The United Reformed Church resulted from the 1972 union of the Presbyterian Church of England and the Congregational Church in England and Wales. In introducing the United Reformed Church Bill in the House of Commons on 21 June 1972, Alex Lyon called it "one of the most historic measures in the history of the Christian churches in this country".
About a quarter of English Congregational churches chose not to join the new denomination; in England, there are three main groups of continuing Congregationalists: the Congregational Federation, the Evangelical Fellowship of Congregational Churches and the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches.
The URC subsequently united with the Re-formed Association of Churches of Christ in 1981 and the Congregational Union of Scotland in 2000.