UK closes 13 more asylum hotels
August 12, 2026 10:22 pm
FILE: UK Home Office
The United Kingdom government has announced the closure of 13 more hotels used to accommodate asylum seekers, saying the facilities have been returned to local communities for tourism, business and other uses.
The closures, announced by the Home Office on Wednesday, bring the number of asylum hotels closed in April, June and August to 44, with fewer than 160 now remaining in use.
The government said the latest closures are expected to save taxpayers £51m, bringing the total expected savings from this year’s hotel closures to £224m.
It added that this was in addition to an almost £1bn reduction in asylum accommodation costs since the 2024 general election.
The hotels being handed back include facilities in Blackpool, Nottingham, Stratford-upon-Avon, Lewisham, Bradford and Norwich.
The government said the closures would allow the hotels to return to normal business or be converted for other uses, while supporting local jobs and businesses.
The latest move is part of the government’s wider plan to end the use of hotels for asylum accommodation and relocate asylum seekers to larger, basic facilities, including former military sites.
The Home Office said discussions had begun on the use of three former Ministry of Defence sites at Bicester, Barnham and Linton-on-Ouse.
According to the government, the three sites could eventually accommodate about 3,750 asylum seekers. Planning permission is currently being sought for MOD Bicester and MOD Barnham, while discussions are ongoing over MOD Linton-on-Ouse.
The government is also seeking to extend the use of existing military sites, including Crowborough until 2030 and Wethersfield beyond 2027.
Immigration Minister Anna Turley said the government was determined to end the use of hotels for asylum accommodation.
“For too long, communities have watched hotels at the centre of their towns and cities become symbols of a broken asylum system,” Turley said.
“We are turning that around by ending the use of asylum hotels for good and moving people into larger, basic accommodation like former military sites.”
She added: “This government’s reforms are overhauling the immigration system to restore control at the border, and fairness to our immigration system.”
The Home Office said the latest closures were part of reforms aimed at reducing pressure on the asylum system and cutting accommodation costs.
It said that since July 2024, record numbers of asylum decisions had been made and nearly 70,000 migrants had been removed.
The government also said a new 24-week target for deciding asylum and immigration appeals for people in accommodation and foreign national offenders would take effect from Wednesday, compared with a current average wait of 67 weeks.
It said the measure was intended to reduce delays, speed up case resolution and removals, and reduce the time people spend in taxpayer-funded accommodation.
The 13 hotels closed are Ramada Jarvis Hotel in Loughborough; Chimney House Hotel in Sandbach; Britannia Ashley Hotel in Hale; Gold Thorn Hotel in Wolverhampton; Grand Metropole Hotel in Blackpool; Nottingham Hotel in Nottingham; Grosvenor Hotel in Stratford-upon-Avon; Staycity Apartments Deptford Bridge in Lewisham; Needham House in Hitchin; Holiday Inn in Bridgwater; Holiday Inn Express in Dunstable; Dubrovnik Hotel in Bradford; and Best Western Brook Hotel in Norwich.
The government said the latest closures marked further progress towards its goal of ending the use of asylum hotels in the UK.
Tosin Oyediran is a journalist at Punch Newspapers with over eight years of professional experience in reporting and storytelling. He is known for conducting incisive interviews and producing compelling human-angle stories that bring clarity and depth to the news. Tosin covers a broad range of beats including politics, health, advocacy, sports, and entertainment, with a strong focus on people-centred reporting. His work reflects firsthand newsroom experience, editorial insight, and a commitment to accurate, engaging, and trustworthy journalism.
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