We’re delighted to release a project report by Dr Anthony Thorpe, SWF Research Associate, entitled Methodist school leadership and governance: mission and workforce equality and diversity. Executive summary: The project explored the concept and discourse of leadership and governance in Methodist schools and related organisations in England with particular reference to the purpose of the […]
Discover the research projects that SWF engages in.
Chaplaincy and the Church research project
The Susanna Wesley Foundation (SWF) is launching a new research project into chaplaincy and the Church. The project will look to map the current chaplaincy landscape in terms of understanding of chaplaincy and its primary contexts. As part of this, we will explore how chaplaincy is defined, trained for, and credentialed, as well as considering […]
Hope research project
New Research Associate the Revd Dr Susie Snyder introduces a new project. “Hope has holes in its pockets,” as poet Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer puts it—and this perhaps feels particularly true at this point of the twenty-first century (1). I have been interested in hope for a while, and at a time of global polycrisis, public […]
Celebrating the Susanna Wesley Foundation
On 26th March, we gathered for an exhibition, symposium and dinner to mark ten years of the Susanna Wesley Foundation. The exhibition, entitled Remarkable Women: making a difference in education, featured portraits of leaders from Southlands College history. The symposium was around the theme of Learning to Make a Difference, and included posters from recent […]
HE Chaplaincy – research presentation
“if a university chaplain organises an event but nobody turns up….was it a failure?’ This was the opening question of a session entitled ‘What’s it worth? Impact in HE chaplaincy’ and posed by Christopher Stephens and Sue Miller to university chaplains at their annual CHELG (Chaplains in Higher Education Liaison Group) conference. Questions, too, around […]
Menopause and theology research project
Summary: SWF researcher Dr Emma Pavey is researching menopause and theology from various angles, a topic that is current and yet also under-explored. This project is looking at different ways theological thinking can accompany those experiencing menopause, but also vice versa – how menopause can serve theology and the church through dialogue with those experiencing […]
On the Move: World Methodist Conference
In August, Sue Miller and Emma Pavey of the Susanna Wesley Foundation joined Head of Southlands College Christopher Stephens and around 2,000 others at the World Methodist Conference in Gothenburg, Sweden, a global gathering of Methodist-Wesleyan denominations that happens every 5 years. The theme was ‘On the Move’, divided into days around ‘pilgrimage’, ‘migration’ and […]
SWF Annual Conference – a day of Challenge and Hope
“You curated a powerful and stimulating day with emotional and cerebral provocations. I have much to digest and reflect on.” On 18th June we gathered for our annual conference entitled ‘Challenging Hope’ along with contributors and participants from across the globe and a wide range of disciplines, walks of life and backgrounds. “I appreciate the […]





