In the "Implementing Effective Learning Designs" project a framework and design guidelines were created to provide a comprehensive scaffold to assist academics in the development of inspiring learning design examples and supportive activities. Learning design templates were developed that can be used by academic staff to tailor exemplary examples to meet particular requirements, whilst providing them with the underlying pedagogical principals involved in the learning design. The implementation of learning designs was also explored and barriers identified to their widespread adoption and ways of overcoming these. This paper outlines the theoretical underpinnings that supported the project.