Cresta Court Campaigners Demand Closure of Asylum-Seeker Hotel in Trafford, Citing Lessons from Epping
Trafford, August 2025 – Campaigners are urgently calling for Trafford Council to close the asylum-seeker hotel in Altrincham and Hale. They warn that the ongoing use of contingency hotel accommodation is wrong, unsafe, and unsustainable—and must be shut down now, before an incident occurs.
Despite petitioning with thousands of resident signatures, meeting with police, and holding a public meeting, the Home Office continues to house asylum seekers in these hotels indefinitely, without meaningful consultation with the Council, local services, or elected representatives.
Councillor Nathna Evans said:
“We stand with our community—residents deserve transparency, safety, and agency. We refuse to wait for a tragedy to act.”
Drawing parallels with the situation in Epping, where Epping Forest District Council has applied for a High Court injunction to stop asylum seekers from being housed at the Bell Hotel, decrying its location near schools and planning violations, the Cresta Court campaign emphasises the legal and moral imperative to act now The GuardianEpping Forest District Council.
At its next meeting, Trafford Council will consider the following motion:
Motion: Ending the Use of Hotel Accommodation in Trafford for Asylum Seekers
Council notes:
- The Home Office continues to use contingency hotels in Altrincham and Hale to house asylum seekers indefinitely—without local consultation or planning oversight.
- Third-sector organisations, inspectors, and communities widely deem this practice inappropriate for both residents and occupants.
- It is neither safe, sustainable, nor conducive to integration or wellbeing.
- Strains on local services—primary care, safeguarding, education, and policing—are significant and unsupported by government funding or accountability.
Council believes:
- Housing asylum seekers in residential hotels is incompatible with a safe, planned, community-led asylum system.
- Trafford’s tradition of compassion does not justify accepting unaccountable practices imposed without consent.
- Councils must retain the right to determine the location and method of asylum accommodation in their areas, to safeguard cohesion and public trust.
Council resolves:
- To formally oppose the continued use of hotel accommodation for asylum seekers within Trafford.
- To write urgently to the Home Secretary and regional Border, Immigration & Citizenship Services Director, demanding immediate cessation of hotel use in Altrincham and Hale.
- To require all future asylum accommodation decisions in Trafford to be subject to formal consultation with the Council and ward councillors.
- To instruct the Chief Executive to publish—in two months—a public report detailing Trafford’s legal and planning options for resisting further hotel use.
- To seek immediate collaboration with Greater Manchester councils to oppose top-down asylum housing decisions lacking democratic accountability.