The UK is one of the last western democracies with a state religion: the Church of England.
The Church's entanglement with the state is bad for both.
Join our campaign to disestablish the Church.
CAMPAIGN ALERT: Support the disestablishment bill
In November 2023, a private member's bill to disestablish the Church of England was selected in the ballot.
Please write to your MP and urge them to support this bill, to make the UK are more equitable and democratic country for people of all religions and beliefs.
Since our founding in 1866, one of our primary objectives has been disestablishment of the Church of England: its formal separation from the state.
More than 150 years later, census figures show most people in England and Wales are not Christian. Surveys consistently reveal a similar picture in Scotland. The case for disestablishment has never been stronger.
Disestablishment means the Church would no longer have privileged input into government - but also that government could not involve itself in the running of the Church. Both sides would gain autonomy. This is why support for Church-state separation can be found within the CofE itself.
There have been many proponents, religious and non-religious, for church-state separation, and there are a wide variety of motivations for supporting this reform.
The existence of a legally-enshrined national religion privileges one part of the population, one institution and one set of beliefs. Removing all symbolic and institutional ties between government and religion is the only way to ensure equal treatment to citizens of all religions and none.
The Church of England has enjoyed significant privileges relating its established status for many centuries. These privileges have remained largely unchanged despite the massive and continuing reduction in support for the Church in the UK. It is highly likely that this trend will continue for the foreseeable future, making the Church of England's continuation as the established church unsustainable.
- Christians are a minority in Britain. In Wales and Scotland the majority have no religion.
- Just 1% of 18-24 year olds say they belong to the Church of England.
- Less than 1% of the population regularly attend Church of England church services.
The Church of England is also out of step with the UK public on several key issues: it remains opposed to same-sex relationships and allows parishes to reject women as bishops and priests. These discriminatory positions cannot be reconciled with the Church's status as part of the UK state.
And no institution with the shameful historical record of the Church of England safeguarding and abuse should retain its privileged role in the British establishment.
The existence of a legally enshrined national religion privileges one part of the population, one institution and one set of beliefs. Removing all symbolic and institutional ties between government and religion is the only way to ensure equal treatment of citizens of all religions and none.
Take action!
1. Write to your MP
Ask your MP to support the separation of church and state
2. Share your story
Tell us why you support this campaign, and how you are personally affected by the issue. You can also let us know if you would like assistance with a particular issue.
3. Join the National Secular Society
Become a member of the National Secular Society today! Together, we can separate religion and state for greater freedom and fairness.
Latest updates
Britain’s non-religious population growing rapidly, figures show
Posted: Fri, 12 Apr 2019 13:47
The number of people who say they are non-religious in Great Britain has risen by 46% in seven years, according to data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS).
The ONS found that the number of people who said they were non-religious in the Annual Population Survey rose from 17.1m in 2011 to 25m in 2018.
In the same period the number of people saying they were Christians fell from 37.9m to 32.2m – a drop of 15%.
The number of Muslims has risen by 22%, from 2.8m to 3.4m, while the number of Hindus has risen 13%, from 846,500 to 952,600. The number of Jewish people has risen 17%, from 265,900 to 310,600.
The number of Sikhs dropped slightly to 371,600, while the number of Buddhists has fallen by 17%, from 224,700 to 187,200.
There was a rapid (43%) rise in the number of people describing themselves as belonging to religions not named on the survey, from 685,100 to 980,100.
The total number of people estimated to be living in Britain rose from 60.2m to 63.5m, a rise of five per cent.
Although the ONS's figures still suggested there were more Christians than non-religious people in Britain, other surveys have suggested more than half of people in the UK describe themselves as non-religious.
In 2017 the British Social Attitudes (BSA) survey from NatCen found that the proportion of people across the UK who call themselves non-religious had risen above 50%. The 2018 BSA survey also found that 52% of people had no religion.
The difference may be accounted for by the way the two surveys ask the question about religion. The Annual Population Survey asks people what their religion is and provides them with a list of possible answers.
The BSA survey asks around 3,000 people: 'Do you regard yourself as belonging to any particular religion?' If respondents say yes, they are asked which one, without being given a list of religions.
National Secular Society spokesperson Chris Sloggett said: "Britain's rapidly changing religious demography should be a reminder of the need to separate religion from public policy-making.
"A fast-growing number of people in Britain consider themselves non-religious or say they belong to non-Christian religions. In these circumstances it's untenable to have a state church with representatives entitled to sit in the legislature.
"The government should take note and reconsider the opportunities which religious groups are given to impose their views in our public life. The UK should move towards the disestablishment of the Church of England, scrap the bishops' bench in the House of Lords and roll back religious groups' role in state education."
Bishop helps scupper amendment to let CoE allow same-sex marriage
Posted: Thu, 7 Feb 2019 16:19
An amendment to a bill that would make it easier for the Church of England to allow same-sex marriage has been withdrawn following opposition from a bishop.
The amendment to the Civil Partnerships, Marriages and Deaths (Registration Etc.) Bill would have allowed the C of E to accept same-sex marriages without consulting parliament.
It would also have removed a legal exemption which prevents Church of England and Church in Wales clergy from solemnising same-sex marriages without a change in the law.
Richard Faulkner moved the amendment at a House of Lords committee debate on the bill last Friday. He said he hoped it would be seen as "an attempt to build on the success of the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013".
But he withdrew it after Stephen Cottrell, the bishop of Chelmsford, and others voiced opposition on the basis of the potential impact on the Church of England.
Cottrell expressed "regret" that the amendment was tabled, saying it introduced "a discordant note" into the Lords' consideration into an "otherwise uncontentious" bill, and called for its withdrawal.
He said the amendment "would only make matters more difficult for the church" because it would put marriage legislation "at odds with ecclesiastical law".
The bishop said the C of E "seeks to welcome all people, including LGBTI+ people", but added that "there are questions about how this welcome can be expressed".
National Secular Society honorary associate Michael Cashman added his name to the amendment. During the debate he said it would not "compel the Church of England to do anything" and would instead "remove the legislative barrier from the Church progressing" down the root to permitting same sex marriage.
He said that the amendment "rightly places this decision in the hands of the religious institution rather than parliament." He noted that "other religions are not so prohibited and are allowed to make their decisions".
He said he had witnessed how religious belief is used to "deny people basic equality" and said the wanted to "come to a time when that history is far, far behind us."
He added: "The right reverend prelate says that he regrets that we are bringing this amendment forward; I also regret that we have to bring forward an amendment that addresses such basic inequalities in the second decade of the 21st century."
The amendment was also supported by Elizabeth Barker, who said that the deference to the wishes of the church in the drafting of marriage legislation meant civil ceremonies cannot have any religious content at all. She said that this "protection for the church" resulted in "quite extensive and deeply hurtful ramifications."
Peers including Ray Collins and Paul Scriven also backed the amendment.
Faulkner withdrew the amendment but reserved the right to bring it back at the report stage.
NSS campaigns officer Megan Manson said it was "very disappointing" that the amendment was withdrawn.
She said: "The bishop of Chelmsford says the Church of England seeks to welcome LGBT+ people, but his opposition to this amendment suggests otherwise.
"The lords who tabled this amendment made clear that this is about giving the church greater freedom to make its own decisions, independent from parliament.
"But the bishop's influential opposition hints that some in the church are using parliament as a shield to help them in their internal disputes over same-sex marriage.
"The debate surrounding this amendment also demonstrates the wide-ranging implications of having an established church, with its rules and practices so intimately linked with the state and its bishops given automatic representation in the House of Lords. It means the church faces barriers to progression and change like no other religious organisation in this country.
"It also means the church's involvement in legislation has ramifications that reach far beyond its own congregation. Laws designed to accommodate the wishes of the church affect us all. This is why we still see inequities in marriage."
The NSS campaigns for the disestablishment of the Church of England and marriage reform for greater equality and fairness. Last year the NSS revealed that it is significantly harder for those seeking same-sex or non-religious weddings to get married than those seeking religious ceremonies in England and Wales.
Another amendment moved by Robert Hayward, Collins and Cashman to legalise same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland was also withdrawn.
Cashman said this amendment struck "an appropriate balance" between the legislative role of the Northern Ireland Assembly and "the responsibility of legislators at Westminster to ensure that equality is implemented".
But government peer Susan Williams said the government had "made it very clear that same-sex marriage is a devolved issue". She said the Northern Ireland Assembly was "the proper place for such legislation to be considered".
Image: Stephen Cottrell, via Wikimedia Commons, © Bashereyre [CC BY-SA 3.0]
