Reports of religious hate crime against Muslims up 15%, Home Office says
Government statistics for England and Wales published as British Muslim Trust reveals that attacks on mosques are getting worse in severity
Reports of religious hate crimes targeting Muslims in England and Wales increased by 15% in the year to March 2026, Home Office figures published on Thursday reveal.
According to the data, police recorded 11,419 religious hate crimes against all faiths in 2025-26, up 13% from 10,067 the previous year. Of these, 5,132 targeted Muslims — 45% of religious hate crimes recorded — compared with 4,479 the year before.
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Public order offences remain the most common type of hate crime targeting Muslims, with the Home Office recording spikes in September 2025 amid far-right protests and incidents of public disorder, and in March 2026 following the start of the US-Iran conflict.
The figures come as the British Muslim Trust (BMT) publishes its latest report documenting 78 verified attacks — an average of one every five days — and incidents targeting 64 mosques between 21 July 2025 and 30 July 2026.
While the frequency of incidents has broadly plateaued, BMT found that the severity had increased. The proportion classified as more serious — involving threats, weapons, violence, arson or premeditated mass-casualty plots — rose sharply.
The findings add to mounting pressure over the government’s protective security for mosques scheme, which gives out £40m a year to help fund security measures. Hyphen revealed in August that the scheme had left hundreds of applicants in limbo for months or even years, and that some mosques had been forced to spend thousands of pounds on security instead of tackling urgent repairs or helping people with the cost of living crisis.
In the first three months of BMT’s reporting period, 22.2% of incidents fell into its most serious categories, labelled as levels four to seven.
From November 2025 to July 2026, that figure rose to 62.7%. Incidents involving serious harm, arson or direct violence increased from 3.7% to 19.6%, while two alleged premeditated mass-casualty plots were recorded, compared with none in the earlier period.
The report says the 78 attacks are likely an underestimate, as the figure includes only cases the BMT could verify.
Akeela Ahmed, chief executive of the British Muslim Trust, said the data showed “an incredibly sombre story” about anti-Muslim hostility, adding that “a mosque is vulnerable purely because it’s a mosque”.
“Security needs are increasing as a direct response to the increase in attacks that mosques are under,” she said.
“British Muslims are under attack due to the polarisation that is building and many Muslims are scared to go about their everyday lives.”
