Nearly 9,000 people seeking asylum in the West Midlands

SMALL RISE REVEALED AMID PROTEST FEARS

- BY JANE HAYNES

THE number of asylum seekers living in hotels and other properties in the West Midlands has gone up slightly this year to 8,828.

While there has been an increase in small boat crossings that has driven up requests, the numbers involved still represents less than 0.5% of the local population.

Latest Home Office data also reveals that only a quarter of those seeking asylum in the region are in hotels. The majority live in shared refuges, hostels and houses operated by Home Office contractors Serco.

The new data, for the period up to the end of March, shows the real number of asylum seekers being housed in the region.