Crime Wave Hits Welsh Churches: 487 Incidents in Three Years

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At least 487 crimes have been recorded at churches and places of worship across Wales between January 2022 and December 2024, highlighting a growing security concern, according to new data obtained by the Countryside Alliance. The figures, part of the organisation’s campaign to increase funding for rural church security, reveal a troubling pattern of theft, vandalism, arson, and violence targeting these historic and community landmarks.

North Wales Police reported 184 incidents during this period, including 74 thefts, 100 cases of criminal damage, 10 violent offences, and 11 arson attacks. Gwent Police recorded 183 crimes, with 96 thefts and 54 cases of criminal damage, while South Wales Police documented 120 crimes, including 57 thefts-12 involving lead stolen from church roofs-and 57 cases of criminal damage. The true total is likely higher, as Dyfed Powys Police declined to respond to the Freedom of Information request.

High-profile incidents underline the severity of the problem. In December last year, St Twrog’s Church in Llandanwg, Harlech, was raided by thieves who stole “high value” silver and brass items. In 2022, vandals shattered historic stained-glass windows at Llanllwchaiarn church, causing over £30,000 in damages. The same year, Eglwys y Grog near Mwnt suffered extensive vandalism, with all windows smashed and a concrete pillar housing the donations box torn down in what was described as a “senseless” attack.

Nationally, the Countryside Alliance’s report shows that churches face an average of eight crimes daily, including 179 lead thefts, nearly 4,000 thefts, over 3,200 incidents of vandalism and criminal damage (including arson), and nearly 2,000 violent offences ranging from assaults to sexual violence. These figures come from 33 police forces that responded to Freedom of Information requests, with some major forces, such as the Metropolitan Police, refusing to provide data, suggesting the problem is even more widespread.

Mo Metcalf-Fisher, Director of External Affairs at the Countryside Alliance, stressed the urgency of the situation:
“These figures bring into stark relief the devastating fact that many churches and places of worship are being treated as easy targets by criminals. These are supposed to be places of refuge and tranquillity, where people go to worship or seek solace-but all too often they are being subjected to heinous crimes, either in or on their property.
We cannot allow these precious places, which are often the centre of villages and towns in Wales and across the country, to go unguarded and be so exposed.
Easy access to protective funding schemes is of the greatest importance, but it is just as vital that members of the public keep an ever-watchful eye on churches and report suspicious behaviour to police.
It is also our hope that there will be further progress on the development of a new aggravated offense relating to the loss or damage of heritage assets, a move some Parliamentarians have already supported.
Irrespective of faith or none, churches are more than just community buildings, they are often part of our centuries-old history and heritage. They must be protected.”

The data underscores a pressing need for enhanced security measures and public vigilance to safeguard Wales’s historic churches from continuing criminal damage and theft.