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The purpose of this paper is to provide an exploration of Recovery Academy influences upon employment and service use amongst individuals with lived experience of mental health difficulties.

The study utilised a questionnaire design over a nine-month period. Participants’ baseline and follow-up data were analysed to explore the influence of course attendance upon employment and service use.

At follow-up, there was a significant association between participants attending Recovery Academy courses and paid or self-employment (p<0.05). However, there were also no significant differences in service use over time between those who attended courses and those who did not attend any courses.

Further research is required to explore the cost-effectiveness of the Recovery Academy. As participants were all enroled onto the Recovery Academy findings may not be generalisable to other Recovery Colleges. There is a need for more robust research such as a randomised controlled trial (RCT) to evaluate multiple Recovery Colleges and establish definitive conclusions as to their economic implications.

There may be value in the Recovery Academy as a gateway to employment, speaking to the transformative powers of Recovery Colleges. The Recovery Academy may serve as a vehicle to support service users to obtain paid or self-employment, and thus promote community reintegration.

This paper offers an important contribution to the Recovery College literature, which remains limited in evaluative evidence, particularly regarding associated economic factors, such as employment and service use.

Recovery Colleges strive to assist individuals in their journey of recovery and help organisations to become more recovery focused. The evidence base surrounding Recovery Colleges is still in its infancy and further research is required to investigate their effectiveness. The purpose of this paper is to explore the subjective experience of people involved with a Recovery College: “The Recovery Academy” based in Greater Manchester.

A qualitative study using data collected from four focus groups of Recovery Academy students who have either lived experience of mental health problems, are health professionals or are family members or carers. The data were analysed using thematic analysis.

Four main themes emerged from discussing experiences of the Recovery Academy and its courses: ethos of the Recovery Academy; personal and organisational impact; value of co-production; and barriers to engagement and impact. The Recovery Academy can have a positive impact on the lives of students who attend the courses and offer benefits to the organisation in which it is run.

Recovery Colleges are gaining large interest nationally. However, to date there is a paucity of research on Recovery Colleges. This is the first paper to be presented for publication specifically on the Recovery Academy. The findings of this study suggest Recovery Colleges have the potential to positively impact students and facilitate recovery oriented organisational change. The findings can add valuable data to the emerging Recovery College evidence base.

AT the time of writing (Autumn 1966), those who are concerned with technical college libraries stand at a very interesting stage in the development of those services. I was reminded of this fact the other day when I was lunching with one of the College Principals who had been concerned with the ATI Memorandum on College Libraries in 1937. (That, as you may know, was a very forward‐looking document and outlined objectives, not all of which have yet been attained.)