Britannia Hotel Leeds Seacroft
The Britannia Hotel in Seacroft, east Leeds, formerly the Old Windmill Hotel, is used as Home Office asylum accommodation under the Mears Yorkshire and Humber regional contract. ITV News reported in August 2024 that the hotel was home to 210 refugees and asylum seekers[7]Broadcast; no later count has been published. New Start reported that on Saturday 26 July 2025 protests took place outside the hotel, which was surrounded by police who told residents to stay inside[5]Press. East Side Story reported a counter-protest outside the hotel in August 2025[6]Press.
Last confirmed in asylum use: July 2025 (New Start)[5]
Capacity
210
people (ITV News, August 2024)
Background
The Britannia Hotel Leeds sits on Mill Green View in the Seacroft area of east Leeds, on the edge of one of the largest council estates in western Europe. The site was previously known as the Old Windmill Hotel before joining the Britannia chain owned by Alex Langsam.
The Yorkshire and Humber asylum accommodation contract is held by Mears Group.
2025 protests
New Start reported on 29 July 2025 that protests took place outside the Britannia Hotel in Seacroft on Saturday 26 July, and that the hotel was surrounded by police who instructed residents to stay inside[5]Press. East Side Story reported on 25 August 2025 a counter-protest outside the hotel the previous Friday, and described the targets of the protests as hotels housing asylum seekers[6]Press.
National World reported anti-asylum protests outside the hotel in early August 2025, and a counter-demonstration mobilised by Stand Up To Racism in response[1]Press.
Earlier reports
The Morning Star reported on 6 August 2023 that anti-racism counter-protesters outnumbered the people protesting at a Leeds hotel housing refugees, and described the former Old Windmill Hotel at Seacroft as owned by the Britannia chain. That is a 2023 report, and it is not evidence of use in 2025[2]Press.
Cost analysis
At the £170 per person per night Migration Observatory benchmark[3], the 210 people ITV News reported in August 2024 would imply headline taxpayer exposure of about £35,700 per night and roughly £13 million per year, if the hotel still housed that number. It is a 2024 figure and no later count has been published, and no date for the start of asylum use has been published, so no total is calculated. The May 2025 NAO contract review put the average per hotel run rate across the wider portfolio at about £5.84 million per year[4]NAO.
Per-person per-day cost stack (benchmark)
£170- Hotel rate (room + three meals)£10059%
- Weekly cash allowance£74%
- Legal aid & casework£127%
- NHS / interpreter / utilities£1911%
- Contractor / security overhead£3219%
Cost in context
Britannia Hotel Leeds Seacroft
£170
benchmark
UK asylum hotel avg
£170
NAO
Leeds budget hotel
£55
commercial
Hostel bed
£30
commercial
Timeline
Timeline
Earlier
Operates as the Old Windmill Hotel before joining the Britannia chain
9 Aug 2024
ITV News describes the hotel as home to 210 refugees and asylum seekers
In its report of a Leeds Crown Court sentencing. It is the only count published for the hotel, and it is not current.
26 Jul 2025
Protest outside the hotel
Police surround the hotel and tell residents to stay inside.
Aug 2025
Counter-protest outside the hotel
East Side Story reports a counter-protest outside the hotel on a Friday in August.
Sources
- Seacroft: far-right protest erupts outside migrant hotel in Leeds · NationalWorld, Aug 2025
Reports anti-asylum protests outside the Britannia Hotel in Seacroft, Leeds, in early August 2025 and the counter-demonstration mobilised by Stand Up To Racism in response.
- Anti-racists outnumber far-right hooligans who target Leeds hotel housing refugees · Morning Star, 6 Aug 2023
Reported in August 2023 that anti-racism counter-protesters outnumbered the people protesting at a Leeds hotel housing refugees, and described the former Old Windmill Hotel at Seacroft as owned by the Britannia chain. It is a 2023 report, not a report of the summer 2025 protests, and it does not show current use.
- Asylum accommodation in the UK · Migration Observatory, University of Oxford, Aug 2025
£170 per person per day in hotels (2024/25 average); used for per-hotel estimates and food/utilities breakdowns.
- The Home Office's asylum accommodation contracts · National Audit Office, May 2025
222 hotels in use; £1.296 billion annual (2024/25); per-hotel approximately £5.84 million.
- Asylum hotel protests kick off across England · New Start, 29 Jul 2025
Reports that on Saturday 26 July 2025 protests took place outside the Britannia Hotel in Seacroft, Leeds, which was surrounded by police who told residents to stay inside.
- Hotel protest sparks community pushback · East Side Story, 25 Aug 2025
Reports a counter-protest outside the Britannia Hotel in Seacroft, Leeds, and says hotels like the Britannia in Seacroft have been used to house asylum seekers. It does not say who is there now.
- We will find you: police issue more CCTV appeals to identify disorder suspects · ITV News, 9 Aug 2024
Reports a sentencing at Leeds Crown Court and describes the Britannia Hotel, in the Seacroft area of the city, as having been "home to 210 refugees and asylum seekers". The article is dated 9 August 2024 and does not say the count is current; it is the only count for this hotel found.