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Turning Points is a pilot project successfully implemented by a Charles Darwin University team and funded by the NT Department of Health and Community Services to respond to a community need for effective and sustainable professional development in early childhood education. The innovative approach develops professional learning communities who engage in a series of participatory action learning cycles that act as a framework for developing positive and self-sustaining learning experiences, networks and environments. This paper discusses the stages and elements of implementation that were central to the success of the pilot project and the lessons learned from stakeholders and participants for further development. Of particular interest is the participants' transition from workers who study to professionals who engage in learning experiences. This discussion informs the development of a model relevant to a wider range of professional learning contexts with specific reference to the related implications for post-compulsory teaching staff and organisations who facilitate the process and assessment, and the role of management committees who support the process in their organisation.