asylum | LocalGov

Asylum hotel use may increase as small boat crossings continue

11/09/2024

Asylum hotels are expected to remain open for months, with the Home Office privately suggesting they will be required for longer than originally planned, The MJ understands.

LGA calls for longer asylum move-on time

11/09/2024

Councils have called for people to be allowed more time to leave Home Office accommodation after receiving an asylum decision.

Controversial plans to build asylum site at RAF Scampton axed

06/09/2024

RAF Scampton will no longer be used to house asylum seekers, according to the local authority.

Call for council role in asylum housing

29/08/2024

A call has been made for a more prominent role for local government in asylum accommodation.

Council leader: Attack on asylum hotel ‘confirms worst fears’ about disorder

05/08/2024

The leader of Rotherham council said an attempt to set fire to a hotel housing asylum seekers had ‘confirmed our worst fears’ about the nature of recent disorder across the country.

Lone asylum-seeking child arrivals to Kent up 87%

15/07/2024

The number of unaccompanied asylum-seeking (UAS) children arriving in the UK along Kent’s shoreline has risen by 87%.

Rough sleeping in London hits new record high

27/06/2024

The final year of a Conservative government that pledged to end rough sleeping saw a record number of people sleeping on the streets of London.

Party leaders urged to act on migrant homelessness

25/06/2024

More than 100 homelessness and migrants’ rights organisations have called on the next government to stop the asylum system ‘driving people needlessly’ into destitution.

Inquiry call over asylum hotel use

17/06/2024

A charity has called for a statutory independent inquiry into the use of hotels for unaccompanied asylum seeking (UAS) children.

EXCLUSIVE: Full dispersal asylum targets still in draft

12/06/2024

Ministers have not signed off the Government’s 2024 targets for identifying an extra 100,000 bedspaces for asylum seekers this year, The MJ can reveal.

Judge: Kent cannot wriggle out of asylum duties

05/06/2024

Kent CC has been told by a judge it cannot wriggle out of its duties to ‘accommodate and look after’ all unaccompanied asylum seeking (UAS) children.

Braintree withdraws legal challenge over asylum site

31/05/2024

Braintree District Council has withdrawn a legal challenge over the Government's use of former airfield RAF Wethersfield to house asylum seekers.

Ending asylum hotel use could put ‘unacceptable pressure’ on councils

29/05/2024

MPs have raised concerns that the Government has not engaged effectively with councils about the impact of its asylum policies on local areas.

Agreement reached over asylum site

29/05/2024

West Lindsey District Council is set to launch a £300m regeneration scheme at RAF Scampton after the Home Office agreed to accommodate fewer asylum seekers at the site.

Government digs in over asylum housing target

29/05/2024

Home Office has doubled down on council concerns over asylum targets and insisted Full Dispersal can ‘strike balance between equity and housing availability’.

EXCLUSIVE: Councils given 100,000 asylum housing target

21/05/2024

Councils have been told to identify an extra 100,000 bedspaces for asylum seekers amid Home Office expectations of a surge in arrivals, The MJ can reveal.

Asylum seekers moved from RAF Wethersfield due to incomplete safety checks

18/04/2024

The Home Office has moved 70 people away from an asylum accommodation site after it failed to complete necessary safety checks on time.

EXCLUSIVE: Demand surges for UASC age assessments

12/04/2024

Councils are struggling to cope with demand for age assessments of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) as record numbers arrive once again in Kent.

Aslyum centre site could host prison

25/03/2024

Braintree DC has warned it faces intervention from a second Government department when the Home Office ends its use of a former airfield as an asylum centre.

Hopes for regen scheme revived after Home Office scales back asylum plan

20/03/2024

A £300m council-led regeneration scheme threatened when Whitehall commandeered the site for asylum accommodation could now go ahead.

Craig's call for asylum change

07/03/2024

Manchester City Council’s leader has urged Whitehall to implement ‘simple changes’ to asylum policy to ease huge pressures on major urban centres.

Home Office 'chaos' leaves thousands of illegal arrivals in 'perma-backlog'

27/02/2024

The Government’s struggling asylum policy has heaped significant demand on cities’ housing services, experts have warned.

New legal bid as long-term asylum site plans confirmed

02/02/2024

West Lindsey DC has launched a fresh legal challenge after the Home Office confirmed its intention to use RAF Scampton to house asylum seekers.

Council slams ‘lack of transparency’ over RAF Wethersfield extension

31/01/2024

Braintree District Council has criticised the Home Office after its plans emerged to extend the use of a former airfield for asylum accommodation by three years.

Council confirms asylum centre appeal

21/12/2023

West Lindsey DC is to appeal against the dismissal of its judicial review over the Home Office’s asylum centre plans.

Barge death concerns

18/12/2023

Concerns over conditions inside some asylum accommodation intensified last week, after the death of an asylum seeker onboard the Bibby Stockholm barge.

Boroughs have ‘nothing to offer’ as refugee homelessness rises

07/12/2023

New research has found that an increasing number of refugees are rough sleeping in London after leaving Home Office accommodation.

Damning reality of asylum

05/12/2023

A shocking public health report by Hounslow LBC exposes bleak conditions as councils urge Home Office and contractors to improve.

Home Office admits 'more we can and need to do'

30/11/2023

More needs to be done to share data and improve communications with councils, Home Office mandarins have admitted.

Home Secretary acted ‘irrationally’ over National Transfer Scheme

29/11/2023

The Home Secretary’s powers have been exercised ‘irrationally’ when it comes to the decision-making process in relation to the National Transfer Scheme (NTS), the High Court has ruled.

Thousands of refugees face homelessness at Christmas, LGA warns

29/11/2023

The Government’s push to clear the asylum backlog is putting ‘tens of thousands’ of refugees at risk of homelessness over Christmas, the Local Government Association (LGA) has warned.

EXCLUSIVE: Asylum seeker dispersal only reaches 60% mark

23/11/2023

The Home Office’s Full Dispersal policy of placing asylum seekers across all UK regions has delivered just 60% of Whitehall’s target.

Councillors urge Government to respect Rwanda ruling

16/11/2023

Nearly 130 councillors have urged the Government to respect the Supreme Court’s ruling on its controversial plans to send people seeking asylum to Rwanda.

Councils brace as Supreme Court outlaws Rwanda asylum plan

15/11/2023

The Supreme Court has ruled the UK’s controversial proposal to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda is unlawful – a decision likely to impact local government.

Housing minister among casualties of Sunak reshuffle

13/11/2023

The UK will have its 16th housing minister in 12 years after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s sweeping reshuffle affected the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

‘Tragic and shameful’ rough sleeping increase in London

01/11/2023

City Hall had told the Government it must act to avoid ‘spiralling’ homelessness this winter after new data showed rising rough sleeping across the capital.

Temporary accommodation costs mount to £1.74bn

27/10/2023

English councils spent £1.74bn on temporary accommodation last year, research has found as more than 100 local authorities signed up to an ‘emergency’ housing summit.

Home Office 'failing to engage' councils

26/10/2023

The Home Office is ‘failing to engage meaningfully with local authorities’ on asylum, according to a Public Accounts Committee (PAC) report published today.

Homelessness fears over asylum fast-tracking

26/10/2023

The largest city councils in England and Scotland fear that Government plans to speed up asylum decisions will result in thousands of people facing homelessness.

LGA: involve councils in asylum hotel decisions

25/10/2023

Councils want an active role in decisions about ending hotel use for asylum seekers, local government bosses have said.

EXCLUSIVE: Home Office accused of misleading council over asylum plans

24/10/2023

The Home Office faces accusations in the High Court it misled a council over controversial plans for an asylum centre at a former military base.

Council bosses raise concerns over refugee cap

23/10/2023

The Local Government Association (LGA) has raised concerns about plans to introduce a national cap on refugees that is informed by consultation with local authorities.

Asylum seekers to be returned to Bibby Stockholm

11/10/2023

Asylum seekers are being notified that they will be sent back to a migrant barge, which was closed after legionella bacteria was detected.

‘For-profit’ asylum housing system must end, charity says

11/10/2023

Responsibility for asylum accommodation must be returned to local authorities from private companies, the charity Refugee Action has said.

Home Office ditches Stradey Park asylum plans

10/10/2023

The Home Office has withdrawn its controversial plans to house asylum seekers at the Stradey Park Hotel in Furnace, Llanelli.

EXCLUSIVE: Council warning over asylum communication

03/10/2023

‘Limited’ Home Office communication over asylum – including poor data sharing - continues to stymie efforts to resolve accommodation problems, councils warn.

Further stop notice at RAF Scampton

25/09/2023

West Lindsey District Council has again told the Home Office to cease work at RAF Scampton.

Cash injection for Kent as councils drag feet on National Transfer Scheme

18/09/2023

Government has given Kent £10m for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children amid concerns other councils have been slow to support the National Transfer Scheme.

Council halts Home Office work on RAF Scampton

08/09/2023

West Lindsey District Council has ordered the Home Office to stop work to convert a former military base into accommodation for asylum seekers.

Pressure mounts on councils amid refugee homelessness warning

06/09/2023

Refugees are being told to move out of asylum support housing at short notice, adding to pressure faced by council homelessness services, 140 groups warn.

Kent ‘once again’ cannot meet UAS children duties

29/08/2023

‘Ever-escalating’ arrivals of asylum seekers and a ‘wholly inadequate’ National Transfer Scheme (NTS) have left Kent unable to meet its statutory duties in caring for children, the county council has warned.

EXCLUSIVE: Questions over child age assessments

25/08/2023

Council directors have raised doubts over Government plans to take over age assessments of unaccompanied asylum seeking children.

Asylum ‘perma-backlog’ to impact councils

22/08/2023

Reforms to the UK’s asylum system are likely to pile more pressure on councils struggling to support unaccompanied children, a new report has found.

Approach to accommodating Afghan families ‘unacceptable’

15/08/2023

The approach to finding accommodation for Afghan families has been ‘unacceptable’ and represents a failure to ‘live up to Britain's values’, says think tank.

Local mayor plans Bibby Stockholm legal challenge

09/08/2023

The Mayor of Portland is planning on launching a legal challenge against the Home Office over the use of the Bibby Stockholm barge to house asylum seekers.

Glasgow refuses permission for asylum barge

08/08/2023

The leader of Glasgow City Council has told the Government that the local authority would not give its consent to dock a barge for asylum seekers in the city.

LGA: Councils already seeing homeless Afghan families

07/08/2023

Councils are already seeing Afghan families presenting as homeless due to the Government’s policy of moving them out of hotels, local authority leaders say.

Firefighters warn Braverman over asylum barge safety

03/08/2023

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) has written to Suella Braverman about fire safety concerns in accommodation for asylum seekers, including the Bibby Stockholm.

‘Systematic’ housing of child refugees in hotels unlawful

27/07/2023

Kent County Council has acted unlawfully by failing to accommodate and look after all unaccompanied children seeking asylum, the High Court has ruled.

First asylum barge arrives

18/07/2023

A controversial barge for 500 asylum seekers today arrived at its mooring off the Dorset coast.

Dismay at 'top-down diktat' approach to asylum

11/07/2023

Councils and MPs this week expressed dismay at the Home Office’s ‘top-down diktat’ plan to double asylum seeker numbers at many hotels.

Council loses legal bid over asylum hotel plans

10/07/2023

Carmarthenshire CC has been unsuccessful in its application for an interim injunction to prevent asylum seekers being housed at a hotel in Llanelli.

Council launches legal action over hotel due to house asylum seekers

07/07/2023

Carmarthenshire County Council (CCC) is taking legal action over plans to use a hotel in Llanelli to house asylum seekers.

Kent launches legal action over asylum-seeking children

06/07/2023

Kent has issued a claim for judicial review against the home secretary, asking her to direct other councils to receive 'fair share’ of refugee children.

'Not acceptable' to treat age disputed young people as spontaneous arrivals

06/07/2023

It is ‘not acceptable’ that age disputed young people from asylum hotels are treated as spontaneous arrivals, says head of directors of children’s services.

Afghan families face homelessness as councils at ‘crisis point’

04/07/2023

Afghan families are at risk of becoming homeless due to the acute housing shortage, council chiefs warn at the start of the LGA's annual conference.

Planning inspector green lights Stafford asylum centre

26/06/2023

A Government planning inspector has overruled the local planning authority and given the go-ahead for an asylum seekers centre in Stafford.

Council loses asylum appeal

26/06/2023

Braintree DC has lost its appeal against Government plans to house asylum seekers on a former airfield.

Manchester leaders call for urgent action on asylum seeker hotels

22/06/2023

Manchester leaders call for urgent action on asylum seeker hotels

Asylum issues damaging Home Office relations with councils

16/06/2023

The Home Office is ‘failing to work effectively with local authorities’ in clearing its asylum backlog, the National Audit Office (NAO) has concluded.

Plan to house asylum seekers on ship scrapped

12/06/2023

The latest plan for a cruise ship to house asylum seekers has been scrapped after it was turned down by the port operator.

Council chiefs call for ‘urgent solutions’ to refugee homelessness

09/06/2023

Local authority leaders have called for ‘urgent solutions’ to the issue of refugees being forced to present as homeless.

Aslyum barges plan branded ‘cruel and unworkable’

08/06/2023

A council leader has attacked plans to house asylum seekers on barges in ports.

Housing experts voice ‘concern’ over HMO licensing changes

25/05/2023

Housing and refugee rights experts have voiced ‘extreme concern’ over plans to remove licensing requirements for HMOs used as asylum accommodation.

Braintree DC plans to appeal court’s airfield decision

12/05/2023

Braintree District Council is to continue with legal action to try and stop an airfield being used to house hundreds of asylum seekers.

Welsh village opposes plans to house refugees in hotel

09/05/2023

Villagers in Wales have vowed to fight plans for 400 asylum seekers to be lodged in a former hotel.

Council has ‘unanswered questions’ about refugee barge

04/05/2023

Dorset Council and police have criticised the Home Office for not answering key questions about plans to house asylum seekers on a barge in Portland Port.

Hundreds of refugees wrongly classified as adults, FoI reveals

25/04/2023

Hundreds of young refugees are being wrongly classified as adults by the Home Office, according to new research based on information provided by councils.

Refugees housed in hotels face ‘atmosphere of cruelty’, report says

24/04/2023

Campaigners have called on the Government to allocate councils with more funds to help them provide better services to asylum seekers housed in London hotels.

Councils concerned over Afghan removal plan

12/04/2023

Councils have expressed deep concerns about Government plans to remove Afghan refugees from hotel accommodation amid ‘chronic’ shortage of affordable housing.

Plan to house refugees on former RAF base on hold

11/04/2023

The Government’s plan to house asylum seekers on a former RAF airbase has been put on hold after Braintree council sought an injunction to stop the move.

Portland mayor criticises refugee barge plan

06/04/2023

Portland mayor Pete Roper has criticised the Government’s plan to house refugees on a barge off the Dorset coast because of the pressure on local services.

Plan to house refugees on a barge criticised

04/04/2023

The Government is facing fierce opposition to plans to use a barge off the Dorset coast to house asylum seekers.

Councils criticise plans to house refugees on RAF bases

30/03/2023

Unused military sites will be used to house asylum seekers who enter the UK illegally on small boats despite local opposition, the Government has confirmed.

Gary Lineker twitter row ‘fuss about nothing’, says mayor

13/03/2023

Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen calls for Gary Lineker to be reinstated on Match of the Day and tells everyone to ‘grow up’.

Change policy on housing asylum seekers in hotels, council chiefs say

13/03/2023

Two-thirds of London’s councils have called on the home secretary to change the Government’s policy on housing asylum seekers in hotels.

Plans to house asylum seekers in a Pontins park abandoned

03/02/2023

The Government has decided not to continue with its plans to house asylum seekers in a Pontins Holiday Park on Merseyside, according to the local council.

Council calls for review into missing children

30/01/2023

Brighton & Hove City Council has called for a safeguarding review after dozens of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children went missing from a hotel in the city.

Councillors call for end to outsourcing asylum accommodation

30/01/2023

Local councillors from across the UK have called on the Government to stop outsourcing asylum accommodation to for-profit companies.

Councils flooded with ‘bogus’ refugee sponsorship offers

10/01/2023

Local authorities in London are struggling to cope with the amount of bogus Ukraine refugee sponsorship offers they receive, a migrants’ charity has warned.

East Lindsey due for court battle

06/01/2023

East Lindsey DC is threatening to become the latest council to take legal action over the use of hotels to accommodate asylum seekers.

Two more councils seek injunctions over use of hotels to house asylum seekers

09/11/2022

Two more councils have taken legal action to stop local hotels from being used to house asylum seekers.

Council writs fly over asylum crisis

01/11/2022

Growing numbers of councils are securing injunctions preventing the use of hotels to house asylum seekers as ministers struggle to deal with an increasing backlog.

222 children ‘missing’ from care

24/10/2022

An estimated 222 unaccompanied children are currently missing from the care of the Home Office, new figures have revealed.

Council to pay £1000 to those hosting Ukrainian guests

21/10/2022

Kent CC has announced it is increasing payments to those hosting Ukrainian guests to ensure that they can continue to host with the squeeze on budgets.

Linton-on-Ouse asylum centre plans dropped

17/10/2022

Hambleton District Council has welcomed confirmation that plans for a new asylum reception centre will be scrapped.

Council obtains injunction to stop hotel housing asylum seekers

06/10/2022

Great Yarmouth Borough Council has obtained an injunction to stop a second hotel from being used as a hostel for asylum seekers.

Council threatens action against hotel with asylum seekers

06/09/2022

Great Yarmouth Borough Council is taking enforcement action after the Home Office placed asylum seekers in a local hotel.

Councils offered £6,000 to house asylum-seeking children

25/08/2022

Councils offered thousands of pounds in an effort to transfer unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) from temporary hotels to long-term care.

Plan for asylum centre on ex-RAF base scrapped

10/08/2022

Hambleton District Council has cautiously welcomed the Government’s decision to scrap a planned asylum reception centre.

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