaved for a long time?)
• What inspires, reawakens old values?
• What are the blocks which you recognise where
  you work?
• What are the doubts and difficulties that have
  not been spoken about?

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The following slides can be used or adapted for
use on the workshop
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Title of your workshop
Name of the facilitator
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How we aim to use Places, People Politics
Learning to do things differently

• To identify whether your reflections are personal
  and which are shared by others
• To value, evaluate and hear different voices and
  perspectives from different levels and roles in
  the local and central government system
• To learn and become conscious of lessons so we
  dont repeat them
• To challenge what you are all thinking
• To notice what are old ideas and what is new
• To focus on the challenges and opportunities

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Aims of the workshop

• The overall purpose of this workshop is to .
• The more specific aims of the workshop are
• xxx
• xxx
• xxx
• xxx

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Principles of Total Place

• Locally led
• Holistic
• Customer-needs driven
• Relationships are more critical than are the
  rules
• Try it and experiment
• It is better to ask forgiveness than permission
• Respect people in authority and seek
  conversations and ask for them to open doors
• Dont make assumptions - find out, explore

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Starting where you are

• Identify the most significant time for your
  locality during your involvement in Total Place
• Identify what your questions are now about Total
  Place
• What affected or inspired you most personally?
• What was most difficult or challenging for you
  personally?
• If it all left you cold why do you think that
  was?

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Sections of the report explained

• Contents
• Section 0 Arguments for a new approach to public
  sector working in places
• Section 1 The origins of Total Place
• Section 2 Project inception to the Pre-Budget
  Report (PBR)
• Section 3 From the PBR to the final reports
• Section 4 Was it worth it? Yes it was
• Afterword

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What is the Learning History?

• Its a collection of stories, learning and
  reflection from a large number of people
  involved in Total Place
• Over 100 people were interviewed from different
  Places and parts of the system
• The interviews were recorded and analysed with
  the themes and data drawn from peoples
  concrete experiences
• The process produces a jointly told tale
• The next stage is for readers to join the story,
  react, identify and learn themselves from it.

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Learning history structure
First paragraph at the beginning of each
section This sets the scene and tells you what
was happening at the time and whats included in
the section
Peoples real experience expressed in
quotes The quotes are the data and evidence
upon which the history is written
Questions to consider These are at the end of
each section and are designed to provoke
discussion and reflection for the reader
Signposts of left hand side of the page These
are to guide the reader and captures the
essence of what the quotes are saying
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The elements of the story / history
Theres nothing new- we are already doing this
The quotes
Insights new thoughts and new actions
The questions
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Another dimension
to consider that may not be so explicit
Is the voice of the customer coming through
enough? What do you think they would be saying?

• The
• customers

The unspoken doubts and difficulties
The systemic view how the parts fit and work
together or dont
You may notice that some difficulties have may
not have been talked about
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Kolbs Learning Cycle
Transfer of learning Into action
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Kolbs Learning Cycle
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The Learning Cycle

• This is based on a cycle of action and
  reflection - the outer circle aims to create
  increasingly effective leadership action, the
  inner triangle indicates the value of the
  ability to reflect and review in the midst of
  action

1. Description of experience and dilemmas
talking about the issue

• 2. Inquiring questions
• to explore the issue
• to deepen the inquiry

• 5. Action
• what actions should we consider taking?
• what will be needed to move forwards?

4. Reflection reaction and reflection
discussion to consider how the feedback loop fits
with a new understanding of the issue

• 3. Feedback
• what you were
• noticing
• feeling
• thinking
• hypothesising

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Pre-work for participants
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Pre-work
Instructions to send out in advance

• Read the learning history in advance of the
  workshop.
• As you read the report notice what experience and
  emotions it triggers in you either by
  identification or by a reaction that says this
  is nothing like how it was for me.
• Mark the areas in the text that are most powerful
  for you and identify one or two of the quotes or
  questions that stand out most powerfully for you
• Also suspend your judgement wonder why people
  said what they said even if you dont agree
  keep an open mind
• Come to the workshop being prepared to learn and
  explore with others the implications of what
  others have said and how you feel now
• We will use your reflections during the workshop
  so please make notes

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Starting where you are

• Identify the most significant time for your
  locality during your involvement in Total Place
• Identify what your questions are now about Total
  Place
• What affected or inspired you most personally?
• What was most difficult or challenging for you
  personally?
• If it all left you cold why do you think that
  was?

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Further information

• Questions and more information?
• Website www.localleadership.gov.uk/totalplace
• CoP www.communities.idea.gov.uk/c/1564537/home.do
  
• Email nicky.debeer_at_localleadership.gov.uk or
  holly.wheeler_at_localleadership.gov.uk