Nuneaton and Bedworth council says 'it is not an option' to offer any homes to asylum seekers

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Every local authority in the country have been considered Asylum Dispersal Areas since April



Demand for council houses means Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council says it cannot accommodate any asylum seekers. Since the middle of April every local authority in the country has been considered as an Asylum Dispersal Area by the government.

It means that local authorities could be asked to provide council housing to be used as 'dispersed accommodation'. While no indication of numbers of locations has been given for 'dispersed accommodation', Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council has made it clear - it does not have any.

It is no secret that the council not only has an ever growing council house waiting list, but also has around 100 people living in emergency accommodation. Because of this, the local authority has said that it would not be able to contribute any of its council accommodation to the asylum scheme.

It is not a mandatory scheme and a Town Hall spokesman said that the 'significant demand' on social housing in the borough means it is 'not an option' to take part in the programme.

"As of April this year, following an announcement by government, all local authorities in the UK are considered Asylum Dispersal areas," a statement to CoventryLive read. "NBBC, like all local authorities in the UK are currently working with the Home Office and Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUCH) to understand what this means for the borough.

"As yet, no firm indications of numbers or likely locations for Dispersed Accommodation have been determined, either nationally, sub-regionally, county wide, or indeed at local district and borough levels. What we do know is that there is no mandatory requirement for social housing stock to be offered toward this programme, and NBBC has been clear that this is not an option due to the existing significant demand for social housing within the borough."

According to latest figures, over the past two months, the average number of families, couples and individuals in temporary accommodation across the borough due to being homeless has stood at 112.

"The 112 are applicants are a mix of existing applicants that have been occupying temporary accommodation for longer than the past two months, and new applicants that have approached us during May and June," a Town Hall spokesman said. "These figures change on a daily basis and it is proving challenging for the council to keep up with."