The site has undergone some major changes behind the scenes. Most of this will initially be transparent to users (which is what we'd like) but over time we hope to introduce some new features to make the site more usable and to encourage users to return to the site more often.

Some features that are live with immediate effect are:
 

• The site now has the concept of a breadcrumb trail on hierarchical pages, allowing you to easily see where you are in the site and get back to where you came from.
• Member profiles have been introduced to try to foster a sense of community. Please feel free to update your profile so that other users can know a little more about you.
• The forums have been revamped and are now more user friendly. They also include features such as search, locked and sticky threads and the ability to link to individual posts.
• The profiles now include the ability to link to a profile picture if you use Gravatar or Facebook
• A new contact form to help you communicate with us.
• A site map to help you get a better feel for content on the site.
• New login, registration and profile pages.
• A blog including a latest news article on the home page to keep you updated with news from the PePLE team. This includes the ability to subscribe to the blog using your favourite reader or browser.
• There is some newly introduced newsletter functionality giving the PePLE team a better opportunity to keep in touch with you. All newsletters sent can also be viewed on the site.
• Comments - on particular content pages(e.g. blog articles) you now have the opportunity to add your thoughts as comments and interact with other users about particular articles.
• Social bookmarking/sharing - the ability to save and share content from PePLE using popular social sharing and bookmarking services.

Other features that we're hoping to introduce in the future are:
 

• A page featuring a collection of RSS feeds from a number of social work sites to keep you up to date with the latest news in your field.
• Messaging system - allowing for private message communication of PePLE members.