7.4 Case Studies

Question 1

The Faith Survey

Brierley Consultancy

Answer 1

The Faith Survey website brings together data from a range of research projects such as the Census, the British Social Attitudes Survey and opinion polling to give a more accurate picture of Christianity in the UK. Here are some findings:

• UK Church membership has declined from 10.6 million in 1930 to 5.5 million in 2010, or as a percentage of the population; from about 30% to 11.2%.
• By 2013, this had declined further to 5.4 million (10.3%). If current trends continue, membership will fall to 8.4% of the population by 2025.
• In England, membership is forecast to decline to 2.53 million (4.3% of the population) by 2025.
• Church attendance has declined from 6.5M (equivalent to a decline from 11.8% to 5.0% of the population).
• A 2014 survey of approximately 64 000 people in 65 countries revealed the UK to be one of the world’s most irreligious countries, with only 30% of those surveyed identifying as ‘religious’. In contrast, 13% said they were convinced atheists and 53% of those surveyed said they were not religious.

Question 2

Ethnic minorities tend to be more religious than White Britons

Answer 2

• Only 32% of adults who reported being Christian said they practiced their religion regularly. This compares to 80% of Muslims and 2/3rds of Hindus, Sikhs and Jews
• Black Christians are 3 times more likely to attend church than White Christians (English Church Census, 2005)
• Muslims, Hindus and Black Christians see religion as more central to their identity than White Christians. O’Beirne 2004 found that:
• Asians, especially Muslims ranked religion and family equally as markers of identity
• African-Caribbeans and Black-Africans ranked religion as the third most important factor in their lives.
• White Christians rarely ranked religion as central to their identity.