When I take on new clients for maintenance or “care” plans, I often go into the new site. They might have loaded WordPress themes from 2012, 2013, and so on. With all those unused themes, my site maintenance report would look great on paper, but the reality would be different.
Leaving those unused themes would result in hundreds of updates each month. That’s because default WordPress themes are often well-supported, and many newer themes are based on them, inheriting that support. Of course, there are other themes available, but it’s important to choose ones that are well-supported and regularly updated. Regular software updates are essential for security and stability and why a maintenance plan is almost essential.
I generally don’t leave those unused themes alone because each one is a security risk for your site. I’ll go into your theme files and remove all but 3 or 4 of the most recent ones. I’ll review your customizations and keep the most important ones, or discuss them with the client to see if they’re still needed.
I try to keep the number of themes on a site low. This does mean my maintenance report shows fewer updates, but it makes your site much safer. A key goal of good maintenance is to reduce your site’s risk of hacking. Closing any unnecessary options is a step towards better security, and we should take as many steps as we can.