Fewer than half of secondary school children trust the clergy, according to a new survey by Ipsos Mori.
The polling company asked 2,600 young people whether those working in different jobs could be trusted to tell the truth.
Doctors came out on top with 83 per cent, followed by the police on 71 per cent, judges on 64 per cent, and scientists on 53 per cent.
The clergy came in joint fifth at 46 per cent alongside teachers.
Schoolchildren appear to be slightly more trusting of church ministers than adults: a similar survey last year found that 43 per cent of adults trusted the clergy.
Among the least trusted professions are journalists, politicians and estate agents.
The managing director of the Ipsos MORI Social Research Institute, Bobby Duffy, said of the survey as a whole: 'Young people tend to be pretty trusting in classic authority figures – doctors, the police and judges...But there are...differences [between adults and children] – in particular, young people trust their teachers much less than their parents do, which is maybe understandable as they see them close up much more regularly...Young people in general also trust the police much more than adults do – which is encouraging for the service.'
