(Photo: Getty/iStock)
Thousands of crimes were committed against church properties in 2025, the Countryside Alliance has reported.
There were 3,637 instances of theft, burglary, criminal damage, vandalism and assault recorded between 1 January and 31 December 2025, with an additional 172 crimes belonging to different categories that brought the total recorded crimes to 3,809.
Thefts and burglaries accounted for 1,619 of the recorded incidents, including 58 lead and metal thefts, while criminal damage including vandalism and arson made up 1,018 of the incidents. There were 1,000 cases of violence.
The figures amount to 10 crimes a day being perpetrated at UK churches.
The data comes from Freedom of Information (FOI) requests to the UK’s 45 territorial police forces, 37 of which responded.
The Countryside Alliance said the problem was “undoubtedly” worse as Thames Valley Police, Derbyshire Police, Cheshire Police, Avon & Somerset Police, Durham Police, Hampshire & Isle of Wight Police and Police Scotland did not provide any figures in response to the requests.
The worst-hit areas were London, with 531 crimes recorded by the Metropolitan Police and an additional 30 by City of London Police, followed by West Yorkshire with 445 recorded crimes, and Greater Manchester with 172 recorded crimes.
Mo Metcalf-Fisher, Director of External Affairs at the Countryside Alliance, said: “Across the country, churches and places of worship continue to suffer, as vandals, thieves and other criminals treat them as easy targets.
“We cannot allow this to continue. Churches and places of worship are focal points for local communities, particularly in rural towns and villages where they play a crucial role in combatting isolation. It is vital that the public keep a watchful eye and report any issues to the police.
“At the same time as it appears crime is going up, funding is going down. The government has this year imposed VAT on church repairs, increasing costs for hard-pressed and vulnerable churches while at the same time refusing to increase funding in line with inflation. It is vital that the government drastically increases funding for churches, so that we can keep these hugely important community assets open and in use.”
Recorded crimes included the theft of £25,000 worth of historic silverware from St Margaret of Antioch Church in Barley, Hertfordshire and the destruction of historic stained glass at St Mary and St Martin, Blyth, Nottinghamshire, costing thousands of pounds to replace. The perpetrators not only kicked in the stained glass but overturned furniture and scrawled graffiti inside the building and damaged the altar cross.
Ben Sims, Head of Policy and Public Affairs at the National Churches Trust, said, “The National Churches Trust welcomes this new report by the Countryside Alliance, which shows that a shocking ten crimes a day were committed at UK churches last year. If volunteers are not supported, and if funding is not easily accessible, this is just one of many sad outcomes.
“Already this year the government has imposed VAT on 21,000 historic places of worship. By further demoralising volunteers, and causing chaos for ongoing restoration projects, this leads to churches becoming more vulnerable. We should be helping those who wish to safeguard our national heritage, not making their lives more difficult.”
Deputy Chief Constable Rachel Nolan, National Police Chiefs’ Council Lead for Heritage Crime said: “As the policing lead for heritage crime, I’m acutely aware of the impact it can have on communities. Crime and anti social behaviour targeting our heritage can be targeted or simply thoughtless, but the harm can still be significant. Crimes impacting churches are one of the most common reports impacting our heritage.”
She added, “I would encourage anyone to report suspicious activity, no matter how minor it may seem, whether that’s around churches themselves, which are often in isolated locations, or around unusual metal or stone that may have come from church or heritage sites.”
