Research Projects
What we can offer
The Centre is able to undertake both short and long-term commissioned projects. The Centre can provide a base for projects and staff, offering academic supervision and clear accountability to project sponsors. The Centre Director can help in drawing up research proposals and seeking funding.
Current Projects
Action Research in Church and Society:
The Director is a member of a team based at Heythrop College which is looking at the distinctive features of Romam Catholic parishes in London using action research methods. Approaches to evangelisation and renewal are a particular focus. For further information click here.
Fresh Expressions in marginalised communities:
The Church Urban Fund has commisioned OxCEPT to run an action learning programme that will examine the particular features of fresh expressions of church in the areas and with the communities that is targeted by their funding.
Experience before training:
Phillip Tovey is conducting research into the experience of leading worship of candidates for ministry before they begin their training. He has piloted this on LLM (Readers) in the Diocese of Oxford and is presently expanding the survey to all Readers and Local preachers in the Regional Training Partnership.
OxCEPT Chaplaincy Development Project:
Victoria Slater is undertaking research into how effective and sustainable chaplaincy services can be enabled in community contexts. This is a three year project using the action research method. The aim is to create a practical model for enabling chaplaincy that can be used in a variety of contexts with teams and churches.
The Simeon Trust Chaplains:
The Simeon Trust has set up two part time older person's chaplaincy posts, one in Brailsford, Derbyshire and one in Alton, Hampshire. A third post may be established in due course. The Simeon Trust provides mentoring for the post holders and monitors the development of the posts and their integration with the ministerial context as part of the research using the case study method. The aim is to understand how chaplaincy posts can best be established in different contexts and best practice can be developed and disseminated.
Completed Projects
As projects are completed, summary reports wil be posted on this page and the details of other publications provided on the publications page.
Spiritual Care of Older People in Residential Homes:
This project, undertaken by Dr Louise Nelstrop, explores what constitutes good practice in the spiritual care of the elderly within care home settings. It includes a systematic literature review of both guidance and research literature.
Click here to download report.
Clergy in Context:
This project, undertaken by Dr Wendy Dackson, examined the changing patterns of ordained ministry that the Diocese of Derby has experienced in the last 15-20 years. It explored the shifts in clerical roles, tasks, expectations and self-perceptions of clergy as well as the changes in settings in which ordained ministry is exercised. Lay perceptions of these changes were also considered.
A hard copy of the report is located in Ripon College Cuddesdon Library. There is also a copy for consultation at OxCEPT.
Fresh Expressions in England and Thailand:
This project, undertaken by Dr Louise Nelstrop, assessed the extent to which 'fresh expression' offer participants an incultured/incarnational theology. It asked whether 'fresh expressions' should be viewed as churches in their own right. It examined how factors such as ethnicity, gender, age, socio-economic background impact on 'fresh expressions'.