Lancashire churches saw 158 crimes last year, figures show

Criminals targeted more than a dozen Lancashire churches a month last year.

New figures from the Countryside Alliance showed that nationwide in 2025 nearly 4,000 crimes were committed on church property as well as other religious premises – 10 a day.

In Lancashire the police revealed that in total, 158 crimes were recorded at churches in Lancashire.

This includes 68 thefts, of which eight relate to lead, 27 cases of criminal damage, and 63 cases of violence.

They included just ahead of Easter last year, vandals hitting St James Church in Leyland  daubing the church and nearly 40 gravestones with graffiti in an act the police are treating as a “hate crime”. Graffiti claiming “God is a lie” was scrawled over the church building.

The figures were obtained by the Countryside Alliance as part of its continuous campaign to focus attention on rural churches and increase funding for security at places of worship.

Freedom of Information (FOI) requests were made to all of the UK’s 45 territorial police forces.

The figures show that there were 3,637 records of theft, burglary, criminal damage, vandalism and assault from January 1 to December 31 2025. An additional 172 crimes of different categories brings the total recorded crimes to 3,809.

They included 58 lead and metal theft along with 1,561 other thefts and burglaries, 1,018 incidents of criminal damage, vandalism and arson, and 1000 cases of violence.

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.”

Ben Sims, head of policy and public affairs at the National Churches Trust, said: “The 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.

“We should be helping those who wish to safeguard our national heritage, not making their lives more difficult.”