Theological Educators' Conference 2025: Children, Youth and Theological Education

16^th - 18^th July 2025

Durham University

Conference theme and speakers

The theme of the conference is ‘Children, Youth and Theological Education’

This three-day two-night conference is FREE to all Common Awards staff. 

Speakers will include:

• Melody Briggs, Sarah Strand and Hannah Wilkinson on approaches to the Bible in children’s and youth ministry;
• Maggi Dawn on creating worship for young adults;
• Carolyn Edwards, Meg Prowting and Sarah Holmes sharing perspectives on the current state of children and youth ministry in the UK;
• Mark Griffiths on enabling student research projects in children's and youth ministry; and
• Sara Taylor addressing how children’s and youth ministry is shaped by issues of race, class, and gender and the intersections between them.

Conference format

Having experimented with a hybrid conference previously, this year the conference will be held onsite only. The conference sessions themselves will not be recorded.

This conference is for staff. Please see the Events for Students page for any events which are currently open to Common Awards Students.

Conference Timetable 2025

The full conference timetable will be available shortly.

The conference is likely to start with registration from 12 noon on the 16th, and end with lunch at 1pm on the 18th.

How to register

We are aiming for the booking form to be available from 14th April, and it will close on 13th June.

The booking form may close early if we receive the maximum number of bookings; in this event we will open a reserve list. 

Before registering to attend the conference, please read our Privacy Notice (you will need to confirm that you have read this when completing the registration form).

Booking options

• There are several package options available when booking for on-site attendance. We anticipate that the majority of delegates will choose the ‘2-night package’ for full conference attendance, which includes accommodation on the Wednesday and Thursday nights, plus all meals and conference sessions;
• other options available include a ‘day delegate package’ for those who are local and may wish to attend during the days only;
• all of the rooms are single occupancy. If you require a double occupancy room for yourself and another conference guest, please contact us.
• Adapted rooms for those with access requirements are available (you can specify your requirements on the booking form);

Conference cost

• the conference is free for Common Awards staff (all core and associate staff who are or expect to be involved in teaching, assessing or administering Common Awards programmes in the designated Common Awards TEIs). Conference fees, room and board are covered; travel and any other expenses are delegates responsibility;
• for other attendees, including members of Theological Educator's Network (TEN) and the Continuing Ministry Development networks (CMD) who do not teach, assess or administer Common Awards programmes, there is a charge for board and lodging. You will be able to pay by credit or debit card when booking your place:

• • Full Conference 2 Night Package (£200.00): Includes meals, two nights' bed & breakfast accommodation, and registration fee
  • 1 Night Package (£117.00): Includes meals, one nights’ bed & breakfast accommodation, and registration fee
  • Day Delegate Full Conference Package (£95.00): Includes catering, and registration fee
  • Day Delegate One Day package (£51.00 for Wednesday or Thursday, £34.00 for Friday): includes catering, and registration fee

Conference FAQs

We have created some FAQs to hopefully answer some questions you may have about the conference and the venue. If you have any further questions, don't hesitate to contact us on common.awards@durham.ac.uk

• Where is the conference located?
• How do I get there?
• Is there parking available?
• Can I attend as a day guest?
• What support is available for those with disabilities?
• What time is check-in and check-out?
• What facilities will be available at the conference venue?
• What happens if I am no longer able to attend the conference?
• I am unable to make the conference, will the sessions be made available afterwards?

Where is the conference located?

The conference will be held at Durham University. Delegates will be accommodated within Grey College or  Collingwood College, and conference sessions will take place in the Mathematical Sciences & Computer Science Building, a 5-10 minute walk from the accommodation. 

We will try and keep delegates together for meal times and minimise the amount of walking between sessions. Transport can be made available for those with mobility difficulties; please contact the Common Awards team.

How do I get there?

All delegates will need to arrive at Collingwood College in the first instance for registration.

By Road

• Collingwood College is located to the south of Durham city centre, off South Road. The college can be accessed via the A167 or the A177.
• The postcode is DH1 3LT
• Durham is 264 miles from London, 187 miles from Birmingham, 125 miles from Edinburgh and 67 miles from York.

By Rail

• The nearest Railway Station is Durham.
• Durham Station is 1.5 miles from Collingwood College and has direct mainline links to London, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Liverpool and Birmingham.
• For more information on Durham station please click here (opens new tab).
• A taxi will take you from the station to Collingwood College in about 5 minutes.

By Bus

• There are several express coach services daily from most major cities. Durham is well served by both regional express services and the local bus network. From the city bus station - a short walk from the railway station - a bus service runs every 15 minutes past Collingwood College.
• There is a bus stop within 150 metres of the campus.
• The nearest bus stop is South Road Colleges on South Road. This bus stop is served by buses 6 Sapphire and S1.

For more information on Go North East buses please click here (opens new tab).

By Air

Durham is 30 minutes' drive from Newcastle International Airport and about 40 minutes from Teesside International Airport. Both have regular domestic and international flights. Durham is linked to Newcastle Airport by rail and metro

Is there parking available?

Both colleges have small car parks, but the University Events team have advised that spaces are available on a first come first served basis; no spaces can be reserved. We encourage you to travel by public transport if possible.

The colleges also have a few disabled parking bays at the front of the buildings for blue badge holders, but again these cannot be reserved.

What time is check-in and check-out?

Guests can check-in from 2pm on the day of arrival. Luggage storage will be available until then in the Bayley Room at Collingwood College, though this room will be unlocked and the College cannot be held responsible for any left items.

Bedrooms must be vacated by 10.00am on the day of departure. 

What facilities will be available at the conference venue?

What support is available for those with disabilities?

There are a number of accessible bedrooms available on the ground floor; please let us know your requirements on the booking form. Lifts are available in both Collingwood and the Maths building.

There will be a short (5 minute) walk between the accommodation building (where you will be having breakfast and dinner), and the Maths building, where you will be having lunch and where the conference sessions will be taking place. Please let us know on the registration form if you will be requiring assistance with this.

Please also let us know if you will require any disability support for the academic sessions.

Can I attend as a day guest? 

Yes, if you are local to the area you can attend as a day guest if you prefer. Please select this option on the booking form.

If I can't attend will the sessions be made available afterwards?

Sessions will not be recorded, but we plan to run a series of webinars over the following academic year covering similar material, and where possible with the same speakers. 

What happens if I am no longer able to attend the conference?

Please let us know by 14th June otherwise we may not be able to fill your place, which comes at a considerable cost to the University. We usually have a waiting list of delegates who would love to take your place, but need to provide them with enough notice.