oxford – Westminster Oxford Research Network

“A reading people should always be a knowing people”

On Monday, 6 October, the new Gibbs Library at Wesley Memorial Church, Oxford was officially opened by the High Sheriff of Oxfordshire, John May. At the event, Mr May expressed his joy to see the new space, particularly as an alumnus of Westminster College. He later noted that it was

“a real joy to see how the [Westminster College Oxford] Trust continues the College’s mission of learning, faith and service” and that the new Library “will be a place where curiosity and compassion meet – and where the great Methodist tradition of education continues to inspire future generations”.

This new Library fulfilled a seventy-year aspiration for the Westminster College Oxford Trust, which is funding this space, and first relocated to the outskirts of the city in 1959. The Gibbs Library houses the College’s archive, alongside a reference collection of Church publications, the papers of eminent church figures, such as Donald English and Colin Morris, and the collections of the Wesley Historical Society (WHS). It is the fourth home of the WHS Library, which has previously been housed at Wesley’s Chapel, London; Southlands College (at Wimbledon); and Westminster College/Oxford Brookes University at the Harcourt Hill campus on the outskirts of the city. Representatives of each of these institutions attended the opening, along with College trustees, colleagues from other Higher Education Institutions, and representatives of Methodist Heritage.

During the event, Sir Ralph Waller (Chair of Trustees) commented on the excellence of aligning the modern Methodist activities of Wesley Memorial Church and research staff alongside those of our heritage collection, whilst Professor David Matthews (College Trustee and Project Lead) remarked on the importance of libraries to the preservation of a collective record. Dr Clive Norris (WHS Librarian) highlighted the role of the Society’s Library as the enduring legacy of the late Dr John Lenton who served as Society Librarian from 2002 until 2022.

Speeches concluded with a presentation from Dr Thomas Dobson (Assistant WHS Librarian) who highlighted the treasures of the collections, and their role in enabling individuals and groups of all walks of life to engage with their stories as part of a living faith – something which is also currently displayed in the Wesley Memorial heritage exhibition.

Our “First” Annual Report

The first year of the Network, and four fellowships funded by the Westminster College Oxford Trust (WCOT) has been productive, demonstrating both the need for the project and its possibilities for development. The four fellows – Professor Bev Clack, Revd Dr Martin Wellings, Dr Tom Dobson and Dr Daniel Reed – have worked together well, with Drs Dobson and Reed taking on much of the administrative work, including the co-ordination of the new research space at Wesley Memorial (which houses a selection of material from the Wesley Historical Society [WHS] and other historic collections), and also maintaining the legacy of the Oxford Centre for Methodism and Church History (OCMCH). Professor Clack and the Revd. Dr Wellings, have been in discussion with the Connexion as to the development of the fellowships in line with Church objectives – all four fellows have also pursued their own research.

The delay in the opening of the Gibbs Room has been frustrating; but the ‘happy accident’ of the fellowships not having an institutional home at Harris Manchester College, but in the Farmington Institute, has enabled creative thinking about the relationship between academia and the church. This was made plain in the use of the John Wesley Room at Wesley Memorial Church for our first independent event on Methodist Ways of Life. The new research space at Wesley Memorial Church also makes concrete the embedded nature of the fellowships in church life, and further facilitates the exploration of new ways of thinking around the relationship between academic theology and the church.

Finally, as the Network completes its first year of activities, we would like to thank Dr Daniel Reed for all of his work and support this year as one of our foundational Research Fellows. With his one-year fellowship, Dr Reed has co-ordinated the marketing effort for the Methodist Studies Seminar, continued to develop our digital presence (now with added material provided by The Methodist Church); and furthered his own research activities, all whilst studying for a postgraduate diploma in at Aberystwyth University.

The first year of the project has put down foundations and we are now in a position to look to the future with confidence: a confidence we hope that the Trust will share. This following report details some of the activities of the Network, both as individual fellows and collectively.

To read the full report, click the link below.

Westminster Oxford Research Network Annual Report (2024/25)Download