Theological Education Support Grant

The Theological Education Support Grant helps those preparing for pastoral ministry by providing financial assistance towards their first level of theological education. It is available to full-time and part-time students, as well as ministers who have not previously undertaken formal theological training.

Grants of up to £8,000 per year are available for the duration of an approved course, for up to three years of full-time study or six years of part-time study. Funding is paid directly to the theological institution and is intended to support study that equips students for faithful pastoral ministry within the British Isles.

Applicants must hold Particular Baptist convictions and demonstrate a clear calling to ministry. Courses should provide a broad theological education, including biblical studies, systematic theology, church history, Baptist principles, pastoral studies, ethics, and apologetics, with appropriate supervision throughout.

Applications are supported by references and carefully considered by the Executive Committee. Students who receive a grant are encouraged to share, at the end of their studies, how the Fund has supported them in preparing for ministry.

This grant reflects the Fund's commitment to investing in the next generation of pastors by helping remove financial barriers to theological training and equipping men for faithful, long-term gospel ministry.

Please note the deadline for applications is 31 May before each academic year starting in September.

Conditions

1. The Fund will exceptionally give grants to full or part-time students undertaking a higher degree to qualify them to apply subsequently for a post at a theological college, where they intend to teach students from a Particular Baptist perspective.

2. Applicants must be Particular Baptists by conviction and in order to ensure they have sufficient practical, as well as academic, experience, they must have served as a pastor in a Particular Baptist church, normally in the British Isles, for at least six years before becoming eligible for the grant.

3. Under the terms on which it was established, the Fund can only make grants within Great Britain, Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. In line with its geographical remit, the Fund will therefore only pay grants to those planning to teach at a theological college in the British Isles on completion of their study and the higher degree must be undertaken at an institution in the British Isles. Anyone finding this a potential problem for their research should contact the Secretary.

4. No grant will be given unless the study undertaken is academically supervised.

5. The annual grant is £6,000 and will be awarded over the life of the study, up to a maximum of 3 years full-time or 6 years part-time. Grants for part-time study will be calculated pro rata.

6. Your application must be supported by two recommendations. These could be from your Area Minister, Association Secretary or another minister, provided they know you personally. If you are not currently a pastor, one recommendation should be from the pastor and/or elders of the church where you are a member and one from the minister of another church. You should only approach colleges for a reference, if you have studied there for at least a year. Recommendations should be sent direct to the PBF Secretary.

7. The grant is completely at the Fund’s discretion. In view of the calls on the Fund’s resources, only one grant of this kind is likely to be in payment at any one time. No explanation will be provided as to why an application has been turned down.

8.  Recipients of grants are asked to provide the Fund with a report at the end of their studies. The Secretary may ask if he can place it on the Fund’s website to encourage others to apply but will never do so without first seeking the student’s consent.