Ensure fair and transparent faith security funding for all faith communities

Publish clear data on how faith security funding is allocated and ensure all communities can access it fairly. We think this should be done alongside improving transparency, outreach, and support so underrepresented groups, including Hindu community, can apply and receive appropriate protection.

The Government remains resolutely committed to protecting the right of all faith communities to worship freely and without fear. Everyone, regardless of their religion, deserves to feel safe to practise their faith and participate in public life.

Sadly, the threat of hate crime and wider security concerns continue to affect a wide range of faith groups. This is why the Government operates several protective security schemes for faith communities, with record funding of up to £77.4 million available for this vital work in 2026/27.

Funding allocations for these schemes is based on an assessment of risk, informed by police data, threat assessments, and wider security advice. This approach ensures that support is targeted where it is most needed. While the Government is committed to transparency, some information underpinning risk assessments is sensitive. We therefore cannot publish all detail, but we remain clear about the overall approach and the principles used to allocate funding.

Home Office data on police-recorded hate crime show that religious hate crime continues to increase, with the majority (73%) of religious hate crime targeted at Jewish and Muslim communities in the most recent reporting year, and funding is allocated proportionately for the Jewish Community Protective Security Grant and the Protective Security for Mosques Scheme to reflect this risk.

However, this does not mean that we are not deeply concerned about the hate crime faced by other faith communities and the harm such incidents cause. The Places of Worship Protective Security Scheme provides protective security measures for places of worship and associated faith community centres of a wide range of faith groups, including Christian, Hindu, Sikh and other communities, helping to ensure that they are protected from hate crime. Funding for the scheme has been increased to £5 million in 2026/27.

In addition, the Home Office has launched a new Faith Security Training scheme to improve awareness and preparedness across all faith communities in England and Wales. This free training, developed in partnership with policing and faith representatives, is practical, accessible, and tailored to the needs of faith leaders and volunteers. Further information is available on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/faith-security-training.

The Government continues to work closely with the police, security partners and community organisations to review threats, improve delivery and awareness of our protective security schemes, and ensure that funding remains fair and proportionate. We will keep these programmes under review to ensure that all communities feel supported and able to access the protection they need.

Home Office