The perennial impact of the Salesian education vision – a perspective from the UK

Abstract

This article will focus on the perennial impact of the Salesian education vision in in Salesian schools in the UK. Following an introduction outlining the history of the Salesian presence in the UK, the Salesian education vision will be explored, focused on its classical characteristics, reason, religion and loving kindness. The decline in the number of professed religious in the UK will be signposted, analogous to the decline across Europe, and the concomitant commitment to a collaboration between the Salesian congregation and lay people in a post-Vatican II context. The nature of Salesian accompaniment will then be surveyed alongside research evidence spanning a decade which constitutes evidential support for the perennial impact of the Salesian education vision.