Asylum seekers told to leave Paignton hotel, charity says

Charity worker Jill Lewis said up to 100 asylum seekers were being moved from a hotel in Paignton

A community group supporting asylum seekers staying in a Devon hotel have said the men are being moved.

Beyond Borders said they were collecting donations of warm clothes and shoes for the men who had been staying in a hotel in Paignton.

A copy of a letter seen by the BBC from a Home Office contractor said accommodation at the hotel would "no longer be available from 12 December".

The Home Office has been contacted for comment.

The government had previously said it wanted to "reduce the use of expensive hotels [to house asylum seekers] and offer alternative accommodation that is more manageable and better value for communities".

According to Beyond Borders, the men are to be moved to alternative accommodation in England and Wales by the end of the week.

'Sanctuary for families'

Jill Lewis, from the charity's Totnes and District branch, said up to 100 asylum seekers had been staying at the hotel in Paignton since October 2022.

She said volunteers, many of whom had come to know the men over the past 14 months, started saying goodbye to them on Monday.

"Being with these men who are respectable, kind, decent, interesting people from other parts of the of the world has lent a richness to me, and to anyone who has been involved, that we will never forget," she said.

"There has been an extraordinary outreach of friendship, kindness and support that is so welcome."

Ms Lewis said some of the asylum seekers arrived in the UK on small boats but many came to the country on work or tourist visas.

She said some of the men had told her they were fleeing government persecution in their home countries and many wanted "sanctuary for their families".