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
NSS: Christians have nothing to fear from secularism
Posted: Wed, 17 Jun 2015 14:01
More practising Christians in the UK identified secularism as a "social and political issue" than poverty, in a new poll by ComRes.
When asked what the main "social" "political" and other issues facing "Britain today" were, social justice emerged as the main concern, with 27% naming "inequality" and the "gap between the rich and poor"; followed by 18% who expressed concern about secularism.
This 18% also included those concerned with "spiritual/religious decline" and the "erosion of Christian values."
Notably, Christians polled were more concerned about secularism as a 'social issue' than poverty (12%), which ComRes listed separately from "social justice".
14% put immigration at the top of their list of concerns. 3% said the "threat of Islam/Islamisation" was the main issue facing the UK.
But the President of the National Secular Society said Christians and religious believers have "nothing to fear", and "a lot to gain" from a secular state- even if it means the loss of traditional privileges for the established church.
Terry Sanderson, NSS president commented, "There is obviously a confusion among some Christians about terminology. The creators of this survey and many of its respondents seem to be confusing secularisation with secularism. Secularisation – the process whereby attachment to religion drops in a society - is not the same as 'secularism'- the constitutional framework of a secular state. This poses no threat to religion; in fact it protects all religions and none from the imposition of any single religion's doctrines on society at large.
"Religion can and does thrive in secular states, as in the United States. While religiosity in the US is now starting to fall, it can hardly be claimed that religion is side-lined or that religious people are 'pushed out' of public life in America.
"As the makeup of religion in the UK continues to change increasingly drastically, Christians will, in fact, find secularism ultimately protects them- as much as it protects atheists, non-believers and members of minority faiths."
Mr Sanderson added: "We certainly hope that it is not the case that 18% of UK Christians 'fear' secularism. The Secular Charter of the NSS states explicitly that the rights of religious people to believe and worship must be protected by law, as I have argued many times before.
"I suspect also that many respondents would consider 'poverty' to be a 'social justice' issue."
Asked by ComRes, in research paid for by Tearfund, to identify the "main issues" facing "the world over the next 10 years" practising Christians in the UK identified climate change and environmental issues most often, with 28% selecting environmental concerns.
The National Secular Society recently criticised the Pope's encyclical on climate change for ignoring the role Catholic social teachings and the ban on contraception play in driving unsustainable over-population.
The full poll can be seen here.
See also: "Why 'Militant' Secularism is for Believers, Too" by NSS president Terry Sanderson.
Bills on assisted dying, ‘chancel tax’, Easter trading and sharia tribunals set for Lords debates
Posted: Mon, 1 Jun 2015 13:06
A number of bills related to secular causes have been successful in the House of Lords Private Members' Bill ballot, meaning that new laws on sharia tribunals, assisted dying, ending chancel repair liability, and Easter trading are set to be debated in Parliament.
The Easter Trading Bill, which the NSS has advocated for, would relax restrictions on Easter Sunday opening times for large stores.
The law currently requires large shops, such as supermarkets, to close on Easter Sunday. The Bill would enable shops to open on Easter Sunday as they do on any other Sunday of the year.
Earlier this year the NSS wrote to the PM calling the current law an "unwarranted restriction on business" and said whilst it supported the rights of those who wish to observe Easter, it was disrespectful to the remainder of the population for the law to regulate how they spent their Easter Sundays.
The proposed legislation was introduced by Baroness Turner of Camden, an honorary associate of the NSS.
Additionally, Baroness Cox is putting forward her Arbitration and Mediation Services (Equality) Bill, which would regulate sharia courts to protect vulnerable individuals, and criminalise tribunals that falsely claim to have the legal powers of a court.
Baroness Cox has done significant campaign work in recent years on the issue of sharia tribunals and she has repeatedly warned about "religiously-sanctioned gender discrimination". She described sharia tribunals in the UK as "a rapidly-developing alternative quasi-legal system which undermines the fundamental principle of one law for all."
Meanwhile, the Chancel Repairs Bill will receive its First Reading on 3 June. The Bill, to be introduced by NSS honorary associate Lord Avebury, would end the mediaeval law which has seen thousands of homeowners in the past ten years registered as liable to pay for church repairs- seriously damaging the value of their homes. The legislation was previously introduced by Lord Avebury in the last Parliament and debated. The Bill is 17th in the ballot.
The Assisted Dying Bill will receive its First Reading by Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 4 June. The previous attempt to get assisted dying legislation through the Lords failed to complete its passage before the General Election, despite widespread public support.
