Ann Widdecombe, former MP and long-standing Christian voice in public life, believes the apparent resurgence of interest in Christianity among Britain’s youth is not as unexpected as it seems.
A YouGov survey commissioned by the Bible Society last December and released in April revealed that a growing number of young adults in the UK are turning to faith and to the Church.
The data shows that 12% of UK adults now attend church at least once a month, a noticeable rise from 8% in 2018.
But the most dramatic shift is among 18 to 24 year olds, especially young men, over 20% of whom now report regular attendance - more than a fivefold increase in just six years.
Young women are not far behind, with their attendance tripling from 4% to 12% in the same period.
Roughly 20% of regular churchgoers now come from ethnic minority backgrounds — a proportion that climbs to almost one in three among those aged under 55.
This growing diversity is reshaping what church looks like across the UK, particularly in urban areas.
The new data also shows that Gen Z’s interest goes beyond just turning up for services. Around a quarter of young people say they want to learn more about the Bible — the highest rate of curiosity among any age group.
A co-author of the report, Dr Rob Barward-Symmons, commented that with the rise in mental health struggles, “loneliness and a loss of meaning in life,” especially among young people, the church offers greater life satisfaction, stronger community ties, and lower rates of anxiety and depression, particularly in young women.
Writing for GB News, Ms Widdecombe believes that this spiritual trend is an anticipated response to the self-obsessed culture of modern life, which “promotes the opposite of forgiveness of sinners in a clamorous witch hunt and lynch mob mentality”.
“Perhaps it is not so surprising; the me, me, me society has not brought happiness with record rates of divorce, suicide, crime and mental breakdown,” she said. “Sooner or later, a generation was bound to question whether rampant consumerism can be the root of true happiness and to look for alternatives.”
For Ms Widdecombe, the implications are clear: “Whether this phenomenon grows or withers on the vine is largely down to Christians, for, as I have often observed, if the early Christians had shown no more energy in spreading the Good News than we have today, then we would all still be worshipping Zeus.”
As statistics shift and pews begin to fill again, she said that the church must still "go to the people”, and not simply expect people to come to it.
