Days after YouGov retracted Bible Society’s “Quiet Revival” data, a new analysis contends that non-religious identity among young people in the United Kingdom, particularly those under 35, is a permanent shift rather than a temporary phase, prompting a response from the nondenominational organization. 

Humanists UK, a national charity that promotes secular humanism, published an analysis of the British Social Attitudes Survey 2024 conducted by the National Centre for Social Research between Sept. 16 and Oct. 17, 2024. 

Based on 4,120 fully or partially completed responses, the BSA survey found that that 61% of 16 to 34-year-olds identify with no religion. Ninety-four percent of the 16 to 34-year-olds raised as non-religious still identified with no religion as adults, while 4% of people in the same age group raised as non-religious adopted any form of Christianity.

“The data shows that non-religious identity is not a phase young people pass through — it is a settled and stable worldview,” Humanists UK’s analysis asserted. 

Janet Ellis, the president of Humanists UK, asserted in a statement Thursday that the figures suggest young people “are living thoughtful, values-driven lives without any religious framework at all,” claiming that they are doing so “with confidence and joy.”

“For young people, [labeling] them just as 'nones' or 'no religion' can be misleading because it implies an absence,” the Humanists UK president stated. “But what they actually have is a positive way of being in the world: looking for evidence to know what’s true, and looking to friendships, hobbies, and relationships to give life meaning.” 

“The data confirms what many of us already know: for a growing majority of people in Britain, humanism — the idea that we can live well and do good without gods — is simply how life is lived,” Ellis said. 

The BSA data also suggests that half of the population in the U.K. now identifies with no religion, and half of them were raised with no religion. 

According to Humanists UK, the data “reveals the near-total collapse of Church of England identity among younger generations.” 

“While 21% of over-75s identify as Anglican, that figure falls to just 2.6% among 16 to 34-year-olds,” the secular group noted. “Across all respondents, only 10.7% now identify as Church of England — down from figures that once placed it as the majority faith tradition in Britain.” 

The publication of the analysis follows YouGov's retraction of research that reportedly found a rise in church attendance among young people in parts of the U.K., which the Bible Society described as a “quiet revival.” 

YouGov, which carried out the research in 2024 for the Bible Society, announced last week that, after re-analyzing its data collection, it had discovered that the data sample for “The Quiet Revival” report contained “a number of respondents who we can now identify as fraudulent.”

Andrew Copson, chief executive of Humanists UK, argued that the data in the “Quiet Revival” report was “always implausible,” claiming that it contradicted the findings of other surveys, as well as attendance data from Anglican and Catholic churches. 

“The British Social Attitudes survey is the gold standard for a reason. It shows, clearly and consistently, that Britain has become a majority non-religious country, that younger generations are leading that change, and that there is no evidence of any reversal,” Copson stated. 

“It is time for our public institutions, from Parliament to our schools, to catch up with the reality of who the British people actually are,” he added. 

In response to an inquiry from The Christian Post, a Bible Society spokesperson cautioned against concluding that young people who identify as non-religious lack spiritual beliefs, noting that this is an area of study in development.

The spokesperson referenced the Bible Society's latest report, "The Quiet Revival one year on: what's the story?," which he said provides counter-evidence to Humanist UK's claims.

According to the report, "measuring national church attendance accurately and consistently is incredibly complex" due to the lack of a comprehensive census of church attendance in England and Wales and the fact that few denominations and expressions regularly count attendance.

The introduction of digital church services and remote worship has also made it difficult to accurately measure attendance, the report argued. 

While the Bible Society's report acknowledged that the Catholic Church and the Church of England have reported lower attendance numbers than before COVID, they have also reported "year-on-year growth" since the pandemic. 

In 2024, there was a 21% rise in the number of baptisms of people over the age of 7 in the Catholic Church, "with more [baptized[ in 2024 than ‘in any other year in the 11-year period for which data is available, by a considerable margin," according to a November 2025 report in The Tablet cited in Bible Society.

The Catholic Church had already seen the number of baptisms rise above pre-pandemic levels in 2023, and in 2024, the number of adults receiving Holy Communion for the first time increased by 44%. 

"In the Church of England, teenage and adult baptisms rose by more than 1,000 (an increase of 11.5%) in 2024 compared to 2023 — the highest increase since age categories were introduced. In the same year, confirmations increased by 5.3%," Bible Society's report noted.

Bible Society's latest analysis noted that the Evangelical Alliance reported an average increase of 13% attendance after surveying its members in 2025. The group's report also highlighted data showing that Pentecostal churches in the U.K went from 2,500 congregations in 2000 to 4,200 by 2020. 

Humanists UK did not immediately respond to The Christian Post's request for comment.

Those who believe a religious revival may be underway in the U.K. point to data collated by Christian publisher SPCK Group that found Bible sales rose sharply in 2025, with the group reporting record figures.

Publishing director at SPCK, Lauren Windle, has suggested the surge reflects growing engagement among younger readers.

"Maybe the generation that has everything wants more — more real, more truthful, more consistent, more outward facing, more generous and more peaceful. More God-like," she said.

While Bible Society CEO Paul Williams acknowledged YouGov’s error in a statement last week, he asserted that the research firm’s mistake does not mean that all other findings are wrong.

Williams said his organization will continue trying to understand the “changing landscape” through research focused on attitudes toward faith and the Bible.

“This wider picture is also supported by a number of other surveys, based on probability sampling, which point to an increased engagement in faith among young adults compared to older generations,” the Bible Society CEO said. 

Williams pointed to research such as the Ipsos MORI 2023 Global Religion Survey, which found that, on average across 26 countries, 40% say they believe in God as described in holy scriptures. Twenty percent said they believe in a higher power.

“While religious identity overall is shifting from ‘Christian’ to ‘no religion,’ Christianity in Britain appears to be moving from a declining nominal faith to a committed and active one, as cultural shifts — especially among younger people — encourage a more proactive search for identity, meaning and purpose,” the CEO said.

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