Plans to house 83 asylum seekers in a new-build housing development in rural Shropshire have been put on hold following sustained pressure from local residents, Conservative politicians and community leaders.
The controversial scheme would have seen asylum seekers accommodated across 21 newly built homes in Stoke Heath, a small village in The Wrekin constituency. The properties, reportedly worth up to £250,000 each, had originally been intended for affordable housing before being earmarked for asylum accommodation as part of the Government’s wider effort to reduce reliance on hotels.
However, after mounting opposition, the Home Office has now paused the programme and launched a ministerial review.
Conservative MP for The Wrekin, Mark Pritchard, said he had received confirmation from a senior Home Office official that the plans had been halted pending further consideration by ministers.
Speaking after a public meeting attended by more than 100 residents, Mr Pritchard said the Government had agreed to stop any further placements while the review takes place.
He also confirmed that asylum seekers who had already been accommodated at the site had been relocated, meaning there are currently no asylum seekers housed in Stoke Heath.
The development marks a significant victory for local campaigners, parish councillors and residents who argued that the proposal was unsuitable for a small rural community with limited public services and transport links.
Mr Pritchard has repeatedly described the scheme as “completely inappropriate”, arguing that Stoke Heath’s isolated location makes it unsuitable both for local residents and for those seeking asylum. He raised the issue directly in the House of Commons and called on ministers to reconsider the decision.
Shropshire Council also intervened, writing to Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood to express what it described as “strong concerns” about the location and scale of the proposal. The council is understood to be awaiting a formal response from the Home Office.
Local residents had voiced concerns about the lack of consultation, pressure on local services and the suitability of placing large numbers of asylum seekers in a village with few amenities. Stoke Heath has limited public transport connections, with residents noting that the nearest bus stop is a considerable walk away and local facilities are scarce.
The dispute also prompted wider scrutiny of Government policy on asylum accommodation.
Earlier this year, the Home Office introduced new rules preventing asylum seekers from being housed in newly built homes and requiring greater consideration of factors such as proximity to schools and other sensitive locations. Home Office sources have said the Stoke Heath proposal was approved before those rules came into effect.
A Home Office spokesman said: “New homes should never house asylum seekers. Earlier this year, the Home Secretary introduced robust processes to ensure new-build sites like Stoke Heath can never be considered again.”
The Stoke Heath development had become one of the most high-profile examples of the Government’s strategy to move asylum seekers out of hotels and into other forms of accommodation while claims are processed.
As of March, more than 20,000 asylum seekers remained in hotels across the UK, while tens of thousands were housed in other accommodation, including houses in multiple occupation and former military sites.
For now, however, the future of the Stoke Heath scheme remains uncertain as ministers consider whether it should proceed at all. What is clear is that a concerted campaign by local residents, the parish council, Shropshire Council and Conservative MP Mark Pritchard has succeeded in forcing the Government back to the drawing board.
