Director of Ministry Formation, Research and Scholarship

We are seeking a Director of Ministry Formation, Research and Scholarship to provide strategic leadership for ministerial formation and to champion theological research and academic engagement across the Church.

The role sits within the Ministries and Learning Team of the Connexional Team, which exists to equip the Methodist Church by training, developing and supporting those called by God to serve in lay and ordained ministry. The Director will play a key role in shaping approaches to ministerial formation that are theologically robust, contextually responsive and aligned with the Church’s calling to be inclusive, justice-seeking, evangelistic and growing.

Within the team, the Director will be responsible for:

• Working with colleagues across the Ministries and Learning Team, Conference Office and partner organisations to provide strategic leadership for ordained ministerial formation pathways.
• Working with The Queen’s Foundation to share in overseeing the integration of academic study, practice-based learning and spiritual formation.
• Leading, in collaboration with others, the development of innovative and contextually responsive approaches to ministerial formation.
• Championing research and scholarship that strengthens the Church’s intellectual life, theological reflection and public witness.
• Building and sustaining strong relationships with theological institutions, training providers and academic networks.
• Providing leadership and support to teams responsible for formation, research and scholarship.
• Contributing to the wider leadership and strategic direction of the Ministries and Learning Team.

You will bring significant experience in theological education, ministerial formation or a related field, alongside the ability to lead strategically, collaborate effectively and inspire confidence across a wide range of contexts. You will be an engaged theological thinker, able to connect scholarship with the lived practice of ministry in a changing Church and society.