Cambridgeshire targeted hundreds of times by metal thieves last year

The Local Government Association has, as a result, called for councils to be given more powers to tackle rogue traders who deal in the spoils of metal thefts.

Cambridgeshire Constabulary recorded 318 metal theft offences in 2019-20, Office for National Statistics data shows.

Of those, 56 were infrastructure-related, which includes the stripping of metal such as roofing lead from buildings including churches, taking electricity or railway cables - causing disruption to services and endangering lives, as well as stealing vehicle parts.

The rest were non-infrastructure related, which could involve stealing scrap metal, manhole covers or even war memorial plaques.

Around 15,900 metal theft offences were recorded across England and Wales in 2019-20.

This was down slightly on the previous year, although it was still higher than the 13,100 recorded in 2016-17.

The LGA said a decline in the years prior to this was partly due to the introduction of the Scrap Metal Dealers Act in 2013, which was brought in to crack down on the trade in stolen metal.

But the group said it has seen a recent resurgece in thefts, which it puts down to a range of factors including an increase in metal prices making the risk more financially worthwhile for thieves.

A spokesman added: “Councils are targeting their resources as efficiently as possible and do what they can to support businesses to meet the requirements of the legislation and can take enforcement action where issues are identified.

“Councils have limited powers and no funding to tackle unlicensed operators and the LGA has also called on government to introduce greater enforcement powers to help local authorities tackle rogue operators.”

The theft of valuable metals such as lead and copper from church buildings has been a major issue for historic churches across the UK in recent years. These materials are stripped from roofs, guttering and other areas, which leaves the buildings vulnerable to water ingress through rainfall and heavy winds.

The number of instances of metal theft declined since peaking in 2011, but continues to occur within the Diocese of Peterborough on multiple occasions each year, and so church congregations need to remain vigilant.

Three men from the West Midlands last month admitted theft of lead from over 30 churches in various parts of the country including Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire. They await sentencing next month by Lincoln Crown Court.

A fourth man will appear at Lincoln Crown Court on September 25 after he was charged with 21 offences of theft of lead from churches around the country.

During 2019 Lincolnshire Police set up a dedicated team to work with the Diocese of Lincoln after a spike in lead theft cases.

Chief inspector Phil Vickers said: “During 2019 Lincolnshire Police worked with the Lincoln Diocese and individual church premises across the county, providing site-specific advice to 53 premises as well as broader guidance to prevent offending, in addition to several hundred site visits that had been carried out previously.

“The impact of these offences goes well beyond the significant financial cost. Communities have felt a great sense of loss at the damage caused to their heritage, and increased vulnerability due to the rural nature of many of the premises.

“We know that in addition to the loss of lead, extensive damage has been caused to the fabric of the buildings by water ingress during bad weather.

“We continue to work with rural communities to prevent offending, and encourage anyone seeing or hearing anything suspicious at Heritage Sites, particularly at night but also during the day, to contact Police immediately.”

At least 8,300 metal thefts across England and Wales last year were from buildings and other infrastructure.

Mark Harrison, head of heritage crime strategy for Historic England, said theft from historic sites like churches has far-reaching consequences over and above the financial cost of what has been stolen.

He said: “When thieves steal metal from heritage assets, such as churches, artefacts from the ground or shipwrecks, they are stealing from all of us and damaging something which is often irreplaceable.”

David Smith, chief executive of the Energy Networks Association, which represents gas and electricity network businesses, said: “Incidents are increasing across the country and can result in power cuts, causing disruption to homes and businesses.

“Those involved in metal theft are putting themselves and others at risk of serious injury or death and police forces are increasingly prioritising their work deterring metal theft.”

A Home Office spokeswoman said the Scrap Metal Dealers Act is a “powerful tool” for the police and local authorities, and that metal theft has declined overall since it was introduced.

She added: “The Act grants powers to enter and inspect scrap metal dealers’ premises and close unlicensed businesses, and makes it an offence for any dealer to buy scrap metal for cash.

“We continue to work closely with the police, Local Government Association, and the scrap metal industry to reduce metal theft.”