Burnley, in Lancashire, England, has a long history of religious worship, dating from at least before 1122 in the case of the St Peter's Church. The chapel at Towneley Hall was the centre for Roman Catholic worship in Burnley until modern times. Well before the Industrial Revolution, the town saw the emergence of many non-conformist churches and chapels. In 1891 the town was the location of the meeting which saw the creation of the Baptist Union of Great Britain and Ireland. In the late 19th century a Jewish synagogue was established, and in recent times evangelical and free churches have appeared, as well as a large purpose-built mosque.

The 2001 census for Burnley gives a religious make-up of 74.5% Christian, 6.6% Muslim, 0.3% Hindu and 11.0% "No religion".Office for National Statistics - Burnley page, Religion 2001 Accessed 18  September 2012 Records are held for at least 77 places of Christian worship in Burnley. These include churches of the following denominations: fourteen Anglican, seven Baptist, five Congregational (now United Reformed Church), one Independent, one Independent Methodist, one Jehovah's Witness, twenty-five Methodist, one the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), one New Jerusalem, four Particular Baptist, seven Roman Catholic, one Scottish Baptist, one Spiritualist, one Unitarian, seven United Methodist Free Church.

The largest place of worship in Burnley is at Life Church Lancashire, on Sycamore Avenue (formerly the Gannow Baths). Life Church completed their new building, with a 500-seater auditorium, in November 2014.

The town has a total of 17 religious building or structures which are designated as listed buildings – all Grade II by English Heritage.Listed Buildings in Burnley, at britishlistedbuildings.co.uk Retrieved 18 September 2012.

Anglican churches

St Peter’s St Peter's Church, around which the town developed, is the oldest of the town’s churches. The present structure dates from the 15th century and has been designated a Grade II* listed building by English Heritage. St Peter's lies close to the banks of the River Brun.Farrer & Brownbill (1911), pp. 441–454 There was a church on the site prior to 1122,Hartwell & Pevsner, pp. 176–178 but this was largely rebuilt in the 1530s by Thomas Sellars and Nicholas Craven. The oldest part of the church, the lower portion of the tower, dates from the 15th of 16th centuries. In 1735 a western gallery was added to accommodate the growing population of Burnley. The south aisle was rebuilt in 1789, and the north aisle in 1802. An upper part was added to the tower in 1803 and interior restoration work was undertaken in 1854 by Miles Thompson who built the nave arcades and clerestory. The chancel was enlarged in 1872—1873.

St Andrew’s

St Andrew's Church on Colne Road was built in 1866–67 to a design by J. Medland Taylor, and was restored in 1898 by the Lancaster architects Austin and Paley. Its benefice is united with those of St Margaret, Burnley, and St James, Burnley. The church has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II listed building.

A baptistery was added during the 20th century. The reredos, and almost all the stained glass, is by Kempe. St Andrew’s serves a mixed area in north Burnley varying from extremely deprived terraced housing to 1970's private housing. St Andrew with St Margaret and St James, Burnley at achurchnearyou.com Retrieved 18  September 2012

St Matthew’s St Matthew's Church, located in St Matthews Street, was built between 1876 and 1879, and was designed by William Waddington and Sons. On Christmas Day 1927 the church was destroyed by fire, leaving only the walls standing. Its rebuilding, between 1929 and 1931, was supervised by Henry Paley of Austin and Paley.

In 1835 the church began as a Mission School in Back Lane (Rossendale Road), Habergham Eaves. One hundred and fifty years later, in 1985, it took in the parish of Holy Trinity. The church has an open policy for baptism and marriage, under Anglican guidelines, and anyone who is a full member of any denomination may make their communion there. St Matthew The Apostle, Habergham Eaves at achurchnearyou.com Retrieved 18  September 2012

St Catherine’s

St Catherine’s Church, on Todmorden Road, was founded in 1899. It does not have a graveyard. The parish priest is Father Roger Parker SSC. In 1895 the new church was planned to be called St Alban's, but when it opened in 1897 its name changed to St Catherine's.

St Catherine’s is a late Victorian Tractarian church with Byzantine features and a wrought iron Baldacchino. The stone-built church has a decorative brick interior and a wooden beamed ceiling without any internal columns, giving an unrestricted view of the High Altar. The Church contains a memorial to Victor Smith, VC. The Church has regular Heritage Open Days.

St Mark’s St Mark’s Church on Owen Street was founded in 1909 and closed in 1965. It did not have a graveyard. A second St Mark’s, in Rossendale Road, was founded in 1965. It also does not have a graveyard.

St Stephen’s St Stephen’s Church on Oxford Road was founded in 1865. It does not have a graveyard. In 1865 a mission started, and in 1870 a school and chapel were built.

St Cuthbert’s

St Cuthbert's Church on Towneley Street was founded in 1905. The church does not have a graveyard. In 1905 a Mission Hall opened on Towneley Street, and in 1906 the foundation stone for the new church was laid. In 1908 the church was consecrated.

The church supports Beavers, Cub Scouts, Scouts, Rainbows, Brownies and Guides. The Burnley District Explorer Scouts also meet at St Cuthbert’s on Friday evenings. The Mothers’ Union meets once a month, and the Burnley Lane Fellowship of Churches Luncheon Club meets every Tuesday. There is also a table tennis group and St Cuthbert’s Amateur Operatic and Dramatic Society meet weekly from June until November. Friday Friends meet once a month, and many outside groups use the church facilities. All religious services at the church are open to all.St Cuthbert, Burnley at achurchnearyou.com Retrieved 18 September 2012

All Saints with St John the Baptist’s

The church of All Saints with St John the Baptist was built in 1845 by Sir James Kay-Shuttleworth of Gawthorpe Hall and John and James Dugdale of Lowerhouse. The graveyard closed in 1885. The church later united with St.John's Gannow to form West of Burnley Parish. The architects of the church, Weightman and Hadfield of Sheffield, were pioneers of the Gothic Revival style. The building cost £5,000, of which £3,000 came from the Dugdale family. The site itself and £1,300 was provided by the Kay-Shuttleworth family. On 17 November 1849 the church was consecrated by the Bishop of Manchester the Right Reverend James Prince Lee. The church has many interesting stained glass windows. The east window, the theme of which is Creation, was designed by the local artist Brian Clarke. All Saints with St John the Baptist, Burnley West” at achurchnearyou.com Retrieved 18 September 2012.

Anglican churches now closed

St James’

St James’ Church, on Bethesda Street, was founded in 1844 and moved in 1966 to March Street into a former workshop. The original church building was demolished in 1969 and the site made into a garden. It had a graveyard. The church was listed in the 1851 census as having been built in 1849. In 1869 the tower and spire were added. .

The tower and steeple of the church were listed Grade II. The tower has been described by English Heritage as being of coursed squared sandstone in a square planned perpendicular style. It had angle buttresses, a vice at the north-east corner, an offset to the belfry stage and an embattled parapet. The spire was splay-footed with lucarnes in the non-cardinal sides. The east side of the tower had a moulded Tudor-arched doorway which led to the former nave. The structure was de-listed on 14 September 2001.

In 1971 the church was demolished except for the tower and spire. In 1998 the tower and spire were also demolished to make way for a shopping complex. A history of the church is available in A hundred years at St.James, Burnley 1849-1949 by Edward L Driscoll (1949).

The second St James’ church, on March Street, was founded in 1966 and closed in 1998,Parish records of S. Andrew's Burnley when its benefice was merged with that of St Andrew’s. It did not have a graveyard.

Other Anglican churches St Alban’s Church, on Stoneyhurst Avenue, was founded in 1959 and closed in 1982. It did not have a graveyard. In 1982 the church closed and combined with St Catherine's.

St John the Baptist’s Church, on Gannow Lane, was founded in 1868 and closed in 1981. The church had a large western tower, with a clockface, and had a graveyard. In 1868 a school was started at Wood Top, and in 1879 the church was founded. In 1892 a tower was added and a reredos installed. In 1979 the church was demolished, and the parish combined with All Saints, Habergham. There is still a Church Centre, however, at Gannow Lane.

St Margaret’s Church, on Abel Street, was founded in 1997 and closed in 1968. It did not have a graveyard. In 1969°Parish records the church was demolished.

St Oswald’s Church, on Ighten Road, was founded in 1910 and closed in 1980. It did not have a graveyard.

St Paul’s Church, on Saunder Bank, was founded in 1845 and closed in 1961. It did not have a graveyard. In 1848 the Sunday School started, and the 1851 census showed there was a school room licensed for worship prior to the erection of church. The church proper was built in 1853. When the church closed in 1961, the parish combined with St Catherine. In 1963 the church was demolished.

Holy Trinity Church, Accrington Road, Habergham Eaves (The Mitre), was founded in 1835 on land given by Robert Townley Parker. It was consecrated in 1836. In 1873 a chancel was added. In 1989 the church closed and the site converted into flats, with the parish combining with St Matthew's.

St Saviour’s Church, in Church Street, closed in 1954. It had begun in 1893 as a Protestant Association Mission Room in Chaffer's Yard. It then moved to a room above Carter's Surgery in Church Street. In 1898 a Gospel Protestant Mission Hall in Church Street was also formed, by a group from St Peter's Church, following a disagreement.

In the 1800s St Ayden Mission, for Holy Trinity, existed in Canal Street, Habergham Eaves, and later in Charlotte Street, Habergham Eaves. There was also the church of St Columba’s, on Hebrew Road (Duke Bar), but its dates are unclear.

Roman Catholic churches

Towneley Chapel One of the earliest parish priests, working before the 1730s, was Fr John Nutter who was probably born in Reedley Hallows. Together with his brother, he went to Rheims in 1579, to train as a seminary priest and was ordained in 1582. He was captured on landing back in England in January 1583, and was tried and executed on 12 February 1584, on the same day as George Haydock.

The chapel at Townley Hall, was founded before 1706 and closed in 1872, was the chief centre of Roman Catholic worship in Burnley until modern times. The Towneley family had kept a private chapel in medieval times, and for centuries had been connected with Whalley Abbey. During the reign of Queen Elizabeth I the family attended Mass in their bailiff's house. But they also provided for Mass in their private chapel, and the house became honeycombed with secret holes and hiding places. A seventeenth-century description of the hiding places at Towneley was published for the first time in 1923 when Lord Abingdon had forwarded it to the Mayor of Burnley. The document was printed in the Burnley Express on 1 August 1923. The Catholics of Towneley were of Jacobite sympathies at the time of the 1715 rebellion, as is shown by a register kept by Father Thomas Anderton, who lived at Towneley between 1705 and 1741, for almost the whole of his missionary life.