Climate activists Insulate Britain has said 117 supporters have been charged over its road-blocking protests between September and November last year.

Charges have been issued by the Metropolitan Police, Kent Police and Essex Police in recent weeks.

They include 146 charges of causing a public nuisance, 137 of wilful obstruction of the highway, and 10 of criminal damage.

Insulate Britain said it is “likely these numbers will rise as we understand that further charges are still being issued”.

At least 25 plea hearings are scheduled to take place at magistrates’ courts in Crawley, Chelmsford and Stratford in April and May.

Some 174 people were arrested a total of 857 times during the protests.

Insulate Britain said some who repeatedly returned to the roads were arrested “10-15 times during 18 days of roadblocks”.

Prior to the wave of charges, activists had only faced civil action.

Fourteen were jailed for breaking injunctions banning protests on the M25.

Insulate Britain said public nuisance prosecutions can result in a maximum sentence of up to five years in prison and an unlimited fine.

Cameron Ford, 31, a carpenter from Cambridge who is summoned to appear at Crawley Magistrates’ Court on April 4, said: “The CPS (Crown Prosecution Service) undertaking these mass prosecutions is an attempt by our Government to ignore and avoid addressing the biggest dangers facing people right now.

“By not insulating Britain’s leaky homes they are knowingly condemning millions more families to live in fuel poverty and thousands and thousands of our elderly to die in frozen homes next winter.”

Nick Till, 66, a university professor from London who is due to appear at the same court on April 6, said: “As an academic, my duty is to find and tell the truth, and civil disobedience is now the only way of getting the truth out there.

“I do not regret my actions. Even though I regret the inconvenience caused to many of my fellow citizens by my actions, it is nothing compared to what is coming down the line for those same people and their loved ones if we fail to do anything.”