ASYLUM HOUSING:
HOW TO CHANGE THE CONVERSATION

Everyone deserves a safe place to live

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This summer we saw yet more protests outside asylum hotels, with clashes between far-right activists and counter-protesters. The far-right has exploited local concerns to whip up tensions and conflict in communities.

At the same time, accommodation for people seeking safety in the UK has plummeted in quality and is often simply not fit for purpose. This is a failing system, created by flawed policies and processes, and a growing backlog of asylum cases. Meanwhile, the private companies running hotels and large sites are making millions.

But it doesn't have to be this way. We know we can change the system – but to do this, we need your help.

people gathering in a park during daytime

Over the last decade, there’s been one thing consistently pushed to the sidelines from the public conversation – the voices of the people living inside asylum housing.

That’s why we’ve created this guide which is packed with the most critical information, up-to-date stats and powerful stories.

We’ve invited torture survivors to share their firsthand experiences, giving them power back by centering their voices, as well as the therapists who support them, to give their expert opinion on the impact of poor accommodation.

Above all, this guide proves one thing: that asylum accommodation is not working – but not for the reasons the media focuses on.

It’s time to get familiar with the facts, have powerful conversations with one another and start to combat the harmful narratives fostering hate. One chat at a time.

WHAT'S GOING ON WITH ASYLUM ACCOMMODATION?

Asylum accommodation has gone from an issue barely discussed, to one that’s making weekly headlines.

From hotels, to ex-army barracks, to floating vessels, the Government’s continued attempts to meet the demand for asylum housing have rightly faced public scrutiny and backlash for their dehumanising cruelty.

All the while, people seeking safety in the UK are being made to spend months, sometimes years, in accommodation that can cause serious harm.

“It removed the dignity of being a human being. And that is the worst feeling you can have – that you don't have dignity any more. You are not even like an animal. You are like nothing”
- Mwa Mbuyi Kapinga

WHO ARE THE PEOPLE INSIDE THE HOTELS?

It's estimated that one in three asylum seekers and refugees living in countries like the UK are survivors of torture.

Like Freedom from Torture's clients, they have been subjected to unimaginable horrors and have fled torture and war from countries like Syria, Sudan and Afghanistan.

But the hotels they live in frequently offer zero privacy, no stability, and rooms that fail to meet even basic standards. This is very poor accommodation, and it is robbing torture survivors of the chance to heal.

“People make a decision about your life very easily. They don’t consider everything… They don’t understand that it is your life. You are a number. You are a statistic. They think it’s the same story for everybody, which is not the case. They don’t see your vulnerability. They don’t see the impact of it on your life.” - Mwa Mbuyi Kapinga

If someone says: "The hotels cost too much - it's a waste of public money."

You can reply: It’s true, the hotels are a total waste of public money. But the human cost is far greater.

People seeking sanctuary don’t want to live in a hotel, they just want a safe home.

What's driving this huge cost is the private companies contracted to deliver asylum accommodation - who are making massive profits. The Government is facing a bill for £15.3bn to cover the cost of using asylum hotels.

We need to fix the system and build proper accommodation – because everyone deserves to live in safety, no matter who we are or where we come from.

WHAT ARE THE MAIN ISSUES WITH ASYLUM ACCOMMODATION?

"You understand you can’t do anything. It was like a prison. You can’t do anything. At the beginning they were even unhappy to let us go outside”. - Miriame

First, an asylum seeker faces torture in their home country. Then, they flee to safety – only to endure the misery of poor, unsafe housing in the UK.

Rotten carpets that smell of sewage. Filthy, broken beds. Bedrooms shared with strangers. Loud noises in the night. Inaccessible healthcare. Restricted access to food.

There is no stability, no safety and no place to heal.

This is the typical experience of a torture survivor seeking asylum in today's Britain, who may spend years waiting to hear the outcome of their asylum claim.

Most of the survivors we support are diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

For torture survivors, the impact of this appalling asylum accommodation seriously harms the recovery process. It frequently forces survivors to put their healing journey on hold while they deal with unstable and unsafe living situations.

Having no privacy is very bad for a survivor's mental health, while being moved or relocated at any time at short notice can shatter fragile support networks that are vital for recovery.

Access to mental health support is also inconsistent, which is a huge problem for a population with widespread trauma.

“The house in Sunderland, it was really filthy. Nowhere to put your food. I spent three days without being able to cook, only eating cereal. It was so dirty I didn’t even shower. When a survivor is struggling in such situations like I was in, you feel like you are on the edge.. The system can push you to try to finish your life. This happened to me, twice." Mwa Mbuyi Kapinga

If someone says: "We've got a housing crisis in this country. Why should asylum seekers be given homes when the rest of us are still waiting?"

You can reply: There is a shortage of social housing in this country but asylum seekers aren’t to blame.

According to Shelter, the Government isn’t building enough social rent homes and we’re selling and demolishing too many social homes. We all deserve a safe and secure home, and we’re right to be frustrated that the Government isn’t doing enough.

But blaming asylum seekers is what politicians want you to do, because it distracts from their decades-long failure to deal with the housing crisis.

Refugees are people just like you and me who have fled war and torture, and they deserve the same things we do: safe housing, support networks, healthcare and stability. So bring the conversation back to these core values.

HOW LONG HAS ASYLUM ACCOMMODATION BEEN AN ISSUE?

2012: The Government started outsourcing accommodation to private companies. The homes they provide are often in very poor condition.

2013: We exposed problems like overcrowding, lack of hygiene, damp and racist abuse experienced by survivors in asylum accommodation.

2019: Despite numerous complaints, private providers were awarded more contracts worth £4 billion.

2020: The COVID-19 pandemic hits the UK, and people seeking safety began to be housed in greater numbers in hotels as longer-term emergency housing.

2020: The Government also began using Napier Barracks, an old military barracks. Cramped and unsanitary conditions led to COVID-19 outbreaks and people faced re-traumatizing conditions.

2023: The Government started using the Bibby Stockholm as asylum housing – a barge that was branded a ‘potential death trap’ by fire services and contained traces of potentially deadly Legionella. Torture survivors campaigned against this barge, and the Government eventually closed it in 2024.

Today: Around one in three asylum seekers supported by the Home Office are still accommodated in hotels and the Government continues exploring other options like military sites.

It’s clear this poor asylum accommodation has been an issue for a long time – but now it’s at breaking point.

If someone says: "More and more people are coming here seeking asylum – we obviously can’t cope with these numbers because we’ve run out of homes."

You can reply: The UK has always welcomed refugees to rebuild their lives, but in reality, we only support around 1% of the people who are forcibly displaced, and the scale of it is often exaggerated by the media.

And it’s worth remembering why these people leave their homes and come to the UK to seek sanctuary. These are men, women and children fleeing war, torture and persecution in countries like Syria, Sudan, and Eritrea – people who have been targeted because they tried to defend their basic rights: access to education, free speech, women’s rights.

The vast majority of asylum claims by people from these countries end up being accepted – often after many years waiting. Speeding up the process would clear a lot of space in asylum accommodation and, would allow those people to heal and join our communities.

WHAT NEEDS TO CHANGE?

“[The Home Office] need to think of people as human beings. We come from different backgrounds. I came here because I know in this country there is the law. In this country I can feel safe. But if I don’t feel myself safe, it brings you down. For me, I was holding my baby to keep me afloat, but for some people they don’t have anything to hold so they are going to go down. It’s not easy.” - Miriame

Despite Government pledges, asylum hotels are still part of the asylum accommodation system, and their alternatives like military barracks are even worse. But this can all change.

We urgently need to come together with a positive approach to asylum housing, focusing on integration, community and making sure everyone has their basic needs met. If we do this, torture survivors can have the privacy, stability and support to rebuild their lives and fully participate in communities across the UK.

Although this is a complicated problem, there’s one thing the Government can do now:

Our reporting shows that a high percentage of those waiting for a decision on their claim are from countries like Syria and Sudan, who are highly likely to be recognised as refugees. The Government should process asylum claims fairly and efficiently, so that people aren’t waiting in limbo in hotels and army barracks for years on end. Then people can join our communities where we know the majority of people say: REFUGEES WELCOME.

WHAT CAN I DO?

Did you know an in-person chat can be twice as effective at reducing bias as reading information online?

This is an age of disinformation – but with people like you behind us, we can fight back. Together, we can arm ourselves with the facts, so that when we encounter far-right lies and disinformation, we can challenge them with absolute confidence.

Whether you use our guide to chat with your family, post it on your social media or email it to a friend, your solidarity is deeply appreciated