Hundreds of crimes were committed at churches in Wales last year, new figures have revealed.

The Countryside Alliance’s latest investigation has revealed that in 2025 271 crimes were committed on church property as well as other religious premises in Wales. Across the whole UK, the figure was nearly 4,000.

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

Rachel Evans, Director of Countryside Alliance Wales, spoke to BBC Wales to discuss the issue.

The full breakdown by Welsh police forces was as follows:

Dyfed Powys

Dyfed Powys Police responded to our FOI request in full. In total, 25 crimes were recorded at churches in Dyfed Powys. This includes 15 thefts, 2 of which relate to lead, 7 cases of criminal damage, and 3 cases of violence.

Gwent

Gwent Police responded in full to our FOI request. In total, 42 crimes were recorded in a church or on church grounds in the Gwent area. This includes 19 thefts, 13 cases of criminal damage, and 2 cases of violence. 2 crimes in this period related to the theft of lead from church roofs.

North Wales

North Wales Police responded in full to our FOI request. In total, 76 crimes were recorded at churches in North Wales. This includes 24 thefts, 24 cases of criminal damage, and 16 cases of violence.

South Wales

South Wales Police responded in full to our FOI request. In total, 128 crimes were recorded at churches in the South Wales area. This includes 43 thefts, of which one related to lead, 24 cases of criminal damage, and 61 cases of violence.

Freedom of Information (FOI) requests were made to all of the UK’s 45 territorial police forces. At the time of writing, 44 police forces had responded to our requests, with 37 of them providing us with figures.

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.

This means that, on average, more than ten crimes took place at churches and places of worship every single day last year. The true figure will likely be higher, given that a number of police forces refused to provide data for recorded crimes at churches in their areas. A key issue raised by the investigation is the differences between police forces and how they categorise data, making it harder to paint a true picture of the scale of the problem.

58 lead and metal thefts were recorded, along with 1,561 other thefts and burglaries (total thefts and burglaries 1,619), 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, stated:

"In Wales and across the rest of 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 increases funding for churches, so that we can keep these hugely important community assets open and in use."

Data obtained by the Countryside Alliance over the past eight years has revealed a total of 43,853 crimes recorded since 2017, with 17,338 thefts, 12,430 cases of criminal damage and arson, and 5,696 cases of violence.

The Countryside Alliance has urged the public to remain vigilant and to report any suspicious activity in and around churches and places of worship to the police.