Project Team  

Principal Investigator, Dr Marcus Pound, is an Associate Professor of Catholic Theology at Durham University. He has previously worked on the relationship between Catholic theology and psychoanalysis, and has worked extensively on church life in an ecumenical context. 

Co-Investigator, Professor Paul D. Murray, is Co-Director of the Centre for Catholic Studies, Durham University and Professor of Systematic Theology. His current work is a critical and constructive engagement with the Catholic Church, its theology, and the dynamics of its practice. 

Post-Doctoral Research Associate Dr Catherine Sexton has a professional background in international development, working both in senior management roles and as a freelance consultant to the sector. She completed her PhD on theologies of ministry among elderly women religious sisters in 2018 (Margaret Beaufort Institute of Theology, Cambridge/Anglia Ruskin). She is an Honorary Fellow of the CCS. 

Post-Doctoral Research Associate (2021-23) Dr Pat Jones completed a PhD in 2019 working in the area of Catholic social teaching. She previously held senior management roles in CAFOD and Depaul International. Her initial post-doctoral work focused on listening to the voices of women whose lives are affected by prostitution. She is an Honorary Fellow of the CCS. 

Former Post-Doctoral Research Associate Dr Giuseppe Bolotta was a member of the team from October 2019 until December 2020. He is a socio-cultural anthropologist and psychologist. Dr Bolotta is now an Associate Professor at the University of Venice. 

Research Assistant Mr Adrian Brooks is in the final stages of completing a PhD at Durham University. His research is on contemporary Catholic ecclesiology, with a focus on the relationship between doctrine and ecclesial structures. He now works in a Catholic school. 

Project Co-ordinator: Ms Yvonne Williams has previously worked on research projects in the Catholic context and will be providing administrative oversight for the project. 

Further assistance in 2023-2024 was provided by Dr Gregory A. Ryan, Assistant Professor at the Centre for Catholic Studies, Durham University, and Academic Director of the Northern Diaconal Formation Partnership. His research interests include the development of doctrine, contemporary Catholic ecclesiology, and receptive ecumenism.

The research team were assisted by a steering group which met regularly.

Project Steering Group

Julie Clague lectures in Catholic theology at the University of Glasgow.

Brendan Geary is a Marist Brother and Clinical Psychologist, and is a member of the Care and Protection Commission of the two Unions of Superiors General (UISG and USG), which are based in Rome.

Mathew Guest is Professor in the Sociology of Religion and Head of the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham University.

Frances Healy is a retired teacher and psychotherapist. She is a member of Safe Spaces and the Survivors Training Trust (STT). A victim-Survivor of clerical abuse. 

Matthew Hemson is a therapist and an associate lecturer in mental health at the University of West England.

Michael Holman SJ is a member of the Society of Jesus and superior of the Jesuit community in London.

Dom Christopher Jamison is Abbot President of the English Benedictine Congregation.

William Kent is a grant manager for global philanthropic organisation Porticus, where he advises in the area of child protection within the Catholic Church. Previously, he worked for the Catholic Bishops Conference of England & Wales in a range of areas, including the response to IICSA.

Karen Kilby is the Bede Professor in the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham University, and provides CCS oversight of the project.

Jim McManus is a Chartered Psychologist, Vice President of the UK Association of Directors of Public Health, Director of Public Health for Hertfordshire and a Doctoral Theology Student at the University of Roehampton.

Barry O’Sullivan has been a diocesan priest for 34 years and is an Independent Safeguarding Consultant.

Catherine Pepinster is a journalist, author and broadcaster who was editor of The Tablet, the Catholic weekly, for 13 years.