All change for Rochdale’s asylum-seekers

At yesterday evening’s Cabinet meeting, members agreed to the new provisions for asylum-seekers in Rochdale and the decommissioning of the present contract with Compass to Serco Civil Government awarded nationally by the UK Border Control Agency (UKBA).

Rochdale MBC Asylum Team will continue to operate until the end of this year by which time existing service-users will have been transferred to the new provider. This will involve moving service users into new accommodation.

At the moment there are four accommodation-providers in Rochdale and these will cease to operate with the exception of Priority Properties North West (PPNW) who will sub-contract to Serco.

Up to 60 families and single people, (Approx 200 people) will need to be relocated.

The report to the Cabinet goes on to state that PPNW have acquired the services of Valley Estates; a local letting-agency which has procured 45 properties in the borough in order to transfer to transfer service-users from RMBC properties.

Most of current properties used are situated in the central area of Rochdale within the Falinge and Freehold estates and it is hoped that the accommodation transfer will minimise the impact upon service-users by reducing the need to transfer to other schools, GPs’ surgeries, etc.

The report stresses the need for RMBC to continue to engage with Serco so that they can maintain an active role in property procurement and ensure that the needs of service users will continue to be met and that local services can meet demand.

The report says that it has consulted with education, health-providers, police, fire service and RMBC Safer Communities in order to establish suitable areas across the borough for the continued dispersal of those seeking asylum.

The report says that there are currently about 350 asylum-seekers living within the borough and that the government has a ‘cluster-limit’ policy which sets the number of these who can be placed within the borough. It also warns that the new contract arrangements provide what it calls ‘significant risk to all Local Authorities affected.’

UKBA have given an assurance that families with children will not be relocated until the school summer holidays commence so that pupils taking exams will not be disrupted.

During the meeting, Councillor Sultan Ali, the Cabinet Member for Strengthening Communities, expressed his concern at the new arrangements. He said that the new policy "the stench of privatisation" and that he was concerned about the quality of housing being offered.

Leader of the Council, Councillor Colin Lambert replied: “We have to make the best of what is a mess.” He assured the meeting that the council will "keep an eye" on the situation.