LILAC Learning Sets

Description

The annual LILAC conference consistently generates immense energy, collaboration, and a deep sense of community among information professionals (Haigh & Garcia Grau, 2025). However, the intellectual momentum and professional connections forged over three days can dissipate in the months following the conference.
At LILAC 2026, the Information Literacy Group (ILG) is piloting an annual LILAC Learning Sets programme. This will be a formal structure designed to harness the conference enthusiasm and maintain connections and professional engagement throughout the subsequent year.
Action Learning Sets are a model of peer collaboration and learning. They are frequently used within organisations such as healthcare settings, often with the goal of solving a specific workplace problem. They can be approached in many ways but typically include regular meetings of 5-7 people, in a psychologically safe environment where they can discuss problems they are facing and collaboratively come up with solutions (NHS England, 2025).
At this workshop, participants will be randomly allocated to an Action Learning Set composed of colleagues from diverse sectors, geographical locations, and career stages. During the workshop, participants will meet their Learning Set, discuss their current challenges, and set goals for working together over the coming year.
Following the workshop, the ILG will then host four structured, online meetings for the Learning Sets, spaced at regular intervals over the 12 months after LILAC 2026. These facilitated sessions will provide intentional time for accountability, shared discussion, and focused reflection on both professional challenges and concepts introduced at LILAC. Outside of these facilitated meetings, Learning Set members will be empowered to organize and maintain their own informal communication channels and meet-ups as they prefer.
Note: To participate in the LILAC Learning Sets programme, delegates must attend the introductory workshop at LILAC 2026, and should commit to attending the majority of online meetings throughout the following year. A full meeting schedule will be confirmed shortly. Proposed dates are as follows:
Learning Sets meeting 1: Tue 12 May 2026, online, 15:30pm GMT.
Learning Sets meeting 2: August 2026, time/date tbc.
Learning Sets meeting 3: November 2026, time/date tbc.
Learning Sets meeting 4: February 2027, time/date tbc.
Learning outcomes:
Participants in the Learning Sets will be equipped to:
Make contacts with other librarians and information professionals in a range of sectors, locations, and career stages.
Reflect on and discuss learning points and ideas from LILAC, building on and developing these throughout the year.
Develop their knowledge of information literacy teaching and initiatives in different organisations and sectors.
Gather evidence for professional development and accreditation such as HEA or CILIP Chartership.
Workshop outline
5 minutes: Welcome and workshop overview.
10 minutes: Background: LILAC Stories, and introduction to Action Learning Sets.
10 minutes: Learning Sets allocation and icebreaker discussion.
20 minutes: Learning Set discussions and goal setting.
10 minutes: Each Learning Set feeds back their discussion to the group.
5 minutes: Workshop close and next steps.

References

Haigh, J and Garcia Grau, E (2025) LILAC Stories: Exploring the long-term impact of the LILAC Conference on the Information Literacy Community. Technical Report. https://eprints.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/id/eprint/12245/

NHS England. (2025). Keep up-to-date with best practice: Knowledge mobilisation toolkit. NHS Workforce, Training and Education. https://library.hee.nhs.uk/knowledge-mobilisation/knowledge-mobilisation-toolkit/knowledge-mobilisation-toolkit/keep-up-to-date-with-best-practice