Open drug use and “grooming behaviour” spark concern over Rotherham hotel used as homeless shelter

Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council held a public meeting last week (July 2), where it was heard Moorgate residents are continually witnessing “highly visible, public drug use and crime” near Carlton Park Hotel.

They reported “grooming behaviour” towards school children, having seen a group of young girls engaging with hotel residents in the foyer.

Parents and guardians are said to be“extremely worried” about safeguarding children, particularly those who attend Thomas Rotherham College and Oakwood High School.

In a letter to Sharon Kemp, Chief Executive of Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council, Rotherham MP Sarah Champion describes her constituents as “extremely worried” and “frustrated”.

She wrote: “While those present [at the meeting] were told by several members of the panel that many of the anti-social incidents and crimes reported were not committed by residents of the hotel, the community is rightly concerned that the hotel has become a hub for drug use and associated crime.

“Whether individuals staying at the hotel are caught committing these offences or not does not alter the fact that prior to their presence in the hotel, these issues did not exist.”

Residents also expressed concern about the welfare of people using the emergency housing, as did Ms Champion.

Sign up today to get all of the latest news headlines from Sheffield and South Yorkshire delivered straight to your inbox, with The Star’s free emails

She said: "It also concerns me greatly that vulnerable adults, people fleeing domestic violence and people with children could be placed in the same accommodation as people with criminal convictions and/or addictions”.

She asked for reassurance about this from Ms Kemp, requested to see the risk assessment which considered the hotel’s impact on the surrounding community, and requested improved communication from RMBC to the residents.

In a post on social media, Ms Champion said: “It appears suitability assessments were carried out for individual placements, but there was no risk assessment done for the wider community.

“I still don’t understand why a community consultation wasn’t carried out and that is both disappointing and worrying for future schemes.”

Previously, only 75 households received letters about the issue, which Ms Champion described as “nowhere near enough”.

James Clark, Assistant Director of Housing at RMBC, said the number of placements at the hotel have been reduced from 40 to an average of 14 for the last few weeks.

He and Councillor Allen, responsible for Housing, apologised and admitted that the council has lessons to learn and will make changes going forward.