A new report published yesterday by Migrants Organise and the medical advocacy organisation Medact examines the health impacts of asylum accommodation in the UK, concluding that current housing arrangements are systematically harming the physical and mental health of people seeking protection.
Image credit: WikipediaThe 50-page report, Hostile Housing – The Health Impacts of Housing for People Seeking Asylum, can be downloaded here. Lead author of the report is Dr Joanna Dobbin, a general practitioner and health researcher at University College London, and it was co-produced with healthcare professionals from Medact, alongside members of Migrants Organise’s Housing Justice Group with lived experience of the asylum system.
According to the authors, its purpose is to document how housing conditions act as a major determinant of health for people seeking asylum, and how a for-profit model of provision contributes to what they describe as a system that prioritises “containment over care”.
The report’s findings are based on a survey of 60 people living in asylum accommodation, conducted in spring 2025. Most respondents were housed in contingency accommodation, predominantly hotels. Participants had an average age of 36 and came from 27 countries across five World Health Organisation regions. On average, respondents had spent 2.5 years in the UK, 12 months in their current accommodation, and nine months in hotels. Nearly three-quarters of respondents were living in hotel accommodation at the time of the survey.
Four key themes emerged from the survey data: inadequate housing conditions, loss of autonomy and rights, privacy and safety concerns, and food insecurity.
On housing quality, respondents described widespread problems including overcrowding, damp, mould, poor ventilation and persistent noise. These conditions were linked by participants to respiratory problems, skin conditions and deterioration in mental health. Over 40 per cent of respondents rated their general health as “bad” or “very bad”. Nearly half lacked access to a private bathroom, and most reported having no access to kitchens, social spaces, children’s play areas or study areas. Some participants described windows that could not be opened and rooms where temperature could not be controlled, with pregnant women reporting particular health impacts.
One respondent stated: “Yes, I’m suffocating a lot, I’m 31 weeks pregnant in very small room where there is no ventilation… I have breathing issue because of this.”
Loss of autonomy was described as a defining feature of daily life in asylum accommodation. More than half of respondents said they felt unsafe raising complaints with staff. A third reported that visitors were not allowed, while those in supported accommodation described restrictions on when they could leave their housing sites. According to the report, respondents often had little control over basic aspects of everyday life, including when and what they eat. Surveillance, monitoring and threats of being reported to the Home Office were cited as mechanisms used to control behaviour, with some participants comparing their accommodation to immigration detention centres.
Concerns about privacy and safety were also widespread. Respondents reported feeling watched and monitored within accommodation sites, while simultaneously feeling unsafe. The report highlights gender-specific vulnerabilities, noting that women frequently reported feeling unsafe in and around accommodation, and that many women with children did not feel able to breastfeed comfortably due to a lack of privacy.
Food insecurity emerged as a significant issue, particularly in catered accommodation such as hotels. Using a food insecurity index, the report found that 78 per cent of respondents receiving catered meals experienced moderate or severe food insecurity. Two-thirds rated food quality as poor, citing limited variety and repetition. Many reported skipping meals or not eating despite hunger. Children were reported to be especially affected, with half refusing meals daily and more than half experiencing weight loss.
The authors say that the harms identified are not unintended consequences but the logical outcomes of a system designed around deterrence. The report concludes: “Housing, specifically in hotels and quasi-detention facilities, acts as a form of collective punishment. Our report found evidence of substandard conditions, with restricted autonomy and associated physical and mental health deterioration. This system which focuses on deterrence as opposed to support and rehabilitation, perpetuates the “Hostile Environment”. These are not unintended consequences, but logical outcomes of a system designed for containment and not for care. As one participant put it “I feel alone… like a prisoner and a slave in my housing”.”