THE York hotel being used to accommodate asylum seekers has now reached its capacity of 450 guests - and it will continue to be used for this purpose for at least 12 months.

These developments are revealed in a report to City of York Council executive by Pauline Stuchfield, director of customer & communities, and Tracey Carter, director of economy, regeneration and housing.

It says that the Home Office opened a ‘contingency’ asylum accommodation site in York in December.

It states: "The hotel is now at capacity, with 450 guests.

"The guests are a mix of nationalities and mostly small families, with some couples. It will remain open for a minimum of 12 months."

The Press has opted not to name the major city centre hotel because of concerns about the potential impact on vulnerable people staying there.

The report said these "additional guests" to the city meant that supporting partners and the council were "under pressure on a range of fronts, without commensurate funding".

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It said this issue had been raised with local Members of Parliament and key government contacts on an ongoing basis to raise with Ministers.

It said there was also a significant unmet demand from all the new residents for ESOL  -English for Speakers of Other Languages - and conversation English classes available through York Learning. 

"This will have an impact on the number of individuals who are able to move into employment and afford their own accommodation."

The report primarily relates to funding for the Homes for Ukraine Scheme, under which more than 100,000 Ukrainians have sought sanctuary from war in the UK.

It said a total of 323 Ukrainians had joined York's Homes for Ukraine scheme and there were currently 213 in it, with 114 households currently hosting such guests.

"It is clear York will continue to host Ukrainian guests for some time. This means either another 12 to 18 months with willing hosts, or a move into Private Rented Sector (PRS) accommodation. Either way a level of support will be needed for both guests and hosts."

The report said a number of hosts had raised concerns that they believed they had signed up to a six month offer of accommodation.

"Due to the ongoing war in Ukraine and the lack of readily accessible move-on accommodation in York, these arrangements have gone on longer than hosts expected, and there is pressure for CYC to support hosts by helping guests to move on to
more permanent accommodation."

The report revealed that in response to the cost-of-living crisis and increased energy bills, the Homes for Ukraine Team had been making a payment of £100 per month to top up host ‘goodwill’ payments to £450 since November, as hosts had been suggesting they might leave the scheme due to the cost of bills increasing.