Lead theft leaves churches feeling exposed

12:43pm Thursday 7th February 2008

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Metal theft has reached epidemic proportions in the South West culminating in one and a half tonnes of lead being stolen from Tewkesbury Abbey in November. Charlotte Shepherd investigates this growing problem.

CHURCHES nationwide are in the grip of a crisis as roofs are being plundered for their valuable lead tiles.

"We have had enough. We are not going to sit back and see our national heritage torn away from us.”

Ecclesiastical Insurance, which provides cover for 95 percent of all Anglican churches in the UK, received 2,000 claims relating to lead theft in 2007, at a cost of over £6m. In 2005 there were just 80 claims costing £300,000.

Some churches are even seeing repeated thefts which sends costs above the £25,000 insurance limit a year that Ecclesiastical can provide and are forced to consider using cheaper materials on their roofs which are less desirable to thieves.

Chris Pitt, spokesman for Ecclesiastical Insurance, based in Gloucester, said: "County claims for Gloucestershire alone are £60,000 this year relating to lead theft."

It is believed that the rising cost of lead and other metals, combined with the increased demands for these metals from countries like China and India is behind the current spate of thefts.

The problem is not just confined to churches. Businesses and residential homes are also at risk. Last month Cotswold District Council offices were targeted with four square metres of lead roofing taken from the building's porch.

In recent months aluminium road signs have stolen from Gloucestershire's roads and a drain cover worth £200 was recently taken from the Bathurst Estate.

Gloucestershire Police have had 354 instances of metal theft reported to them between the 2006/2007 financial year.

Paul Francis, Gloucestershire Crime Prevention Officer, explained: "Thefts have increased since metal prices have gone up. Any sort of metal is valuable. Lead has doubled in scrap value and the return is significant."

However, he stressed that the police had made good progress. "We've had a lot of success and have recovered a lot of lead and arrested people. We are upping patrols at key times."

The British Metals Recycling Association, which represents 300 members, is also joining forces with the police to try to stamp out the problem.

Lindsay Millington, director general of the Association, said: "We want to stop stolen metals entering the legitimate trade."

The sites of her members are also targeted by thieves. "We lose a lot from sites," she said.

There are encouraging signs that members of the public and the diocese are waking up to the problem of metal theft.

"We are seeing a lot of good practice now," said Paul. "We are getting calls into our centre when the public get suspicious."

He urged communities to watch out and report anything unusual.

Crimestoppers are also involved and are considering mounting a campaign to raise awareness.

Jamie Eykyn, chairman of Gloucestershire Crimestoppers, told us "We are keen to do something to promote the use of telephone numbers where people can leave information about any thefts anonymously."

Ecclesiastical's Chris believes that the public can play a huge part in stopping the plunder of our churches. "Often communities don't realise what they have got until they have lost it. We are encouraging members of the public to keep and ear and eye out."

The Police are also considering introducing Church Watch, which would work upon the same principles as Neighbourhood Watch but would ask the public to watch out for their local church.

There are practical measures that churches and home and business owners can take to protect themselves.

Ecclesiastical Insurance has started the process of rolling out SmartWater protection for every Anglican church that it insures, some 16,500 churches.

SmartWater is a solution containing a DNA-style forensic code. Each church will receive its own unique code meaning marked items can be traced back to the owner and criminals coming into contact with SmartWater can be linked with the crime scene.

The solution is invisible under normal light, but glows brightly under UV light making it easily identifiable by the police.

"It's a high tech product but simple to apply," said Chris.

He believes that awareness of the product is high amongst the criminal fraternity and will be successful as a deterrent. "The message is loud and clear to thieves that churches are well protected so think twice about targeting them."

This could be the start of the fight back. "We want to be forthright. We have had enough. We are not going to sit back and see our national heritage torn away from us," said Chris.

ADVICE ON CHURCH PROTECTION (from Ecclesiastical Insurance)

* Mark large sections of lead roofs and other metals.

* Mark individual items of property.

* Make friends with your neighbours - they're the very best people to keep an eye out.

* Consider anti-climb paint, CCTV, intruder alarms or security lighting if your church is particularly at risk.

* Restrict vehicle access and remove ladders - make the thieves' job harder.

* Where possible, replace with less expensive materials to make sure there's no incentive for the thieves to re-visit (A change of materials may require consultation with English Heritage and planning permission.)