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
Donations fuel record C of E parish income
Posted: Tue, 17 Oct 2017 15:39
Income generated by Church of England parishes topped £1 billion for the first time in 2015.
The largest proportion of this income came from donations – one third from planned donations, and 6% from collections at services. This is despite the facts that Anglican church attendance is steadily decreasing and just 15% of people in Britain identify as Anglican.
The other sources of income included gift aid on donations, income from property holdings and grants.
Additionally, parishes have been left with a surplus of £54.4 million, the largest for a decade.
Stephen Evans, the National Secular Society's campaigns director, commented: "These figures show that the Church of England is well supported by its parishioners. It's a good sign that, despite a decline in church attendance, the Church of England would be able to survive without government support, including money from taxpayers who do not use the Church's services in any way.
"It also demonstrates that, as stakeholders in the Church of England, parishioners deserve greater transparency and control over the Church's activities. At present, this is limited by the complex relationship between the Church and the government.
"Disestablishment would result in an independent church that would be in a better position to give its donors greater oversight and a greater voice on the running of their religion."
Since 2014 the Government is thought to have allocated around £221 million of public money to repairing places of worship, with the vast majority of the money going to the Church of England – despite estimated assets of over £20bn.
More than 60% of Brits under 65 say religion does “more harm than good”
Posted: Thu, 12 Oct 2017 12:10
More than six in ten under-65s in Britain think religion does more harm than good, according to a new international study, with no evidence linking this to religious intolerance. Just 23% say religion defines them personally.
The polling firm Ipsos asked people aged 16-64 in 23 countries a series of questions about their attitudes to religion. In Great Britain, 62% of people agreed with the statement 'religion does more harm in the world than good'.
That was the joint-fifth highest figure in response to that statement. The figure was highest in Belgium, where 68% of respondents agreed. Across the countries surveyed, 49% of respondents agreed. Most of the countries with the highest figures were in Western Europe, along with India and Australia.
Fewer than a quarter of British people agreed that 'my religion defines me as a person'. Sweden and Japan were the only countries with lower figures in response to that question. Only 37% said 'religious practices are an important factor in the moral life of my country's citizens'; that figure was lower in just four countries. Just 22% said 'religious people are better citizens' and 10% said they 'lose respect for people when I find out that they are not religious'.
The survey also suggests British people's lack of fondness for religion does not correlate with antipathy towards religious people. A comfortable majority (85%) of Brits said they were 'completely comfortable being around people who have different religious beliefs than me'. Only four countries had a higher rate of positive responses.
National Secular Society campaigns director Stephen Evans said the survey was "another reminder that British people's attitudes to religion do not match the deference it is given in the country's public life".
A series of recent surveys have suggested religion is becoming increasingly irrelevant in British people's lives. According to data released from the British Social Attitudes survey last month, more than half of them now say they are non-religious. Shortly after that was released, a Church of England survey revealed that just 6% of British adults meet the Church's definition of 'practising Christians'. The NSS responded to these surveys by calling for "a serious debate about religion's privileged place in our society".
After the latest figures emerged Mr Evans said: "No matter what surveys such as this find, secularism will remain the only way to protect everyone's rights. But those who defend religious privileges often suggest cultural attitudes support their case. The evidence overwhelmingly suggests they are wrong.
"The arguments of those who claim Anglican clergy should continue to enjoy seats in our legislature as of right, or faith groups should continue to exercise considerable control over our publicly-funded schools, are left looking ever thinner."
Most of the countries surveyed by Ipsos were either in Europe or the Americas. In total only one third (32%) of respondents thought religious people made better citizens and just 15% said they lost respect for people when they found out they are not religious.
Remarkably, Japan had the lowest proportion agreeing with five of the six statements: that religion does more harm than good; religion defines respondents personally; people were comfortable around those with different religious beliefs; religious people are better citizens; and religious practices are important to the country's moral life.
Ipsos spoke to more than 17,000 people in its survey. More than 1,000 people were surveyed in Britain.
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