Another 3 UK asylum seeker hotels to close - full list of 44 now shut

Another 3 UK asylum seeker hotels to close - full list of 44 now shut Local MPs have welcomed the news three more asylum hotels will be returned to communities. Share Article Share Article Facebook X LinkedIn Reddit Bluesky Email Copy Link Link copied Bookmark Add us as preferred source By Jon King , News Reporter 08:12, Mon, Oct 5, 2026 Updated: 08:13, Mon, Oct 5, 2026 Three more hotels housing asylum seekers will revert back to welcoming paying guests (Image: Getty) Three more hotels used to house asylum seekers look set to revert back to welcoming paying guests, reports suggest. Venues near Stevenage in Hertfordshire, Crawley, West Sussex, and in Leyland, Lancashire, will close as asylum seeker accommodation by the end of this year. Closure of the Novotel at Junction 7 of the A1(M) near Stevenage was welcomed by the town's Labour MP, Kevin Bonavia, who announced it would no longer be used. He posted on social media that the return to normal use was "good news" for his constituency, adding: "We can have an asylum system that treats people with humanity and dignity, while being fair to taxpayers and communities." Mr Bonavia put the closure down to efforts to fix Britain's asylum system, adding that an asylum backlog had dropped 56% in a year. He added: "Novotel’s return to normal use is good news for Stevenage, achieved by work with our Labour Council and Government." Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT The Home Office's use of the Novotel for asylum seekers began in September 2022, according to The Comet . The same publication reports that Stevenage Borough Council warned the hotel chain to stop housing asylum seekers in a planning enforcement row last year. Get the day's biggest headlines in UK and World news and more I would like to receive emails from the Daily Express featuring our latest products, services, offers, and promotions from across the Reach Plc family . Subscribe Invalid email You agree you are 18 or over. We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. You can unsubscribe at any time. More Info . In Crawley, the Copthorne Hotel will no longer be used to house asylum seekers by the end of the year, according to the area's Conservative MP Mims Davies. She is reported by The Argus as saying that locals' plea that the village "had done its bit" had been heard. Copthorne Hotel has been used by the Home Office since 2021. The same publication reports Ms Davies as adding: "The village wants its hotel back as a community asset for events, accommodation and for the local economy, with jobs and opportunities particularly for local young people." Preston Leyland Hotel in Lancashire is also set to stop housing asylum seekers by the end of 2026, the BBC reports. Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT The venue closed to the public in April 2022. The asylum seekers living at the hotel are to be moved to "proper asylum facilities" and not into houses of multiple occupation (HMOs), Labour MP for Ribble Valley, Paul Foster, is reported as saying. Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT I've visited UK's second best seaside town - I won't be going back again Two people dead in Co Down as people urged 'avoid the area' - 'heartbreaking incident' Villagers in Piddington voted to leave the UK in a symbolic protest (Image: Getty) Asylum hotel numbers peaked under the Conservatives , with 402 in use by the summer of 2023 at a reported cost of £9million per day. Nearly half that number had closed by July 2024. By June of this year, there were 160 still in use, according to the Home Office. The Government has pledged to end the use of hotels to house asylum seekers by 2029. Ministers are increasing use of more basic sites, including former military barracks although his has raised concerns and sparked protests among people living near such sites. Some people in Piddington, Oxfordshire, last week voted to secede from the UK after the Government announced plans to house 1,256 male asylum seekers at a nearby former military base. The symbolic poll drew widespread media attention and also caught the attention of some in Barnham, Suffolk, where RAF Barnham has been identified as a possible asylum accommodation site. John Bauer, who chairs Barnham Parish Council, said a poll could be something his village might want to organise. A spokesman for the Home Office said previously: "The Government is closing every asylum hotel, saving taxpayers over £1billion on asylum support since the election. We are working to fairly house asylum seekers across the country, moving asylum seekers into alternative accommodation, including former military sites which are designed to be self-contained to reduce impact on the local community. "As part of the process, we engage with local authorities and police forces to ensure the safety and security of those in the surrounding area." Hotels no longer being used to house asylum seekers The hotels below are no longer being used to accommodate asylum seekers: Ramada Jarvis Hotel, Loughborough Chimney House Hotel, Sandbach Britannia Ashley Hotel, Hale Gold Thorn Hotel, Wolverhampton Grand Metropole Hotel, Blackpool Nottingham Hotel, Nottingham Grosvenor Hotel, Stratford-upon-Avon Staycity Apartments Deptford Bridge, Lewisham Needham House, Hitchin Holiday Inn Bridgwater Holiday Inn Express Dunstable Dubrovnik Hotel, Bradford Best Western Brook Hotel, Norwich Dayz Away Lodge – Dudley, Black Country Holiday Inn Ashford Central – Ashford, Kent Best Western Atlantic – Chelmsford, Essex The Cisswood – Horsham, Sussex The Collection Hotel – Birmingham, West Midland Adagio – Leicester, East Midlands Norwich Hotel – Norwich, Norfolk Allerton Court – Northallerton, North Yorkshire Mercure George – Reading, Berkshire TLK Apartments – Bromley, Greater London Best Western Stoke – Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire The Granby (1 The Hill) – Gravesham, Kent Hampton by Hilton – Bristol Delta Hotel Cheshunt – Broxbourne, Hertfordshire Episode Leamington – Leamington Spa, Warwickshire Oxford Witney Hotel – Oxford, Oxfordshire Shambrook – Bedford, Bedfordshire Bell hotel - Epping, Essex OYO Evesham hotel – Evesham, Worcestershire Best Western – Wembley, London Banbury House Hotel – Banbury, Oxfordshire Marine Court Hotel – Bangor, Ards and North Down 15 Citrus Hotel – Cheltenham, Gloucestershire Holiday Inn Heathrow – Hillingdon, London Britannia Hotel – Wolverhampton Madeley Court Hotel – Madeley, Telford & Wrekin OYO Lakeside – St Helens, Merseyside Crewe Arms Hotel – Crewe, Cheshire East Sure Hotel by Best Western – Aberdeen The Rock Hotel – Halifax, Calderdale Wool Merchant Hotel – Halifax, Calderdale Migrant Crisis Immigration Hotels Share Article Share Article Facebook X LinkedIn Reddit Bluesky Email Copy Link Link copied Bookmark Add us as preferred source Comments Unavailable Sorry, we are unable to accept comments about this article at the moment. 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