Bristol church targeted by lead thieves

A vicar from Bristol says he is at the end of his tether because his church is continually targeted by lead thieves.

The Rev David Izzard, vicar of St Edyth's C of E Church in Avonleaze, said lead was stripped from the church roof on 10 different occasions last year, costing £40,000.

In the past couple of weeks, the church has again become the focus of thieves because of rising metal prices and lead worth thousands of pounds has once again been stolen.

Mr Izzard is disappointed that police have failed to catch those responsible for the thefts, as the church must spend money on repairs instead of on initiatives in the community.

He said: "I just feel gutted really because we try to pump as much money into the community as we can and even employ our own youth worker on a full time basis. We try and do as much as we can in the community but it all costs money and at the moment we are being prevented from doing much because we are faffing about with these thefts.

"Last year we had some lead stolen from two roofs of the church on approximately 10 different occasions. In the end we had to replace the roofs at a cost of around £40,000.

"Fortunately, most of this was covered by insurance. However, we still had to find the balance and also pay the excess on each separate claim. The theft also caused damage to the inside of the church, which is still being assessed.

"Over the past couple of weeks we have had further thefts, with various lead downpipes and hoppers being stolen and also part of the roof to the side chapel.

"As our insurance company has now greatly reduced the amount that we can claim, we are faced with footing the entire cost of replacement out of our own funds.

"St Edyth's has tried really hard as a church to serve the community in many ways and has spent not inconsiderable amounts of money to the community's benefit.

"Unfortunately, because of what is happening, much if not all of our community money will now have to be used in making repairs to the church instead. I have phoned the police and asked for more patrols in the area but I don't think they have because we have certainly seen very little difference.

"It is just so frustrating because there doesn't seem to be a lot we can do. If I were to put up razor wire and somebody got hurt trying to take the lead, then it would be me who ends up in court."

A spokesman for Ecclesiastical Insurance, which insures churches across the country, said: "Metal theft is the most serious trend of theft that churches have ever faced. In 2003 we paid out £20,000 in claims. In 2008 that rose to more than £9 million.

"Paying claims is not the answer to the problem, we need to stop the thefts happening in the first place.

"With the help of churches, communities, scrap yards and the police, hopefully we can put an end to this problem."

Sea Mills neighbourhood beat manager Andy Stamp said: "Police are fully aware of the thefts that have been affecting the church and are treating the matter seriously. Short of providing extra patrols, officers are working hard to acquire intelligence about the individuals carrying out the raids so they can catch those responsible."