In 1957, the Tavistock Institute launched its first full scale experiment in group relations in partnership with the University of Leicester.
Leicester conferences continue to this day and are replicated all over the world, including several times a year within the Tavistock and Portman. The original concept of the Leicester Conference owed much to the experience of group psychotherapy pioneered by Wilfred Bion at the Tavistock Clinic, as well as his wartime experiments in group treatment and officer selection.
This new ‘laboratory’ method of training was a radical innovation in social learning and is part of the Tavistock’s unique contribution to experiential learning.