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
Majority of Britons believe state and church should be separate
Posted: Thu, 12 Dec 2013 09:45
A new Yougov poll has found that the majority of people in Britain think the Church of England should be separated from the state.
The poll asked the same questions about religion as were asked in a similar poll in 1957. It shows that in the time between the two there has been a catastrophic collapse in personal belief in the tenets of Christianity.
The poll, conducted for Prospect magazine asked "Should the Church of England and state continue to be connected?"
In 1957, 37% said it should separate with 37% saying should stay connected (26% didn't know). In 2013, 51% said church and state should separate with 27% saying it should remain connected (23% didn't know).
In response to the question "Should religious leaders such as the Archbishop of Canterbury keep out of political matters or express their views on politics?" it was a different matter. In the latest poll, 45% said they should express their views, a rise of 9% since 1957 with 41% saying they should keep out of politics, a fall of 12% since 1957.
Some of the other questions — with 2013 answers first and 1957 results in brackets — were:
"Can religion answer all or most of today's problems or is it largely old-fashioned and out-of-date?
Can answer: 10% (46%)
Old-fashioned: 58% (27%)
Don't know: 23% (27%)
"Do you believe there is life after death?"
Yes: 33% (54%)
No: 33% (17%)
Don't know: 34% (29%)
An infographic of the poll can be found on the Prospect website
Leader of Russian Orthodox Church says it is dangerous to unite state and church while Putin declares Russia a secular state
Posted: Tue, 26 Nov 2013 12:35
Patriarch Kirill, leader of the Russian Orthodox Church has said that there is no question of the church and state uniting in Russia.
"The Church is defending its freedom because it is sure that only its independence gives it the possibility of being a full-scale spiritual authority. Any form of convergence of the Church and state is dangerous for the cause of God. Only the word of a free Church sounds loud and convincingly," he said in an interview with Smolenskiye Novosti newspaper.
He has repeatedly denied that church and state are becoming too closely aligned, saying that clergymen are strictly forbidden from assuming any government functions while, at the same time, the state does not have direct influence over the Church.
"We don't want the repetition of history because we are convinced that the bloody developments of the beginning of the 20th century and the persecution of the Church that followed them largely resulted from its enslavement by the state" Kirill said.
He stressed that the Church is not trying to influence politics, although judging by recent events this is arguable. He said it only addressed the political issues while "trying to bring it home to every person that life without God is senseless and useless."
The patriarch also recognised that Russia is still experiencing the effects of the period of atheism during the Soviet era. "In order to cure the spiritual wound inflicted by atheism we should all help people take the path of new church-going. And I believe that God will be with us on this road," he said, adding that the current church reforms are being conducted with this purpose.
Earlier this year President Vladimir Putin said that Russia was a secular state and that church and state were distinct entities. At the same time he said that the nation would be based on Christian values. He then said that he wanted to ban hijabs in schools and ban discussion of homosexuality (at the behest of the Orthodox Church) "People in many European countries are ashamed, and are afraid of talking about their religious convictions. [Religious] holidays are being taken away or called something else, shamefully hiding the essence of the holiday", the "secularist" Russian president added.
See also: Putin kisses Madonna icon at Vatican
