In 1972 the Department of Catechetics (later becoming known as the Department of Christian Doctrine and Formation, and then the Department of Catholic Education and Formation) of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales started a project called "Living and Sharing Our Faith: A National Project of Chatechesis and Religious Education". [Catechesis is the education of children and adult converts in the Christian religion.]
The aim of the project was to study the issues of national religious education and more specifically the theology of education.
When it first started, the project studied the General Catechetical Directory (which had been published by the Vatican in 1972) and looked to create a National Catechetical Directory for England and Wales. The project then researched into religious education and Roman Catholic education, producing guidelines for these and research papers. From the mid- to late-1970s onwards, a large part of the work of the project invloved the publication of books, booklets and other resources that could be used for the teaching of religious education and Catholic education, for children and for adults.
By the first decade of the 21st Century, the project had the following partners:
- The Department of Catholic Education and Formation of the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales
- The National Board of Religious Inspectors and Advisers
- The Catholic Education Service (an agency of the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales)
- The Roman Catholic community
The project was still running in 2001, but appears to have disbanded by 2011.