Arbennek Project – When AI Is Just the Start 

AI helped but real innovation happened in how people worked together 

We often talk about digital transformation as if technology is the solution. But in Cornwall’s Arbennek PCN, Brave AI didn’t deliver impact on its own – it unlocked something else entirely. 

What followed wasn’t just an example of “tech for good.” It was a lesson in what’s possible when professionals from across health, care, and community services are given space to work differently. 

The evaluation of Arbennek’s Integrated Neighbourhood Team (INT) shows that real innovation isn’t just about what you use. It’s about how you work and who you bring with you. 

Brave AI: catalyst, not centrepiece 

Brave AI is a tool that scans GP records and identifies patients at risk of unplanned hospital admission. That’s no small feat. It gave the Arbennek team a tangible focus – a list of real people, not abstract datasets – and helped cut through the noise of an overburdened system. 

But as one INT leader put it: 

“Brave is just a tool. It’s a way of identifying patients. The real opportunity was to use it as a catalyst for collaboration.”1 

Once patients were identified, monthly meetings brought together a wide mix of professionals: GPs, social prescribers, care coordinators, voluntary sector reps, public health officials, and more. It wasn’t neat. It wasn’t always efficient. But it was alive. 

Integration as a verb 

The Arbennek INT didn’t rely on formal integration protocols or system-wide directives. It emerged from relationships — people talking, building trust, making connections across boundaries. 

One senior VCSE participant described the setup as 

“fairly nebulous… always shifting, amoebic.”2
It wasn’t a flaw. It was the feature. 

This fluidity allowed the team to respond in real time to patients’ needs. In one example, a GP and district nurse spontaneously arranged a joint home visit and were able to resolve half a dozen issues in one go.3 The patient avoided multiple appointments, and the system avoided another likely admission. 

These stories weren’t the exception — they became the way the team worked. 

From technology to transformation 

The evaluation applies Tuckman’s team development model – Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing – to track how the team evolved. 

Brave AI helped with the “Forming” stage. But the storming, norming and performing happened around the table: through disagreement, clarity-seeking, and eventually, aligned purpose. 

“What Brave gave us was a shared list. But what actually made the difference was being in a room together, figuring it out.”4 

The AI didn’t change the system. It gave people permission to work outside it. 

The hidden value: emotional intelligence 

While most transformation programmes talk about interoperability, governance, or workflows, this evaluation surfaced something different: emotional dynamics. Interviews revealed hope, pride, energy — and also uncertainty, frustration, and fatigue. 

Yet it was in this emotional landscape that the real gains happened. Professionals felt seen, heard, and part of something that worked. 

One VCSE rep said: 

“We need a cheerleader — someone who can keep everyone motivated about the difference we’re making.”5 

Another GP noted: 

“This is the only way forward that can save the NHS. We’ve got to look at treating patients differently.”6 

That level of conviction doesn’t come from a risk score. It comes from people seeing the impact of their work and believing in it. 

Key Lessons

There’s a risk here. As interest grows and other areas look to replicate Arbennek’s model, the temptation will be to focus on the tech — to ask, “How do we roll out Brave AI?” or “What’s the standard operating model?” 

But the real question should be: “What conditions allowed this to thrive?” 

Because this wasn’t a story about replicating an app. It was about enabling a way of working that puts relationships at the centre. As the report warns, attempts to standardise the model risk undermining the very qualities that made it successful. 

What made Arbennek work? 

• Strong, trusted local leadership 

• A clear, shared purpose 

• Time and space to collaborate across roles 

• Strategic use of data to guide, not dictate 

• Permission to shape the model from the ground up 

AI as the door, not the destination 

In Arbennek, Brave AI opened the door. 

But it is what the people brought that made this work. They brought energy, compassion, disagreement, learning, and momentum. That’s what moved the system forward. Not dashboards. Not algorithms. People. 

So of course, use AI. Use it wisely, and use it strategically. But remember: when it comes to transformation, the tech is just the start. 

The real work is human. 

 Read the full report here 

 

Footnotes 

1. Report page 14 – direct quote from an INT leader: “Brave is just a tool… a way of identifying patients.”
2. Report page 14 – direct quote from a VCSE participant: “fairly nebulous… always shifting, amoebic.”  
3. Report page 23 – compressed account of a joint visit resolving “half a dozen things” in one go.  
4. Report page 14 – summarised insight from Section 4.2.1 regarding Brave AI and team dynamics.
5. Report page 20 – direct quote from a VCSE participant about the emotional role of a “cheerleader.”  
6. Report page 24 – compressed quote from a GP Practice Manager stating: “This integrated way of working is the only way forward that can save the NHS.”