Collaboratory Researcher Profiles
Project Title: Teaching Religion and Worldviews in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire
What were you doing (e.g. type of work/study) before your PhD/Placement?
I am currently the Head of Religion, Philosophy and Ethics at a secondary School.
I recently completed my Farmington Scholarship with The University of Oxford and believe the Collaboratory Project was the next step in continuing my research within Religion and Worldviews. I really enjoy working with a local authority organization like SACRE and therefore believe the collaboration between the university and SACRE allows me to continue research, network with the local community and moreover incorporating the local religious demographic into resource writing for the local schools.
What are you researching?
My research is centered around the up-and-coming new Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Locally Agreed Syllabus: Dialogue, Diversity and Worldviews 2026 – 2031.
My research is currently focused on recent research on Religion and Worldviews, exploring the current resources available to teachers and leaders of RE, interviewing local teachers and leaders and hearing their views on what it means to teach RE within Nottingham and Nottinghamshire. I am also focusing on research with local religious communities and how they feel they are represented within the Locally Agreed Syllabus. My research will guide me as to what resources will support teachers and leaders going forward, especially with the introduction of the new Locally Agreed Syllabus.
What motivated you to apply for this specific Placement project?
What motivated me to apply for this specific research placement was the opportunity to work with two great universities and moreover, continue my work with a local SACRE on the development of Religion and Worldviews.
Why do you think this research is important?
This research is highly important as it will support the implementation of the new Nottingham and Nottingham Locally Agreed Syllabus: Dialogue, Diversity and Worldviews 2026. Further, the research will inform of the resources teachers and leaders of RE require better to equip and support them in the implementation of a new Locally Agreed Syllabus.
Moreover, this research is important as it will ensure RE is taught to a high standard within Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, leading to pupils being better informed, more understanding, more respectful of diverse views within a multicultural and multifaith society.
What difference do you hope to make in Nottingham through this research?
Through my research on the Collaboratory Religion and Worldviews project, I hope to contribute to a more inclusive and locally grounded understanding of religious and non-religious identities across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire. The project’s focus on culturally sensitive, community informed RE resources particularly appeals to me because it has the potential to make education feel more authentic, representative, and relevant for young people.
I would want my work to help bridge the gap between schools and local communities by ensuring that the voices of people from different faiths and worldviews are heard directly rather than represented through stereotypes or overly simplified narratives. By engaging with communities through interviews, focus groups, and collaborative dialogue, I hope to support the creation of teaching materials that encourage empathy, critical thinking, and respectful discussion in classrooms.
More broadly, I hope the research can strengthen social cohesion in Nottingham by helping students better understand the diversity that already exists around them. A religion and worldviews approach recognises that everyone has a worldview shaped by culture, experience, beliefs, and values, and I think this perspective can encourage more thoughtful and open-minded conversations among young people.
I would also hope to make a practical difference for teachers by contributing resources that are academically rigorous but also accessible and usable in real classroom settings. Supporting educators to feel confident when teaching sensitive or complex topics could have a long-lasting impact across schools in the region.
Ultimately, I would want my research to leave a positive local legacy: helping Nottingham’s RE curriculum better reflect the lived experiences of its communities while promoting inclusion, dialogue, and mutual understanding.
What do you hope to be doing in five years’ time? (personally and/or professionally)
In five years’ time I hope to be a trust lead for Religion and Worldviews, working across both the primary and secondary sectors, developing and strengthening the implementation of Religion and Worldviews, leading to well-informed, respectful and open-minded individuals.