Council calls for fairer funding to support asylum seekers 

Hillingdon is accommodating nearly one in 10 of all migrants housed in hotels across the country, and there are currently approximately 3,000 asylum seekers placed into accommodation by the Home Office, more than double the government's own national threshold.  

An increasing number of asylum seekers are being evicted from Home Office accommodation in the expectation the council will provide, as part of its statutory duties, any necessary and ongoing support, including housing. 

Cllr Ian Edwards, the Leader of the Council, called for this to be supported through a national dispersal programme in his statement to Hillingdon's Annual Council meeting on Thursday 8 May as well as additional funding. 

The asylum funding shortfall across all council services was approximately £5 million in 2024/25 - equivalent to the council's annual budget for its libraries and cultural services - and £11.3 million in the five years ending 31 March 2025. The council is estimating that asylum related grant funding for 2025/26 will once again result in a £5 million shortfall and the grant will be exhausted by November, at which point the council will once again need to use council taxpayers' funds to support government policy.  

Alongside this, the borough has the second highest number of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in London, behind Croydon, and is also seeing a significant number of families arrive from the Chagos Islands via Heathrow without onward travel plans and seeking housing support.   

This is being provided, where they are eligible under legislation, and while the council recognises that those arriving from the Chagos Islands are UK nationals, it places an additional unsustainable financial pressure on top of the ongoing asylum costs. The current annual cost to the council is expected to be £1.2 million with the expectation of further arrivals. The council has been supporting Chagossian arrivals since July 2024, with 120 arriving this week alone.  

The cost to Hillingdon to fulfil its responsibilities as a port authority is not fully met by government. Heathrow accounts for a significant proportion of business rates payable in Hillingdon, yet as the local authority responsible for the infrastructure, services and community impact associated with this site, it receives a disproportionately small share (18 per cent) and this needs to be addressed. 

Cllr Edwards said: "The council is proud of upholding its statutory duty in supporting asylum seekers and providing safe sanctuary. However, the inadequate funding for our asylum and immigration responsibilities is placing an unfair financial burden on our residents, who are having to subsidise these additional costs.  

"This is unacceptable, and it is unreasonable of the government to expect that the cost incurred should be met by our taxpayers alone while companies contracted by the Home Office to provide accommodation have profited by hundreds of millions of pounds collectively. 

"The Home Office also cannot expect the council to have the staffing and resources to deal with these exceptional demand pressures and our support services to cope without detriment to those already requiring them. 

"We want to provide support to those who need it, but the way local government is funded is fundamentally broken and in desperate need of an overhaul. We are urging the government to act and recognise our unique position as a port authority, the challenges that are associated with that, and provide the funding we require.  

"We, and in turn our residents, cannot afford to keep footing the bill while others reap the rewards."