Metropole asylum seekers need more than 'board and lodgings'

A charity has spoken out on how asylum seekers in Blackpool need more than just 'board and lodgings'.

Poverty Truth Network, part of Empowerment Charity, has organised a number of trips out for those being housed in the Metropole Hotel.

Gillian Oliver from the charity told The Blackpool Lead: "We felt there's a misconception about who is within the Metropole.

"We kept hearing it's just people from Afghanistan, Iraq, but when you walk by and see young children in the windows there's so many families who are in there and it is intimidating for them.

"You come into a new country and you're often coming here in distress. We thought there needed to be something done for people so they can get out beyond the hotel and experience Blackpool.

"So we have been working with the hotel, and the council, and other agencies to put on some trips.

"We aren't going far but the delight we see from people who are stunned at what there is in Blackpool when all they may have seen is the inside of a hotel room and a hotel lobby for weeks."

The charity has organised trips out to Stanley Park, Anchorsholme beach and a Christmas party too.

The use of the Metropole - which has consistently been rated as one of the worst hotels in the UK for the past decade - has been criticised by Blackpool South MP Chris Webb.

He has called for an end of the use of hotels as a place to house asylum seekers.

Mr Webb said: “The Metropole Hotel and location are wholly inadequate for this purpose, and the Minister is now urgently reviewing the contract established by the previous government to ensure that we can terminate its use as quickly as possible.”

Mrs Oliver supported the feeling better conditions and more support was needed for asylum seekers.

She said: "A lot of the people coming here have young children, they may not have a good grasp of English and they are fleeing from persecution - often because they are very educated themselves.

"There's also lots of people from Europe we've met who have ended up here too.

"These trips have often been the first time they've been outside the hotel confines for weeks or months, because they just don't know where to go - and they are free to go and explore but it's all too scary for them.

"I think the process has to be looked at and it's important people are getting more than just board and lodgings. They need that stimulation, that chance to see and understand the places they are trying to come to - even if it doesn't end up being Blackpool where they ultimately settle."

The Blackpool Lead has approached Blackpool Council for comment regarding the current use of the Metropole but had not received a response by the time of publication.

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