ViTaL Partnerships Ltd (ViTaL) is a charitable trading company created in 2004 to handle the spin-off work from research into Values Development and Learning Power – through the ELLI Project – led by Dr Ruth Deakin Crick at the University of Bristol's Graduate School of Education.
The work was and is in demand from schools. This research showed that people achieve more and work better together when their personal development as learners is given as much attention as their academic performance.
ViTaL's mission is to 'develop professional learning that enhances lifelong learning, change and development in individuals, organisations and communities'.
ViTaL seeks to fulfil its mission through projects created and managed in partnership with other learning organisations. There are three main kinds of ViTaL project:
- Values Development Projects working with schools to derive their core vision and values from a research based consultation process with all stakeholders
- ELLI Research and Development Projects working with schools, universities and other learning organisations, using the Effective Lifelong Learning Inventory (ELLI) created at the University of Bristol to investigate how learning power relates to key issues of personal and organisational growth and change
- The 'Courage to Be...' project working with professionals to suspend the accountability agenda in order to renew identity, integrity, core values and ethical courage.