Surveying religious attendance

One survey diverges from others on going to places of worship.

A recent survey implied young people are more likely to pray than those aged over 55. The Savanta ComRes survey estimated 51% of those aged 18 to 34 said they prayed at least once a month. For the older age group in the United Kingdom, that share was around 24%. The online survey was of 2,075 UK adults, between 13th and 15th August 2021. It was on behalf of Jersey Road PR — a public relations company assisting Christian groups.

This is a surprising result. The British Social Attitudes surveys found declining religious affiliation over 30 years. In 2018, the BSA survey estimated 52% of the public did not belong to any religion. Apart from special occasions, that survey found around two-thirds never attend religious services. NatCen run random probability surveys of Great British adults.

(Image: British Social Attitudes report 36)

In that survey, around one in six adults (18%) said they attended religious services at least once a month. This share has been stable over the past two decades.

(Image: British Social Attitudes survey report 36)

The first questions in the Savanta ComRes survey were:

How often do you do…