Here’s a breakdown of what it shows:
Overview
- Regions: The map highlights various regions within the UK, showing the percentage of individuals who consider themselves atheist or non-religious.
- Highest Percentage: Scotland, with 54% of the population identifying as non-religious, has the highest percentage.
- Lowest Percentage: Greater London and the City, with 28%, have the lowest percentage of people identifying as non-religious.
Regional Breakdown
- Scotland: 54% (Highest in the UK)
- South West England: 51%
- Wales: 51%
- East of England: 49%
- South East England: 49%
- Yorkshire and the Humber: 49%
- East Midlands: 46%
- North West England: 44%
- North East England: 43%
- West Midlands: 40%
- Northern Ireland: 31%
- Greater London and the City 28% (Lowest In The UK)
Analysis
- Scotland, Wales and South West England have the highest levels of non-religious identification, each exceeding 50%.
- Greater London stands out as a region with a significantly lower percentage of non-religious individuals compared to the rest of the UK.
Data Source
- The data is sourced from Statista and is based on information from 2021 to 2022.
This visualization highlights regional differences in religious identification across the UK, suggesting that some areas, especially urban centers like Greater London, still have a higher level of religious identification compared to more rural or northern regions like Scotland.
Why do you think that is?
Greg says
This map is misleading, It seems to be based on UK censsus data from 2021. The census question gives no indication of Atheism… the categories include no religion, which is by no means the same thing.
The religion question (see Figure ….1?) is voluntary; 94.0% (56.0 million) of usual residents answered the question in 2021, an increase from 92.9% (52.1 million) in 2011. In the census data, religion refers to a person’s religious affiliation. This is the religion with which they connect or identify, rather than their beliefs or active religious practice. As the question is voluntary, we need to be cautious when comparing figures between different areas or between censuses because of varying response rates.
Also because the Census is a household survey the usual practice is for a responsible householder to complete the whole form, including for children living there. It is possible for individuals to ask for separate census forms or online access, and in many cases in households there will be collaboration or delegation of individual pages. But it is not possible to say what proportion of answers to the religion question truly represent personal affiliation to a faith, let alone whether they belief in God, gods or anything sacred or divine.