Ridley Hall excels in Christian leadership training, fostering a community deeply rooted in divine love. We welcome students from all backgrounds for a transformative educational experience, emphasising dual training for lay and ordained Christian leaders. This approach prepares our graduates to lead and serve effectively, embodying Christ-like virtues and actively spreading the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
At Ridley Hall, we blend traditional and innovative teaching methods within a collaborative community, fostering both academic and spiritual growth. Our approach equips students with deep theological knowledge and practical skills, preparing them to lead effectively in diverse contexts. This supportive, inclusive environment ensures a transformative educational journey, enabling students to make a significant impact in their communities and beyond.
The Ridley Hall community fosters a nurturing environment where faith, wisdom, and leadership flourish. United by a shared purpose, students and faculty from diverse backgrounds support each other's growth, forming lifelong bonds and preparing for impactful Christian leadership through shared studies, worship, and service.
At Ridley Hall, wisdom is central, pursued through rigorous theological study, reflective prayer, and community engagement. This holistic approach deepens understanding and insight, equipping students to navigate complex moral landscapes and lead with integrity, embodying Christ-like qualities in all aspects of life and ministry.
Faith at Ridley Hall is foundational, shaping every aspect of our community and curriculum. It drives our commitment to deep theological study, personal spiritual growth, and practical ministry training. This strong faith foundation prepares students to live out and share the Gospel confidently and compassionately in diverse settings.
Ridley Hall is deeply committed to being a Christ-centred community, passionately guided by the Holy Spirit, where individuals are nurtured to grow in wisdom and prepare actively to proclaim Jesus Christ. Our mission is to provide rigorous training for both lay and ordained leaders from a diverse array of Christian backgrounds, thereby enhancing the renewal of the Church and contributing to societal well-being. We aspire for reconciliation through faith, aiming to restore communities and redeem neglected neighbourhoods through the transformative power of the gospel, which champions justice, freedom, and new life across the globe.
Our educational approach integrates heartfelt worship and rigorous theological study in a supportive environment, empowering students to share Jesus' transformative love confidently with individuals, neighbourhoods, and communities. Looking forward, Ridley Hall is dedicated to evolving and growing under the Holy Spirit’s guidance. We aim to invest in our beautiful campus to provide a nurturing home for our expanding community of students, ensuring Ridley Hall's resilience in facing future challenges.
We cherish our open evangelical heritage and our longstanding commitment to excellence in teaching and learning alongside our vibrant relationships within both the Cambridge Theological Federation and the University of Cambridge’s Divinity Faculty. We value our daily communal practices of prayer, worship, shared meals, and joyful fellowship. Positioned in the heart of a historic university city, we are committed to serving God's mission in the world by forming people for a lifetime of loving service, empowered by the Spirit.
Named after the sixteenth-century martyr and Bishop of London Nicholas Ridley, Ridley Hall opened its doors in 1881 to train people eager to devote their lives to ordained ministry.
Under the leadership of the College’s first Principal, Handley Moule, the student body grew from an initial eight students to forty by the early 1900s. Ridley had become a thriving hub for ministry at home and around the world.
Early years
Many of the College’s early alumni exercised their calling in Anglican parishes throughout Britain. But remembrance plaques in Ridley's chapel commemorate the willingness of others to follow Jesus wherever he led, even to the ends of the earth. Ridley’s alumni played a considerable role in helping to build the Anglican Communion, and have significantly influenced the Church and its mission ever since.
Ridley today
Over the last century and a quarter Ridley has grown and changed, and we now prepare a diverse group of women and men of all ages to serve Christ in the Church through both lay and ordained ministry. We also offer a space for private study, spiritual renewal and refreshment to those taking a break from their careers or established ministries.
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