Poltics
Furious residents claim their village in the shadow of Windsor Castle has been turned into a ‘hell hole’ after asylum seekers were moved into its hotel.
They fear genteel Datchet in Berkshire will lose its quintessential country feel, house prices will tumble and businesses struggle.
Their outcry comes after the Manor Hotel was turned into a holding centre for migrants awaiting a decision on their asylum applications.
One man revealed he has put his home on the market after claiming the conversion was the latest sign that the village is being run down by the authorities.
Pub staff meanwhile, claim they suffered a loss of custom when the 19th Century hotel’s owners swapped tourists and wedding guests for refugees.
Others say the village – which the King is driven through daily – feels less ‘safe’ because groups of young men hang around the pretty village green.
One home-owner said: ‘I put my house on the market, I’ve had enough.
‘This has been such a nice village. It’s been safe and it’s been left to go to rack and ruin. It’s just becoming a hell-hole.’
The Manor Hotel in Datchet, Berkshire, was turned into a holding centre for migrants awaiting a decision on their asylum applications
Furious residents claim their village in the shadow of Windsor Castle has been turned into a ‘hell hole’ after asylum seekers were moved into its hotel
The 200-bed hotel in the village centre was used as asylum accommodation previously, reverted to hotel use, then back to refugees
He pointed out that the 200-bed hotel in the village centre was used as asylum accommodation previously, reverted to hotel use, then back to refugees.
The Government claims it wants to avoid housing asylum seekers in hotels, but is currently short of beds for them.
‘It’s the second time it’s happened,’ the home-owner said: ‘They can’t guarantee those people are vetted or where they come from.
‘The authorities are not interested in Datchet or the villages surrounding Windsor. There’s no money coming into it.
‘They’re all falling apart, there’s litter everywhere, the only time you see anyone from the council is when they’re giving out parking tickets.
‘We’ve been left to rot while Maidenhead gets all the investment. There’s no infrastructure here. ‘
Pensioner Alan Allister, who lives in the village with his wife Pauline, said: ‘We have had no problem with the men themselves.
‘But it’s just the system that needs changing. We’re not happy about it but there’s nothing we can do about it.’
One man revealed he has put his home on the market after claiming the conversion was the latest sign that the village is being run down by the authorities
Pub staff meanwhile, claim they suffered a loss of custom when the 19th Century hotel’s owners swapped tourists and wedding guests for refugees
The Manor Hotel is once again being used to home asylum seekers in the upmarket Berkshire village
The retired builder, 81, added: ‘There are people who don’t like them hanging around the green. It doesn’t look good but it’s not their fault.’
A staff member at The Stag pub said: ‘I just wish that the Government would ask local people what they think before they make these decisions.
‘When that was a proper hotel, it was used for weddings and parties so we used to get loads of guests coming over.
‘Now we get nothing, so that’s had a massive knock-on effect for us. It’s taken a big chunk of our business away.’
A shop-owner added: ‘Local people feel the village used to be a really nice place but that it has gone down.
‘Datchet is a place where royalty go past and it’s looking a bit sorry and sad.
‘They also say it’s not safe when they go out and they see a lot of young men hanging around in the village. If you’re a woman you might feel a bit vulnerable.
‘People come into the shop and talk about it all the time. It’s not a place where they want their children to grow up in.
Pensioner Alan Allister, who lives in the village with his wife Pauline, said: ‘We have had no problem with the men themselves. But it’s just the system that needs changing’
Staff at nearby pub The Stag claim they suffered a loss of custom when the 19th Century hotel’s owners swapped tourists and wedding guests for refugees
Others say the village – which the King is driven through daily – feels less ‘safe’ because gangs of young men hang around the pretty village green
The Government claims it wants to avoid housing asylum seekers in hotels, but is currently short of beds for them
Mo Tariq, who lives in the village and owns a cafe, an estate agent and a dentist there, defended the asylum hostel and its residents
Pictured: The Manor Hotel in Datchett
‘They are also worried about their house prices because when a town loses its reputation, property loses its value.’
But Mo Tariq, who lives in the village and owns a cafe, an estate agent and a dentist there, defended the asylum hostel and its residents.
The 36-year-old said: ‘If you speak to these men, they’re all very polite. They all come from difficult situations. They are not criminals, they are not nasty people.
‘They’re not allowed to work so they just hang about and because of that the local villagers think it is an eyesore.
‘Datchet is a quintessential cultural village and when something out of the norm comes into the village, people can’t handle it.
‘When the asylum seekers left last year, it became a hotel again. That’s what Datchet wanted.
‘But it wasn’t fully occupied. So as a business owner, what do you do? You’ve got to pay bills and if the Government offers you a contract to house asylum seekers, then you’ll take it.’
‘The royal family goes past here two to three times a day. The King went past earlier and gave us a wave. It’s got that royal touch.
‘But they don’t cause any alarm. It’s just a stereotype – two or three guys hanging around. But they just don’t want to sit in a hotel room.’
