The number of asylum seekers living in hotels in Sussex is on the rise, new figures reveal.
According to data released by the Home Office for September, several Sussex districts have seen an increase in the number of asylum seekers housed in hotels since June.
Crawley had 396 people, up from 268 in June.
Mid Sussex had the highest number of asylum seekers in hotel accommodation in September, with 584 people, an increase of 107 from June.
Protestors in 2024 outside a hotel in Crawley housing asylum seekers (Image: Sussex News and Pictures)
Chichester and Horsham also saw rises, with 198 and 137 asylum seekers respectively, up from 161 and 112 in June.
In Brighton and Hove, the number rose from 55 in June to 73 in September.
Other areas, including Adur, Arun, Eastbourne, Hastings, Lewes, Rother, Wealden, and Worthing, had no asylum seekers in hotel accommodation in both June and September.
No local authority in Sussex saw a decrease in numbers.
Here is the full list for local authorities in Sussex, accurate as of September:
Adur: 0
Arun: 0
Brighton and Hove: 73
Chichester: 198
Crawley: 396
Eastbourne: 0
Hastings: 0
Horsham: 137
Lewes: 0
Mid Sussex: 584
Rother: 0
Wealden: 0
Worthing: 0
Protesters during an anti-immigration protest near Crowborough Training Camp (Image: James Manning/PA Wire)
The increase in asylum seekers housed in hotels comes amid ongoing protests against plans to temporarily accommodate asylum seekers at Crowborough Training Camp, an army training camp in East Sussex.
Hundreds of campaigners took to the streets of Crowborough on November 23, with signs and flags, and chanting: “Send them home.”
Crowborough Training Camp, along with Cameron Barracks in Inverness, is one of two barracks set to temporarily house asylum seekers as part of the government’s effort to close asylum hotels.
The site, with a capacity to house 540 men, has been offered to the Home Office for a period of 12 months by the Ministry of Defence.
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East Grinstead and Uckfield MP Mims Davies met with Crowborough MP Nus Ghani and Home Office minister Alex Norris to discuss the Government’s proposals (Image: Office of Mims Davies MP)
The scheme has faced opposition from Wealden District Council.
Council leader James Partridge, who proposed a motion to formally oppose the scheme, said: “There has been a strong reaction against the proposals from many people who live in Crowborough.
“They are justifiably very worried about what would happen if 540 single men arrive to stay in the town with very little to do all day in accommodation which is not suitable.
“The risks are obvious, and the information about mitigations provided so far by the Home Office has not allayed people’s fears.”
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