The Brighton systems and complex systems knowledge exchange project

This project provided a Knowledge Exchange (KE) for sharing ideas about systems and complex systems, creating a dialogue between academics and practitioners. The project was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). 

Project timeframe

The project ran from January 2011 until September 2011.

Project aims

The project aimed to create a forum for collaboration between academics and practitioners. By enabling practitioner input on discussion topics, academics planned to harness insight, identify solutions and devise best practice. The broad objectives were to improve understanding about complexity theory, develop working tools and enable wider dissemination of findings.

Project findings and impact

This project enabled reflection on how theoretical ideas about professional practice and organisation and management in the public and voluntary sectors could be better integrated into practice. The project provided an online learning space for knowledge exchange and this was supplemented with face-to-face learning.

Practitioners enabled academics to move beyond the abstract nature of concepts and to find satisfactory working tools and methods, making it possible to identify the best methods for linking theory and practice.

A working toolkit was developed and is available here. The project members are interested in disseminating and sharing the toolkit through consultancy and training workshops. Please contact Professor Phil Haynes on P.Haynes@brighton.ac.uk for further details.

Research team

Ceri Davies

Carla Ricaurte Quijano

Dr Julia Stroud

Dr Chris Warren-Adamson

David Wolff

Output

Haynes, P (2003) Managing Complexity in the Public Services. Open University Press, Maidenhead.

Toolkit (PDF)

Partners

Hilary Edgar, Brighton & Hove Council

Angela Flood, Brighton & Hove Council

Doly Garcia, Brighton and Hove Eco Energy

Karen Harris, Hyde Martlett Housing Association

Joanna Hedges, Sussex Multiple Sclerosis Treatment Centre

David Owen, University of West of England

John Patience, The Nehemiah Project (formerly Brighton & Hove Council)

Bethan Prosser, MOSAIC

Helen Thomas, Whitehawk Inn

Peter Tromholme, Portslade Community College