Home Office allocates £150m for asylum accommodation centres in 2027-28
The Government will spend a further £150 million on setting up large asylum accommodation sites, with the aim of closing asylum hotels. The plans could mean more rural communities hosting large numbers of asylum seekers, while the Conservatives say the funding shows Labour is not planning to stop arrivals or deport people.
The money is allocated for 2027-28, but the Home Office has not said how many centres will be built or where they will be. Existing sites include Wethersfield in Essex, which cost £49 million to establish and is due to expand from 800 to 1,245 beds; more than 16,000 asylum seekers were in hotels at the end of June, down from 56,000 in 2023. The OBR said support costs should keep falling if claims are processed at the current rate, while councils’ homelessness spending rose from £2 billion in 2010-11 to £4 billion in 2025-26.
In short
- £150 million is earmarked for new asylum accommodation sites.
- The funding is intended to help end the use of asylum hotels.
- No locations or number of new centres have been announced.
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The case for
Dedicated accommodation centres could reduce reliance on costly hotels and give the Home Office more control over housing and support while asylum claims are processed. If claims continue to be decided promptly, centres may help manage demand and ease pressure on local homelessness budgets, though their locations and scale would need careful planning with affected communities.
The case against
Spending £150 million on new centres may entrench a system of large, potentially remote sites without addressing the factors driving arrivals or ensuring that claims and removals happen faster. Concentrating many asylum seekers in rural communities could strain local services and make integration harder, while the lack of detail on cost, locations and capacity makes it difficult to judge whether the investment is proportionate.
Explained simply
People can claim asylum in the UK if they are seeking protection from persecution or serious harm in their home country. While the Home Office considers a claim, it must provide accommodation to people who would otherwise be destitute; many have been housed in hotels.
The Home Office is responsible for processing claims and arranging accommodation. The Government has been trying to reduce reliance on hotels by using larger sites, including Wethersfield in Essex, where asylum seekers are already housed.
Where new centres are placed can affect local communities and councils, which provide services in their areas. The cost of asylum accommodation is also part of wider public spending on housing and support.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “Home Office gets £150million for more large-scale asylum centres, as Tories warn it shows Labour has ‘no intention whatsoever’ of stopping and deporting illegal immigrants”.