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
Case for disestablishment “compelling”, say Anglicans at NSS event
Posted: Thu, 16 Feb 2023 13:58
Anglicans and non-Anglicans united to make the case for separation of church and state at a National Secular Society event yesterday.
Sandi Toksvig starts petition to remove bishops from Lords
Posted: Fri, 3 Feb 2023 14:26
Writer and broadcaster Sandi Toksvig has launched a petition to remove the bishops appointed to the House of Lords.
The petition, launched today on Change.org, calls for "the removal the Church Of England's privilege to appoint bishops into the House of Lords, and remove existing bishops currently sitting in the House of Lords".
As a result of the Church of England's established status, two of its archbishops and 24 currently are assigned seats as of right in the House of Lords (the 'bishops' bench').
Less than 1% of the population in England regularly attend CofE church services.
In a video on Twitter accompanying the petition (pictured), Toksvig said: "There are only two countries in the world where representatives of the state religion automatically get a seat in the legislature. They are the UK and Iran.
"A curious and indeed uncomfortable club of two to belong to."
She also commented on the bishops' opposition to legalising same-sex marriage, and the Church's exemptions from equality law which allow them to discriminate against LGBT people and women.
She added: "Of course everyone in there is entirely free to think as they please. What they should not be allowed to do is to hold sway in our House, the Houses of Parliament.
"It doesn't matter what your faith is, or even isn't, it's discriminatory and it has to stop."
Toksvig has been one of the Church's most prominent critics since archbishop Justin Welby reaffirmed the CofE's opposition to same-sex relationships in August.
She said in an open letter to Welby that the lives of LGBT+ people are at stake, pointing to higher rates of suicide among LGBT+ young people and the death threats she had received from evangelical Christians.
Following a meeting with Welby last month to discuss the issue, she concluded: "It was very clear that opposing factions of the worldwide Anglican Communion are being, in part, held together at the expense of the human rights of the LGBT+ community".
Welby is reported to have said he would "rather see the Church of England lose its privileged status" as the established church than split the Anglican communion over the issue of same-sex marriage. The comments are said to have been made in a private meeting between the archbishop and a number of MPs.
NSS 'fully supports' petition
NSS chief executive Stephen Evans said: "We fully support Sandi Toksvig's message and her petition to remove the bishops from the House of Lords.
"We've long argued the Church's unjust and unfair privileges should be removed.
"And now, with Christians being a minority in England and Wales, and the Church growing increasingly out-of-step on social issues, the need to end the Church's privileged place in parliament is more crucial than ever.
"As Sandi Toksvig herself said: Iran and the UK - time to make that a club of one."
You can sign Sandi Toksvig's petition here. Please also send a letter to your MP calling for the removal of the bishops.
We are holding a free event on separation of church and state this February - click here for more information and to book your place.
