Every religion on campus has its student society, from the Christian Union to the Jedi Knights. Now the non-religionists will have theirs too.

The National Federation of Atheist, Humanist and Secular Student Societies launches today to mobilise non-believers.

The "anti-God squad", as it is happy to be called, says it will fight for the voices of what it believes to be the majority of students to be heard on campus and further afield.

It is planning campaigns and events across the country to protest against religious privilege and promote the understanding of science.

It has the support of some of the country's leading critics of religion: the scientist Richard Dawkins, the philosopher AC Grayling, and the Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee.

The launch comes four months after a campaign for 30 London buses to parade the slogan: "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life."

The campaign, first mooted on the Guardian's Comment is Free site by comedy writer Ariane Sherine, began in response to evangelical Christian adverts on buses.

Chloe Clifford-Frith, 22, who has just graduated from Oxford University and will be dealing with the federation's public affairs, said: "We live in a world where religious governments execute adulterers and homosexuals, deny women and minority groups basic freedoms, and circulate fraudulent claims about contraception and scientific research.

"We are privileged, in such a world, to live in a country where we can even have this debate and, as such, we have a duty to bring it into our universities and beyond."

Polly Toynbee said the students' federation would "keep the rational and ethical humanist tradition alive both on and off campus".

She said: "We need to oppose zealotry and fanaticism of all sorts by promoting the positive and liberating case for believing that life on earth is precious, because the here and now is all there is, and our destiny is in our hands.

"The humanist view of life is progressive and optimistic, in awe of human potential, living without fear of judgment and death, finding enough purpose and meaning in life, love and leaving a good legacy. It is great to see these values being taken up by today's students."

Professor Richard Dawkins said public statements of non-belief were treated as "threatening" and an "affront to the religious". Religious belief did not have to earn respect like other views did, he said. "Beliefs that are unsupported, bigoted or demand special privileges should always be challenged. No opinion should be protected from criticism simply by virtue of being religiously held," he said.

AC Grayling said: "All people are entitled to their beliefs, but we secularists are right in arguing that the state must be entirely neutral in these matters. Yet some religious groups defend and even aim to expand their considerable privileges … Increasing numbers of young people are unwilling to put up with it."

He cited public money for faith schools and seats in the House of Lords for faith leaders as examples of religious privilege.

The new federation is affiliated to the British Humanist Association.

Pod Bhogal, head of communications at the Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship (UCCF), said: "Universities are a marketplace of ideas where concepts can be exchanged. Anything that encourages intelligent and meaninful discussion we see as positive. We are thankful for the atheist bus campaign because it raised awareness of spiritual things and put God on the agenda."