Much of the coverage of the religion data release from the Census 2021 has focused on the marked increase in the number of people selecting the ‘no religion’ category; up from 25.2% to 37.2%. While the numbers of those selecting Christian has seen a fall since the last census period to 46.2%, the number of Muslims has increased from 4.8% to 6.5%.
The English local authorities with the highest percentage of people reporting their religion as “Christian” were all in areas in the North West. The Welsh local authorities with the highest proportion of people describing their religion as “Christian” were the Isle of Anglesey and Flintshire (both 51.5%).
As in 2011, the area with the highest percentage of the population who described themselves as “Muslim” was Tower Hamlets (39.9%, up from 38.0% in 2011). Other areas with high percentages of people responding as “Muslim” included Blackburn with Darwen (35.0%) and Newham (34.8%).
London remains the most religiously diverse region of England in 2021. “Christian” was still the most common response in London (40.7%, 3.6 million of all usual residents). The next most common religious groups in London were “Muslim” (15.0%, up from 12.6% in 2011) and “Hindu” (5.1%, up from 5.0% in 2011). Over a quarter (25.3%) of all usual residents in London reported a religion other than “Christian”.
What the changes might mean for the future of religion in the UK is explored in the blog, ‘Is religion dying in England and Wales?‘ by Professor Andrew Davies, Director of the Edward Cadbury Centre for the Public Understanding of Religion.
The Muslim Council of Britain has also published a document taking a first look at the new data.