Redcliffe College was a mission training centre and theological college based in

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...

, England, specialising in training men, women and families working in Christian mission and ministry anywhere in the world. In July 2020 it was announced that Redcliffe would be merging with

All Nations Christian College All Nations Christian College is an English missions college, located on the Easneye estate near Ware, Hertfordshire, and validated by the Open University. Aims Unlike some Bible colleges, the focus of All Nations Christian College is pri ...

, a similarly positioned mission training college based in Ware, Hertfordshire, north of London. Redcliffe was international and

interdenominational Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...

, and is a member of the

Evangelical Alliance The Evangelical Alliance (EA) is a UK organisation of evangelical individuals, organisations, and churches, which is itself a member of the World Evangelical Alliance. Founded in 1846, the Evangelical Alliance aims to promote evangelical Chr ...

and Global Connections. Redcliffe College had completed its merger with All Nations by September 2020.

History

Redcliffe College was founded on 5 April 1892 as the

YWCA The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swit ...

Testing and Training Home.Redcliffe College, ''Redcliffe College: 1892-1992'' (London: Redcliffe College, 1992), p.1. Originally based at 495 Kings Road, Chelsea, in 1896 497 Kings Road was purchased and a door was made between the two houses. Redcliffe was the first institution to provide missionary service training for women. In 1917 the College moved to 66 Redcliffe Gardens,

Kensington Kensington is an area of London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, around west of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up by Kensingt ...

. In 1931 the College moved again to 66 Grove Park Road,

Chiswick Chiswick ( ) is a district in West London, split between the London Borough of Hounslow, London Boroughs of Hounslow and London Borough of Ealing, Ealing. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist Wi ...

where it remained until 1995. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the

War Office The War Office has referred to several British government organisations throughout history, all relating to the army. It was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, at ...

took over the college for use by the

Women's Auxiliary Air Force The Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF), whose members were referred to as WAAFs (), was the female auxiliary of the British Royal Air Force during the World War II, Second World War. Established in 1939, WAAF numbers exceeded 181,000 at its peak ...

while the students moved to

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

Upper Norwood Upper Norwood is an area of south London, England, within the London Boroughs of London Borough of Bromley, Bromley, London Borough of Croydon, Croydon, London Borough of Lambeth, Lambeth and London Borough of Southwark, Southwark. It is north ...

, and Feering. They returned to Chiswick in 1944. In 1984, the college became co-educational, allowing men as well as women to enrol. In 1995 the College relocated to Wotton House in Gloucester, where it began delivering courses in collaboration with the

University of Gloucestershire The University of Gloucestershire is a public university based in Gloucestershire, England. It is located over five campuses, three in Cheltenham and two in Gloucester. The university is the successor of a large number of merged, name-changed ...

, offering undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes. In partnership with

Wycliffe Bible Translators Wycliffe Global Alliance is an alliance of organizations that have the objective of translating the Bible into every language. The organisation is named after John Wycliffe, who was responsible for the first complete English translation of the ...

and

SIL International SIL Global (formerly known as the Summer Institute of Linguistics International) is an evangelical Christian nonprofit organization whose main purpose is to study, develop and document languages, especially those that are lesser-known, to expan ...

, Redcliffe established the Centre for Linguistics, Translation and Literacy in 2013, providing specialist training for field workers in this area; this continued until July 2019. In 2015, the College embarked on a new era, discontinuing its undergraduate programme to focusing on providing

continuing professional development Professional development, also known as professional education, is learning that leads to or emphasizes education in a specific professional career field or builds practical job applicable skills emphasizing praxis in addition to the transferab ...

for Christian ministry, mission and development workers. Selling its Wotton House site in early 2016, Redcliffe moved to the grounds of

Gloucester Cathedral Gloucester Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of St Peter and the Holy and Indivisible Trinity and formerly St Peter's Abbey, in Gloucester, England, stands in the north of the city near the River Severn. It originated with the establishme ...

, where it delivers

blended learning Blended learning or hybrid learning, also known as technology-mediated instruction, web-enhanced instruction, or mixed-mode instruction, is an approach to education that combines online educational materials and opportunities for interaction onli ...

postgraduate programmes. Redcliffe also has hubs in Asia and Oceania where it delivers the MAs in Leadership and Member Care.

Approach

Redcliffe's ethos and course design is based on providing

(also described variously as continuing

vocation A vocation () is an Work (human activity), occupation to which a person is especially drawn or for which they are suited, trained or qualified. Though now often used in non-religious contexts, the meanings of the term originated in Christianity. ...

al development or continuing ministry development) to those in active

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

, ministry or third-sector

global development International development or global development is a broad concept denoting the idea that societies and countries have differing levels of economic or human development on an international scale. It is the basis for international classification ...

work. Redcliffe has a specific focus on cross-cultural training, noting that the majority of students are involved in work that requires significant cross-cultural skills, as they work with and across multicultural and cross-cultural boundaries. Core programmes are designed to be studied part-time and with blended delivery, in order to ensure that students remain effective on-the-job practitioners while they study, critically engaging with their practice and experience, as well as their theory.

Courses

Each course at Redcliffe comprises a range of modules including topics in biblical, theological, cross-cultural and missional studies. Current courses available include:

Postgraduate courses

*Postgraduate MA in Contemporary Missiology; can recognise a specialism in: **Bible and Mission **European Mission **Justice, Advocacy and Reconciliation **Scripture Engagement *Postgraduate MA in Leadership in a Complex World *Postgraduate MA in Member Care

Week-long courses

*Time to Lead

University accreditation

All of Redcliffe's courses (except short course options) are validated by the

, and the College is accredited by the

British Accreditation Council The British Accreditation Council (BAC), also known as The British Accreditation Council for Independent Further and Higher Education, is an educational accreditation agency recognised by the British Government for international students entering ...

. In-keeping with its focus on continuing professional development, modules are available to auditing students on a non-validated basis, and postgraduate degree programmes can be completed over a period of between two and four years.

Organisations based at Redcliffe College

*Centre for the Study of Bible and Mission *Global Leadership Initiative *Encounters Mission Ezine - a topical mission journal published online every three months *''Vista'' - a quarterly online research bulletin communicating research and innovation in mission in Europe

Notes

External links

Redcliffe College, Centre for Mission Training

Encounters Mission Ezine

Vista

Centre for the Study of Bible and Mission
{{authority control Former theological colleges in England Evangelical seminaries and theological colleges in the United Kingdom Educational institutions established in 1892 1892 establishments in England