Fellowships

Through Fellowship our aim is to identify exceptional philosophical educators and P4C practitioners. Fellowship will support and connect these people, helping them to develop, share knowledge and enrich our community of practice and education more widely. We want to showcase best practice and offer Fellows a platform to share their expertise with peers and the wider public.

Our Fellowship Awards recognise excellence in individuals who embed P4C in their work, whether affiliated with an institution or not.

• free membership of the Fellowship Network (mailing list, private WhatsApp group and termly online network meetings)
• the first year of your Fellowship includes membership of Thoughtful
• opportunities to participate in funded projects and university-led research on philosophical enquiry
• invitations to development days, P4C showcases and fundraisers
• complementary places on courses that are still in development and opportunities to test out new resourcest
• the chance to showcase your practice to journalists, MPs and stakeholders
• a platform to speak at our annual conference in a dedicated slot for Fellows
• support to publish your original resources on our co-op resource library
• a Fellowship profile on our website for those who want it
• the use of a Thoughtful Fellow digital logo for email signatures and/or personal websites
• 50% off full-price conference tickets

Only people who regularly practise philosophical enquiry with children or adults are eligible to become Fellows. While we welcome the support and allyship of academics, trainers, advocates and other experts in P4C, Fellowship is only for regular practitioners (e.g. those who facilitate in P4C weekly or at most, monthly).

Fellows may be Teachers, Teaching Assistants, Nursery Workers, Home Educators, Tutors, Lecturers, Trainers, Researchers, Consultants, Students, Therapists, Youth Workers, Community Workers, Artists, Activists or other educators or practitioners who use philosophical enquiry in their work.

They may be practising P4C alone, within a supportive organisation not affiliated with Thoughtful, or within an award school or partner university.

All applicants must:

• actively and regularly practise P4C with children, young people and/or adults
• be committed to Thoughtful’s mission and values
• have undertaken a new Thoughtful Level One course for a Bronze Application, a Level Two course for a Silver Application and a Level Three course for a Gold Application OR they must hold a pre-2024 SAPERE Level 1, 2A, 2B, or 3 Certificate
• where available, they should have successfully completed the associated assessment, obtaining the ‘Certificate of Achievement’ at the relevant level, OR they must hold a ‘Certificate of Equivalence’, OR they must provide evidence of passing the pre-2024 SAPERE L2A and L2B, or L3 assessments

Although the following are not essential, applicants may also:

• have modelled their practice to others
• have written or spoken about their work in a public or professional forum
• have produced high-quality P4C resources

Fellowship may be upgraded at any time, for example a Bronze Fellow can become a Silver Fellow as soon as they are eligible, and their application is accepted.

Fellowship status must be renewed every three years. A light touch re-enrolment is designed to check that applicants are still active in P4C and that their contact details are up to date.

• Fellows must uphold the charity’s mission and values.
• Fellows must agree to participate in the Fellowship Network to the extent that they are able, for example by raising and responding to questions online, attending virtual or in-person meetings or presenting or publishing their work on the P4C Co-Operative site at P4C.com.
• Fellows must agree to receive occasional communications from Thoughtful inviting them to consider projects, research, media, advocacy and fundraising opportunities.
• Fellows should be willing to advocate for P4C in their work and to amplify Thoughtful’s messages on social media and via their networks.
• Where practical, Fellows should be open to hosting visitors such as journalists, MPs, and Funders and other stakeholders who are keen to see P4C in action.
• Fellows may describe themselves as Bronze, Silver, or Gold Thoughtful Fellows, but must make it clear that they are not employed or contracted by Thoughtful, they are not able to deliver accredited training courses, and they do not speak for the charity.
• Fellows must not do or say anything to bring the organisation into disrepute.

• Thoughtful must uphold the charity’s mission and values.
• Thoughtful will offer Fellows network meetings each year to connect with other Fellows and develop practice.
• Thoughtful will consider and prioritise at least one Fellowship slot at each annual conference along with support for applicants wishing to present their work.
• Thoughtful will ensure Fellows are informed about relevant P4C projects, research and dissemination opportunities and invited to relevant events.
• Thoughtful will provide advice for Fellows who wish to submit their resources to P4C.com and will pay a licence fee to successful contributors.
• Thoughtful will reimburse Fellows for any agreed costs incurred in their advocacy work. (N.B. agreement must be sought beforehand.)
• Thoughtful will feature Fellows on our website where desired by the Fellow.

• Fellowship incurs an admin fee of £50 to cover the cost of reviewing your application.
• Fellowship lasts for three years, after which it must be renewed for a further £25.
• Any applicant who wishes to upgrade their Fellowship (e.g. from Bronze to Silver) may do so without charge, but they must still renew three years from the date of their original award.
• All Fellows are entitled to discounted conference entry, allowing them to purchase a ticket at any time for £50 rather than early-bird £70 tickets or full price tickets of £100.

We encourage all Fellows to become members and to play an active role in governing our charity. The first year of your Fellowship includes free membership of Thoughtful. Optional individual membership is £30 per annum thereafter,

Applicants should use the following link: https://forms.office.com/e/r0UbSFkMVj

They will be asked to sign up to the aims and responsibilities outlined in this charter.

They will be asked to share:

• Their name, their personal and professional contact details.
• Confirmation that they support the mission of Thoughtful and agree to aims and responsibilities of Fellowship outlined in this Fellowship Charter.
• Confirmation of the level of Fellowship they wish to apply for (Bronze, Silver, or Gold).
• A statement about why they want to become a Fellow (200 words max).
• A biography and summary of their CV (200 words max).
• Confirmation that they meet the eligibility requirements in terms of prior training.
• Further information (600 words max) about their ongoing P4C practice, including: the children / communities they work with, the regularity of their practice, the length of time they have been practicing, a recent example of an enquiry they have led, any evidence of sharing their work or advocating for P4C and any evidence of devising their own materials.

All applications will be reviewed quarterly by a Thoughtful member of staff and the Director of Philosophy and Education. A decision and some brief feedback will be provided in writing via email.

In the event that Fellowship is denied reasons will be provided. If the applicant is dissatisfied, they may lodge an appeal and have their application reviewed by a Trustee.

Thoughtful reserves the right to remove the status of Fellowship at any time, from any person whose conduct risks the reputation of the charity. The rare decision to remove Fellowship will involve consultation with the Trustees, and all decisions will be final.