A COUNCIL has expressed concerns after plans to use an apartment block in a Hampshire town to house asylum seekers were revealed.

Rushmoor Borough Council said it 'continues to express concerns' about 113 privately owned flats in Farnborough being used by the Home Office as temporary accommodation for asylum seekers.

The Home Office had previously paused the proposals, however, former home secretary, James Cleverly, decided to move on with the plans in May.

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The council says it expresses concerns about 'who would be housed in the apartment block and the potential demands this could have on local services'.

In addition, the borough council says that the 'track record of the Home Office contractors who would be running the site' and 'how community tensions would be managed' are also causes for concern. 

The contractors for the proposals are Clearsprings Ready Homes, a British company which regularly provides housing services for the Home Office.

According to Rushmoor Borough Council, families will be moved from a hotel in the area previously used to house asylum seekers to the Farnborough site.

Leader of Rushmoor Borough Council, Cllr  Gareth Williams, said: “We are a welcoming borough, but we believe this is the wrong place to provide asylum accommodation.

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"We have consistently made this point to the Home Office with the strongest objections. This is a project led by the Home Office and the council has had no role in the selection of this site.

"However, we will work to keep all residents informed and will continue to provide regular updates. 

"We will continue to make representations to the new Home Secretary to find an appropriate solution to this issue, which was enacted by her predecessor before the General Election."

Clearsprings Ready Homes and the Home Office have been contacted for comments.