Welcome to BRIN

  

 

What is BRIN?

British Religion in Numbers is an online data centre for religion in Britain.

Numbers aren't just for statisticians. People want to visualise and understand data for work, for study, for general interest, or to settle a discussion. Many debates over religion rest on questions of how large? how many? how typical?

Until recently, however, religious data sources have been scattered, or presented in difficult formats.

Therefore our aim is to draw religious data together and to present it in intuitive ways to a wide audience. We are based at the University of Manchester and supported by the Religion and Society research programme.

1. Database of religious data sources

We catalogue the full range of statistics on faith in Britain, in a searchable database.

This lists government data, opinion poll data, and also organisational data — such as membership of particular communities, or attendance at religious services at places of worship. All substantial sources are included and described, with details of how to find them:

2. Visualisations of religious data

Here we host a selection of maps and charts, illustrating religion in present-day Britain and religious change over time.

3. Written guides to understanding religious data

Here we provide written guides on how to use and interpret religious statistics - for example, comparing different religious categories, change over time, or understanding how the way that data is collected by government or organisations might affect the results.

There is also a detailed history of British religious statistics, and an overview of the British religious landscape to put the evidence in context.

We also have an online copy of the original directory of religious data sources, Reviews of UK Statistical Sources: Volume XX - Religion (published 1987), on which this project builds.

Over time, additional Working Papers reporting quantitative research into religion in Britain will be posted here.

Why are religious data important?

British society has changed in many ways since the Second World War. Religious change is a major example.

There is much public discussion of such issues as:

Other issues are of particular interest to religious researchers. For example, is Britain less religious now than in the past? Or are people just as religious, but express it in a different way?

Religious data is also important for public decision-making - by local authorities, central government and other public bodies:

What types of data are available?

There is a great deal of historical and contemporary evidence available on religion in Britain.

The earliest religious census was conducted in 1603, while in 1851, a major religous census was carried out as part of the official Census.

From the 1930s, opinion polling firms began including questions on religious identification in surveys. They were also sometimes commissioned to investigate religious attitudes directly, by religious organisations and the press.

From the 1970s, annual surveys such as Eurobarometer, the British Social Attitudes Survey (BSA), and the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) included questions on religious practice and belief.

The 2001 Census included a question on religious identification for the first time, for England, Scotland and Wales. Other important recent surveys include the 2005 Church Census.

Browse the database to discover more about these sources.

 

 

 

This project was made possible by the sponsorship of the Religion & Society Programme, which in turn is funded by two publicly-funded UK Research Councils: the Arts and Humanities Research Council and the Economic and Social Research Council. Copyright information is available here.