A landmark study has shed more light on the size, shape and identity of Evangelical Christians in the U.K. Evangelicals are “younger, more ethnically diverse, and more likely to be male than the wider population,” according to the 28-page report published by the Evangelical Alliance UK. “Adults under 35 are the age group most likely to identify as Evangelical and to hold Evangelical beliefs,” the report reads.
“Approximately a third of the most committed Evangelicals come from ethnically diverse backgrounds, while an estimated 60% of Evangelicals are male.” The report identifies 12.3 million people in the U.K. as either holding Evangelical beliefs or identifying as Evangelical, or both. Nearly two-thirds of practicing Christians (64%) are identified by the study as Evangelicals in terms of identity and beliefs.
The report defines practicing Christians as people who attend church at least monthly, and who pray and read the Bible independently at least weekly. In terms of the overall U.K. population, 11.4% identify as Evangelicals (8 million people), while 7.9% (5.5 million people) can be defined as “broad Evangelicals.” Broad Evangelicals were defined as respondents who both hold Evangelical beliefs and identify as an Evangelical. Some 14.1% of the U.K. population have Evangelical beliefs (9.9%).
A minority (3.8%, or 2.6 million people) are “classic Evangelicals” — respondents who strongly hold Evangelical beliefs, identify as an Evangelical, and are part of Protestant traditions. Young adults were the most likely age group to be Evangelical. Among classic Evangelicals, 43% are under 35, including 19.4% aged 18 to 24 and 24.1% aged 25 to 34, while 41% of broad Evangelicals are under 35. Nearly a third (30%) of Evangelicals are from ethnic minority backgrounds, compared with 17% of the wider U.K. adult population.
Over a quarter (27.9%) of classic Evangelicals are black and respondents from this