An area of West London has been taking care of more asylum seekers than anywhere else in the country, according to new figures. There were a total of 112,187 asylum seekers receiving support from local authorities at the end of December 2024.
That’s more than three times higher than the 36,223 people receiving support in 2014, according to the latest Home Office figures, and doesn’t include people here under the Homes for Ukraine or Afghan Resettlement Programme. Just over 41,000 of the people receiving support last year were being housed in hotels or other contingency accommodation.
The data release come as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer begin talks with other countries on “return hubs” for failed asylum seekers as the Government seeks to crack down on small boats crossing the Channel. On a trip to Albania on Thursday, Sir Keir Starmer announced that the Government would begin exploring the possibility of sending failed asylum seekers for processing in third countries prior to deportation.
The West London boroughs supporting thousands of asylum seekers
People receiving asylum support aren’t evenly distributed across the country, however, with some places taking in far more than others. Hillingdon was taking care of more asylum seekers than any other council area in the country relative to its size.
There were a total of 3,010 people in receipt of asylum support in the council area last year. That’s up from just 140 in 2014 and works out as 94 for every 10,000 people living in the area, the highest ratio in the country.
Hillingdon also has the highest number of asylum seekers living in contingency accommodation. Some 2,812 of the people receiving asylum aid there are in hotels. Hounslow has the next highest ratio in the country with its 2,127 asylum seekers (up from 68 in 2014) working out at the equivalent of 72 per 10,000 people. The council also has the second highest number of asylum seekers living in hotels with 1,903.
Halton, Cheshire, has the next highest ratio with 70 per 10,000 people. The number of asylum seekers there has risen from just two in 2014 to 908 last year, with 311 being house in contingency accommodation.
Glasgow City had the highest number of asylum seekers of any council last year with a total of 4,193. That works out at 66 per 10,000 people.
In Coventry the ratio was 59 per 10,000 people, in Belfast it was 56, in Derby it was 50, in Wolverhampton it was 49, in Stoke-on-Trent it was 49, in Hartlepool it was 48., and in Liverpool it was 48. You can see how many asylum seekers live in your local area using our interactive map:
The announcement comes in the same week that the number of people crossing the Channel in small boats passed 12,000 for the year, putting 2025 on course to be a record year for crossings. Sir Keir said establishing return hubs would not be a “silver bullet” for halting the crossings.
But combined with other measures to tackle smuggling gangs and return those with no right to be in the UK, it would “allow us to bear down on this vile trade and make sure that we stop those people crossing the Channel”. If established, the return hubs will target failed asylum seekers who are seeking to frustrate their deportation or have lost their paperwork.
Starmer’s proposal ‘expected to act as a deterrent to further crossings’
By removing them to another country, the Government hopes to reduce their ability to find other reasons to prevent deportation, such as starting a family. The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “This will basically apply to people who have exhausted all legal routes to remain in the UK but are attempting to stall, using various tactics, whether it’s losing their paperwork or using other tactics to frustrate their removal.”
The spokesman added: “It will ensure that they don’t have the chance to make their removal harder by using tactics such as starting a family, et cetera, as we have seen from cases in the past. That obviously will reduce the cost to the taxpayer.”
The proposal is also expected to act as a deterrent to further crossings, but differs from the previous government’s Rwanda scheme as it would only apply to failed asylum seekers who have exhausted their avenues for appeal. Officials will conduct negotiations with potential host countries over the coming months.
Italy currently operates a similar programme with Albania, sending failed asylum seekers to the country while they await deportation. The Italian scheme was intended to provide offshore processing for migrants, but that plan has been held up by legal action.
Edi Rama, Albania’s prime minister, appeared to rule out being a host to the UK scheme. “We have been asked by several countries if we were open to it, and we said no, because we are loyal to the marriage with Italy and the rest is just love,” he told reporters at a press conference held alongside Sir Keir.
Downing Street said it was established before Sir Keir’s visit that Albania would not be part of the UK’s plans and that it was “never planned as part of discussions” between the Prime Minister and Mr Rama. Sir Keir’s official spokesman said there is a “specific Albania-Italy relationship” on return hubs.
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