London Borough of Croydon - Religion

Religion

The predominant religion of the borough is Christianity. According to the United Kingdom Census 2001, the borough has over 215,124 Christians, mainly Protestants. This is the largest religious following in the borough followed by Islam with 17,642 Muslims resident. This is a small portion of the more than 600,000 Muslims in London as a whole.

48,615 Croydon residents stated that they are atheist or non-religious in the 2001 Census.

There are more than 35 churches in the borough, with Croydon Minster being the main one. This church was founded in Saxon times, since there is a record of "a priest of Croydon" in 960, although the first record of a church building is in the Domesday Book (1086). In its final medieval form, the church was mainly a Perpendicular-style structure, but this was severely damaged by fire in 1867, following which only the tower, south porch and outer walls remained. Under the direction of Sir George Gilbert Scott the church was rebuilt, incorporating the remains and essentially following the design of the medieval building, and was reconsecrated in 1870. It still contains several important monuments and fittings saved from the old church.

Croydon has strong religious links, from a royal charter for Surrey Street Market dating back to 1276, to Croydon Palace which was the summer residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury for over 500 years, with visitors such as Henry III and Queen Elizabeth I. The Bishop of Croydon is a position as a suffragan Bishop in the Anglican Diocese of Southwark. The latest bishop was Rt Rev Nicholas (Nick) Baines.