Learning design thrives when diverse voices come together—bringing unique perspectives, lived experiences, and creative energy. Whether it's co-creating a workshop with subject matter experts, gathering feedback from learners, or partnering across departments, collaboration transforms good ideas into great learning.
A recent example from our own teams illustrates this. The learning and development design and delivery teams have been working closely with colleagues in Adult Social Care (ASC) to co-create a new dementia training programme aligned with the dementia training standards framework.
It began with a request from a group manager in ASC, seeking training that better reflected the framework’s standards. In response, the learning and development (L&D) business partner initiated a cross-team effort to assess and enhance the current training. A designer from L&D coordinated a review of existing materials, working with facilitators to cross-reference content against the framework. This collaborative analysis helped identify gaps and shape the direction of a new course.
The business partner then met with the original requester from ASC, alongside our vocational qualification lead, to explore specific needs and the potential for formal accreditation. From there, the designer and facilitators came together to agree on the course title, aims, objectives, and content, with ASC’s input remaining central throughout.
The designer held regular meetings with facilitators to test activity ideas and gather feedback, ensuring the course was both engaging and tailored to the needs of residential care managers. Finally, the business partner coordinated the initial in-house delivery, working with residential home managers to ensure the training reached the teams who needed it most.
This project demonstrates how cross-team collaboration within learning and development, combined with ongoing engagement with our departments, can lead to the creation of meaningful, framework-aligned training that supports both colleagues' development and service improvement.
For those in Adult Social Care supporting people with dementia, keep an eye out – this new training is coming soon.
If you have questions or want to learn more, please email: charles.lynn@derbyshire.gov.uk