Asylum seekers will be housed in former student accommodation in Sheffield

A facility in Wakefield houses asylum seekers while their applications are considered but Regency House on St Mary’s Road will become an overflow hostel for four to six week stays.

Mears and Hencap Housing Properties have a contract with the Home Office to provide accommodation.

Ciaran O’Shea, of Mears, told a Sheffield Council planning meeting: “The initial accommodation is hostel type at the start of their journey through the process. That’s where there’s forms to be filled out and their needs are assessed.

“They then move after four to six weeks into dispersal accommodation through properties across the region.

“There is a general lack of properties for both initial and dispersal accommodation and this is a problem that’s been exacerbated by the pandemic, the lockdown and the closure of the property market in March 2020.

“This has led to an overload and use of inappropriate hotels and is one of the reasons why there’s an urgent need for more initial accommodation.”

The Wakefield facility has capacity for 330 people but has been full for some time. Mr O’Shea said a dedicated facility was better than hotels or bedsits as it had self contained units.

“Regency House will only accommodate individuals with no known health risks, additional vulnerabilities, complex needs or where we have no concerns. Those with those needs will be retained in Wakefield.

“We’re providing, for the first time, fully accessible units and additional communal spaces including dedicated sitting rooms for female only, family only and mixed gender. It will include classrooms for activities and a secure outside courtyard space.”

The main entrance will be relocated from the front to the rear of the quieter side of the building.

Mr O’Shea added: “We’ve agreed to 24/7 accredited security staff and have CCTV on site. The building will not have any signage, we won’t be promoting it as asylum seeker accommodation.

“On the advice of the police we will be installing safety traffic bollards to protect against any potential vehicular collision.”

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