Asylum hotel vacated after fire safety concerns

All asylum seekers who were staying at a hotel that has been the focus of ongoing protests have been removed from the site.

Demonstrations turned violent outside The Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, last summer after one of its residents was charged and subsequently convicted of sexually assaulting a child.

A spokesperson for Epping Forest District Council said that only security staff remained on site and it was seeking clarification from the Home Office.

The Home Office said residents were removed because of fire safety concerns. The BBC understands this happened earlier this week.

The government spokesperson said it was a precautionary measure and it took the safety of service users and staff extremely seriously.

"We are closing every asylum hotel and moving asylum seekers into basic accommodation including ex-military sites," they said.

"The population of asylum seekers in hotels has fallen by 35% in the last year and by 63% from the peak under the previous government."

An Epping Forest District Council spokesperson said they did not know "in advance that this was going to happen" despite "ongoing engagement" with the government.

"We are seeking clarification from the Home Office on the details of what has happened and what their next steps will be," they added.

The BBC understands there are currently no plans for migrants to be moved back into The Bell Hotel.

However, a planning application was submitted earlier this month to keep the hotel being used to house asylum seekers.

The hotel on the edge of Epping has been used to house migrants on and off since 2020.

Accommodating single male asylum seekers at The Bell became a controversial issue last year, with protests taking place outside the building, after a teenage girl and a woman were sexually assaulted by an asylum seeker staying at the hotel.

Hadush Kebatu was convicted and subsequently deported back to Ethiopia, but not before being wrongfully released from HMP Chelmsford last autumn.

Epping Forest District Council made several attempts to close the hotel to migrants through the courts but was unsuccessful.

The action against Somani, the company that owns the hotel, and the Home Office has cost the council £860,000, according to the latest figures.

Last autumn there were 138 asylum seekers housed at The Bell Hotel, but the number is understood to have been lower in recent months.