The reality of life in an asylum hotel is far more difficult and complex than is often appreciated, an Ipswich-based refugee centre has said.
The government is currently in the process of transferring asylum seekers out of more than 50 so-called ‘asylum hotels’ before the end of the month. Since their creation, asylum hotels have attracted fierce debate.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and the government have said they want to clear the asylum backlog so many hotels used to house asylum seekers, like Ipswich's Novotel was used previously, can reopen once again.
Advisers at the Ipswich-based Suffolk Refugee Support have said there are many aspects of the asylum process that are misunderstood.
The first is the misleading nature of the word ‘hotel’, the group said.
“The concept people have of a hotel is something luxurious, a hotel in the way that they might experience it,” said Martin Simmonds, fundraising and communications officer.
He and his colleagues, advice worker Anna Girling and advice service manager Jenny Higgins, feel that ‘hostel’ would be more appropriate.
Most asylum seekers will find themselves sharing rooms - which have sometimes already been divided to create more rooms - and often with complete strangers. If they are placed in a remote location, they will find themselves confined to the grounds of the hotel, not having the means to travel to towns or villages where they may interact with the community.
Asylum seekers in hotels where meals are provided receive £9.58 each week to spend on clothes, shoes and transport and other essentials, a figure which is being reduced to £8.86 on Monday.
Asylum seekers have previously told this newspaper of the toll that life in hotels takes on their mental health, unable to work while their applications to stay are being processed and not knowing what the future holds.
Suffolk Refugee Support work with people who have been stuck in hotels two years – but who can also be moved on at any time, and with little or no notice.
They will often see people initially eager to volunteer and engage who become depressed and disheartened, wary of putting down roots in a community that could be taken away from them at any moment.
As Jenny says, “If you want the community and surrounding area to benefit from the skills, abilities and kindness of asylum seekers then constantly moving them cancels out those benefits.”
On Friday, this newspaper told the story of Ahmad, who discovered he was being moved to Coventry less than an hour before his transport arrived.
Being moved into longer-term accommodation such as shared housing can be seen as a positive step, allowing people to regain some independence.
However, the process of leaving the hotels is far from simple. While the Home Office says that asylum seekers are provided with a minimum of five days' notice before their dispersal, Suffolk Refugee Support said that this is not always the case.
“Anything can happen,” said Jenny. “When there are children in the mix, we will sort out all the schooling arrangements – and then it can be cancelled, right at the last minute.
“That can happen two or three times in a row. Or sometimes, people are notified they are going to one place, and halfway through the journey they are told they’re going somewhere else or are sent back, having been told the move is off."
Another frustrating aspect of the system is that, while people are in the process of being moved out of Ipswich, there are also people from elsewhere in the country being moved into dispersal accommodation within the town.
This can feel counter-productive for those like Ahmad, who had begun to build a life and contribute to their local community, before being moved hundreds of miles away.
"All anyone wants is a fair and efficient asylum system,” said Martin.
“Currently, three quarters of asylum claims are granted, so the majority will rebuild their lives in this country, but the way the system is set up at the moment, it does not help that process.
“In fact, it does the opposite.”
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