Research
CYM's Research Centre
The CYM Research Centre launched in March 2024, with the aim of drawing together people who are interested and active in research amongst children, family and youth ministries. We are keen to ensure that the work we do strengthens the church, specifically these ministry areas, so that ministry practice is research informed. We do this through:
- Carrying out our own research projects (see below), which usually involve collaboration with other organisations, denominations and funders.
- Running commissioned research projects, audits, reviews and evaluations for ministry organisations, local churches and denominations.
- Our CYM Research Network, which gathers and inspires anyone interested in research into children, youth and family ministry.
- Dr Sarah Holmes is available to speak at conferences, training events or workshops on a range of topics, including these Taking the Pulse findings.
If you have any queries, please email Dr Sarah Holmes, sarah.holmes@cym.ac.uk, our Director of Research.
Current Research Projects
We are currently engaged in the following research projects and collaborations:
- Taking the Pulse of Ministry Across the UK: A large scale collaborative project aimed at 'Taking the Pulse' of ministry across the UK with adults, youth and children. Phase 1 of this project was completed in Spring 2024, surveying over 2000 church volunteers, ministers, workers and parents; and young people. The research report from phase 1 was published 1st October 2024. This project is funded entirely by CYM and we now carry out short polls a few times per year amongst our Ministry Pulse community. Find out more here.
- Research-informed Ministry Training: This collaborative project with Trinity College and Cliff College, funded by Durham University Common Awards Seedcorn grant is exploring whether theoretical and theological models of children’s and young people’s faith formation in ministry training are fit for the contemporary context. We are in the process of writing the academic papers, research report and recommendations and hope that these will be published in early January 2026.
- Grandparenting For Faith: In collaboration with Parenting for Faith, we developed and are researching the impact of courses for Christian grandparents and churches to enhance support and equipping for grandparenting for faith. We launched the resources in May 2025, and are currently researching how this is used. Contributions to funding from the Benefact Trust and the Bishop Radford Trust.
- Chaplaincy in Further Education: A collaborative project with St Peter's Saltley Trust designed to improve understanding the field of Chaplaincy in Further Education and to support the development of good practice in the West Midlands region. An interim report on the research was published online in July 2025 and we are now working on production of a resource, ready for launch in summer 2026.
- Researching Racial Diversity in Youth and Children’s Ministry: We’re exploring how to enhance racial diversity amongst leadership of youth and children’s ministry. Do you have a story to tell? Any insights or experiences you’d like to share? Please tell us here. Funded in partnership with Westhill Endowment Trust and Liverpool Hope University. We hope that some resources and tools will be ready to use from mid-January 2026.
- Exploring the Ethics of Religious Conversations in Primary Schools: Funded by Culham St Gabriel’s Trust, this three-year project commenced in January 2025 to explore the context and create resources to improve clarity about the ethics of religious conversations in primary schools. We have now carried out our initial data collection in schools and are analysing the results, to inform the next stage of pulling together some tools to use in primary schools. If you are interested in RE and willing to be part of an advisory group for this, please email Sarah Holmes, as we will be meeting online in January 2026 and would really appreciate experienced people to join us.
- Investing Together: This project is in collaboration with Youthscape, Churches Together in England and the Free Churches Network. We are seeking to build upon existing research and form a coalition of ministry specialists and organizations to form a research-informed charter for the UK church. Look out for developments in January 2026. We would love you to be involved, as we seek to work as a wider group to equip the UK church to invest more fully in ministry amongst children and young people!