30 August 2024
The Wesley and Methodist Studies Centre was established in 2000 to maintain support for Methodist scholarship in Oxford following the merger of Oxford Brookes University with Westminster College and evolved into the OCMCH in 2007. It has been a vital repository for Methodist archives and artefacts ever since, with collections including paintings, newspapers and conference papers. These collections are the largest body of material on local Methodism in Britain, and the second largest research collection on Methodism in Britain.
The closure stems from Oxford Brookes University's decision to consolidate its operations onto a single campus. This strategic shift has led to the cessation of funding for the Centre, leading to its closure.
However, the closure does not spell the end for the valuable collections housed at the Centre. Plans are underway to ensure continued access to these resources.
"We are going to open a new reading room in the city shortly," explains Dr Thomas Dobson. This new facility, housed at Wesley Memorial Church, is located within a two-minute walk of Oxford's bus station and a short distance from the train station, providing a base for Methodist research in the heart of Oxford city centre.
The majority of the collections will be stored in a specialist archival storage unit in Oxfordshire for safekeeping and to protect them for future research. The material will be able to be accessed by special request. A percentage of the collection that is most frequently used will be permanently housed in the new reading room at Wesley Memorial Church, Oxford.
One of the most exciting developments in recent years has been the centre's push towards digitisation. Since 2018, the OCMCH has made a concerted effort to make its collections available online to increase their accessibility and to make it easier for researchers and enthusiasts to delve into our heritage. The centre's digital offerings include a nearly complete run of the Methodist Recorder, with editions up to 1919 available online. This resource has proven invaluable not only to researchers but also to the Methodist Recorder itself, which relies on the centre for historical content.
While the closure of the physical centre is undoubtedly a loss, the opening of the new reading room and the continued expansion of digital resources offer a silver lining. The future of Methodist scholarship in Oxford, while changed, remains bright.
With increased accessibility through the new reading room and growing digital resources, the legacy of the Oxford Centre for Methodism and Church History continues to evolve, ensuring that these valuable collections remain available for generations of researchers to come.