The National Secular Society has said separating Church and state is “an obvious necessity” after polling found most people do not care much about the Church of England.
Recent YouGov figures found 33% of British adults do not care “very much” about the CofE, while 40% care “not at all”.
The polling of 7,019 adults in Britain found only 16% care “a fair amount”, and 5% “a lot”.
Despite this widespread apathy, the Church of England is uniquely privileged as the UK’s established religion. Establishment confers a number of privileges, including automatic seats for 26 Church of England bishops in the House of Lords, the head of state being the ‘supreme governor’ of the Church, and Anglican prayers being said in Parliament. The Church also controls a significant percentage of state-funded schools.
The polling is consistent with the Church of England’s own figures, which reveal less than 2% of England’s population attend church at least once a month.
The polling found people in Scotland and Wales are particularly apathetic about the CofE, with 63% of Scots and 51% of Welsh saying they do not care about it at all. The nonreligious are the majority in Scotland, and the largest religion or belief group in Wales.
The Church in Wales was disestablished in 1920. The status of the Church of Scotland is ambiguous; the monarch swears to maintain and uphold the Church of Scotland as one of their first duties upon accession.
YouGov found those aged 18-24 were least likely to care about the Church of England, with only 16% answering they cared “a fair amount” or “a lot”. This is consistent with the latest British Social Attitudes survey data which found less than 3% of people aged 16-34 belong to the CofE.
The polling further undermines a previous YouGov previous report commissioned by the Bible Society which claimed a dramatic increase in 18-24 year olds attending church. The ‘Quiet Revival’ report was retracted last month after an internal review found respondents who completed the survey were “fraudulent”.
Last month, research by More In Common revealed fewer than one in 10 people in Britain are aware of the Church of England’s privileges, with those aged 18-24 being the least aware.
But when made aware of these privileges, there is considerable opposition. Over 60% said no religions should have automatic seats in the House of Lords or control state-funded schools, while 55% said no prayers should be said as part of parliamentary business.
Last year saw the CofE’s favourability ratings plummet in the wake of Justin Welby’s resignation as archbishop of Canterbury over safeguarding scandals, with 50% saying the Church should be disestablished.
NSS: “Why is it established at all?”
NSS head of campaigns Megan Manson said: “These figures reveal the profound apathy of the British public towards the established Church. They should lead us to the clear question: why is it established at all?
“Giving unique privileges in our constitution, legislature, and society to one religious denomination is unfair, undemocratic and unpopular. The British public largely recognise this truth. Separating religion and state by disestablishing the Church of England is an obvious necessity.”