Collaboratory Researcher Profiles
Project Title: Children’s engagement with religions and worldviews in Leicestershire schools: the role of interfaith education programmes in supporting trust and belonging
What were you doing (e.g. type of work/study) before your PhD/Placement?
I am Lead Chaplain at Loughborough University and coordinate a multi-faith team of chaplains who support the faith, spirituality and wellbeing of students and staff, and advocate for the needs of people of faith and different worldviews across the institution.
What are you researching?
Looking at the work of the St Phillip’s Centre, Leicester and using their Religion and Belief Roadshow as a case study, I am researching how interfaith educational programmes can contribute to building cohesive communities characterized by trust and belonging.
What motivated you to apply for this specific Placement project?
The answer is a combination of current and previous experience: as lead chaplain I coordinate a multi-faith team of chaplains who are committed to enabling interfaith encounters and building understanding and faith literacy across the university community we serve. I am looking forward to reflecting on how St Phillip’s Centre enables interfaith learning in primary schools, and to seeing what transferable principles there may be for supporting the interfaith work of university chaplaincy.
Before training for ministry and chaplaincy I was a teacher, working mostly in primary schools. During this time, I was subject lead for RE so going back into schools and researching the RE curriculum feels like a privileged opportunity to revisit and reflect on some of these past experiences and this area of personal interest.
Why do you think this research is important?
I believe that interfaith work is important in an increasingly divided world and that giving children the tools to understand and encounter people who hold different beliefs and worldviews is a vital part of education. The St Philip’s Centre reaches thousands of young people each year through its various education programmes, but like many charities faces ongoing challenges in funding and developing this work. I hope my research will enable the charity to continue to articulate the value of its educational programmes to schools and funders, as well as perhaps offering some recommendations that could support the development of this part of its work.
What difference do you hope to make in Leicester/Loughborough through this research?
I’m looking forward to meeting lots of people during the project, from the team of faith practitioners at the St Phillip’s Centre to the children and staff of the school I will visit during the project. I’m also looking forward to having time to read and discuss findings with supervisors and to allowing the first hand experience of being engaged in research to inform my work as a chaplain where some of my pastoral role involves supporting people through the challenges of study and research.
What do you hope to gain from undertaking this research? (personally and/or professionally)
I hope to gain a greater understanding of the work of the St Phillip’s Centre and experience of interfaith initiatives, and to gain skills in research that I can use to support my work in chaplaincy. I hope I will be able to apply some insights gained from my research to help inform the creation of co- and in curricular programmes for students to support the development of faith literacy and interfaith understanding.