Trust offers funding for research on Catholic social action

The Charles Plater Trust is inviting bids for grants from research and educational organisations in England and Wales for projects which explore the specific Catholic character of the church’s activities in the field of social action and justice.

This year’s theme for grant aid is 'The intellectual endeavour of reviewing and contributing to Catholic Social Thought (CST) in Britain by identifying and analysing (through research, scholarship and/or policy formation) the specifically Catholic character of the mission of Catholic charities today and their links to CST'.

Grants (typically between £30,000 & £50,000) are offered for projects that actively engage with this theme. Funding will be for a maximum period of twelve months.

In addition, the Trust will also welcome proposals from academic institutions for funding for one PhD scholarship which focuses on the above theme (using past grant awarded projects as exemplars). Funding will be awarded for each of three years full time study.

The deadline for receipt of applications is Thursday October 23rd.

The Trust will judge bids on how they will empower those who have suffered disadvantages which have limited their ability to get the best out of the education system, build their own self-esteem and make a meaningful contribution to contemporary society.

Past examples of projects funded under the Plater Trust’s research strand include:

Creation of the “Virtual Plater” on-line college (www.virtualplater.org.uk) on Catholic Social Teaching (a project by a consortium of five higher education institutions: Newman University, Leeds Trinity, Liverpool Hope University, St Mary’s University, and Heythrop College)

Asylum, CST and the “Big Society” (a joint project by the Margaret Beaufort Institute of Theology in Cambridge in partnership with Citizens UK)

The Church’s approach to criminal justice (the Catholic Social Action Network, CSAN)

Further information can be found on the Plater Trust website at: www.plater.org.uk

The Charles Plater Trust is a charitable organisation dedicated to advancing the work of Father Charles Plater by developing social justice through education. Established as the successor to the former Plater College, Oxford, the Trust makes grants to organisations throughout England and Wales in pursuit of the Plater vision. Each year a theme is used to highlight a particular side of this vision, whether emphasising the development of lay leadership, bringing education and opportunity to the most marginalised, or developing innovative new applications of Catholic social thought.