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
UK Government accused of not upholding freedom of belief
Posted: Fri, 7 Sep 2012 10:28
The European Court of Human Rights hearing on 4 September 2012 has heard accusations from applicants that the UK Government is not upholding freedom of belief. (Four applicants involving Christian employees wearing crucifixes and not wishing to treat homosexuals equally – Chaplin, Eweida, Ladele and McFarlane. The NSS is the only UK organisation to intervene to support the UK Government and the UK court's rejection of all four cases.)
Watch the video of the hearing; approximately two hours with a section selection feature.
Russians want church to stay out of politics
Posted: Fri, 17 Aug 2012 07:51
A poll taken in Russia shows that 75% of the population wants the Russian Orthodox Church to stay out of politics.
Half of Russians (50%) have noted the presence of the Orthodox Church in the state's domestic policy, with people increasingly noticing this over the past two years (44% in 2010), say sociologists from the All-RussianCenterfor the Study of Public Opinion (VTsIOM).
Another 43% of respondents are still feeling the Church's influence in Russia's international affairs as well, sociologists said.
The Church's influence is weakest in the lives of ordinary Russians: half of respondents (49%) said this institution has no meaning for them, an increase of 6% from two years ago.
The broadest sphere of influence of the Russian Orthodox Church is the spiritual and moral state of the society, according to 63% of 1,600 respondents polled by VTsIOM in 138 towns across 46 Russians regions in June. Only 16% thought religious institutions should be actively involved in all spheres of public life, including politics.
Confining the Church's influence to the matters of faith is favoured mainly by young (37%) and highly-educated (33%) people and those who distrust the clergy (42%), the VTsIOM poll showed. On the other hand, support for such a limitation was lower among pre-retirement age respondents without higher education (18–19%), villagers (22%) and those who trust the clergy (21%).
The sociological survey revealed that a significant proportion of Russians regard the current relations between the Orthodox Church and the state as being well-balanced and harmonious (43%). This is normally the view of those (57%) who believe that the main sphere of influence of the Orthodox Church is the spiritual moral side of public life. A quarter of respondents (23%) said the Russian Orthodox Church's participation in public life is insufficient. This is primarily the view of those (39%) who expect the Church to be actively involved in addressing all problems of the state, and not just in the sphere of morality and religion.
See also
In Putin's Russia, little separation between church and state
