Abstract
Despite the popularity of half-day protected learning time events within primary care, there are few published evaluations and little evidence of their impact on practice. This paper describes the main findings of an exploratory evaluation of such an initiative in the west of Berkshire. The initiative was found to be effective in terms of working to meet its main aims of enhancing practice and developing a learning culture. Many examples of impact on practice were reported and there was agreement among participants over effectiveness in relation to improving awareness of services, enhancing understanding of illness and improving treatments or procedure. Questions are raised about the balance of meeting the diverse needs of different staff groups whilst encouraging a multi-professional learning environment. © 2006 Radcliffe Publishing Limited.