Churches offer sanctuary and support within communities, yet all too often they are coming under attack.

Earlier this autumn, Birkenshaw Methodist Church was desecrated by vandals who embarked on a wrecking spree, scorching Bibles, slashing seats and tearing a Crucifix from the wall.

Hymn books were also slashed and wires to the speakers and the piano keyboard were cut after vandals smashed their way through a back door into the Bradford Road building.

The congregation was understandably devastated by the mindless actions of the culprits who so far haven’t been caught.

Down the road in Bradford, St Joseph’s RC Church in Pakington Street has also fallen victim to criminal activity.

A solid metal candlestick with a collecting box attached for people to put their offerings in when they light a candle in memory of a loved one has gone missing, and thieves recently climbed 40ft to the church roof, causing around £9,000-worth of damage as they removed lead worth several hundreds of pounds.

Alarmingly, members of the congregation are being targeted by criminals too. Father John Newman, priest at St Joseph’s Church, says that while members prayed, they have become prey to opportunist thieves who have stolen handbags.

Fr Newman explains the thieves have swooped when members left their belongings behind on the pews to take Communion. “You have to be completely vigilant,” he says.

Churches are increasingly being left trying to strike a balance between stepping up security and offering sanctuary.

Being the ‘eyes and ears’ while the congregation worships is one of the responsibilities of a newly-launched safety team at St Joseph’s, believed to be the first church in the area to set up such a team.

Up to 14 members have been trained in security following a fire during last year’s carol service, which caused £40,000 worth of smoke damage and led to the evacuation of 600 worshippers.

The fire broke out after incense was accidentally thrown into a bin. Fortunately, a door was closed, preventing the fire from spreading to the rest of the church.

Eamonn McCarron, of Low Moor, is the group’s chief safety marshal. He says that some of the team are trained in first aid to assist if any members of the congregation fall ill during services.

The team, which formed earlier this year and holds monthly meetings, wears special tabards and badges so people know who to turn to in an emergency.

Members of the team also hand out hymn books and bulletins and run the church collection.

Eamonn believes that other churches should set up similar groups to protect their congregation. He says worshippers often forget about their worries during services, so it is beneficial to have a team who are on hand to deal with emergencies should they arise.

The security team at St Joseph’s ranges in age from 30 to 70. “They are dedicated to doing a job, but they are dedicated to their faith as well,” says Eamonn.

Fr Newman also hopes other churches and community centres will follow their lead in setting up safety teams.

“It could snowball. Most churches have a good number of people involved in aspects of safety, but it’s having an umbrella group to take responsibility. It is a community and not just a collection of individuals in a building,” he says.

Fr Newman believes churches coming under attack reflects the desperation people are feeling in today’s challenging times.

He believes that those who commit criminal activity in churches are often driven by the “economic necessity that is thrust on people” and the “culture of drug and alcohol dependency.”

“We are experiencing the bi-products of the sort of society we are all responsible in building in the first place,” he says.

“I don’t walk around miserable about it, but to me it is emblematic of so much that is not right in society. It begins with things such as a breakdown of relationships; breakdown of marriage and family life and a culture of selfishness.”