UK closes 11 more asylum hotels as policy shifts away from hotels
UK closes 11 more asylum hotels as policy shifts away from hotels
Eleven asylum hotels shut, bringing the tally below 190 as residents move to more basic housing and the government pledges to end hotel use by the next election.
Eleven more asylum hotels have closed as the government relocates residents to alternative housing, including the Britannia Hotel in Wolverhampton and the OYO Lakeside in St Helens. The closures are expected to save around £65 million a year and bring the total number of hotels used for asylum accommodation below 190, a sharp drop from the peak of about 400.
Officials say hotels were meant as a short-term measure but spiralled out of control, costing taxpayers billions and weighing on local communities. The new plan shifts people into more basic accommodation, scales up large sites, and moves away from record numbers of people with no right to remain. The aim is to restore control and hand hotels back to communities for good.
Ministers have pledged to end the use of hotels to house asylum seekers by the next election, with some people already moved to sites such as disused army barracks. The Home Office says roughly 350 people have been relocated to the former barracks at Crowborough in East Sussex since January.
As of the end of 2025, 30,657 people were housed in hotels, down 15% from September but still above the pre-2024 election low of 29,561. Dispersal accommodation rose by almost 3,000 over 2025, including privately managed houses, flats, or rooms in multi-occupancy properties available to asylum seekers only.
Critics have warned that moving people to military sites may be less suitable and potentially more expensive than hotels. The policy continues amid ongoing debate, with a push to end hotel use before the next general election.
