Bion and Rickman were in charge of the training and rehabilitation wing of Northfield, and ran the unit along the principles of group dynamics.

Those unable to join a group would have to go to the rest-room, where a nursing orderly would supervise a quiet regime of "reading, writing or games such as draughts... any men who felt unfit for any activity whatever could lie down".

Unknown to the patients, it was intended that this meeting, strictly limited to 30 minutes, should provide an occasion for the men to step outside their framework and look upon its working with the detachment of spectators.

For the first few days little happened; but it was evident that amongst patients a great deal of discussion and thinking was taking place"[3]The experiment had to close after six weeks as the military authorities did not approve of it and ordered the transfer of Bion and Rickman (who were members of the Royal Army Medical Corps).

[4] The second Northfield experiment, which was based on the ideas of Bion and Rickman and used group psychotherapy, was started the following year by Siegmund Foulkes, who was more successful at gaining the support of the military authorities.