What is the future of the lecturer practitioner role - A decade on?

Collaboration between the Greater Manchester Workforce Development Confederation, the University of Salford and nine NHS Trusts, in the implementation of the Fitness for Practice and Making a Difference recommendations, identified the need for a wider consultation on the future of education and practice links. Lessons learned from this initiative included a realization of the importance of partnering arrangements between higher education and practice. To achieve a collaborative model for the future a working party was established to determine how effective partnership and collaboration between the NHS Trusts, Confederation and Higher Education could be developed, maintained and disseminated for the future. Five sub groups were formed from the main working party all charged with examining education and practice links. Each sub group reported back and presented evidence to the main working party. It was recognized that a whole repertoire of roles spanning education and practice would be required, including the role of lecturer practitioner and joint appointments. The aim of this paper is to report on the work of the lecturer practitioner and joint appointment roles sub group, its evaluation of the evidence to support the role within the collaborative model and offer proposed actions for future practice.