How We Track UK Asylum Spending: Our Data Sources and Methodology
Transparency is a core principle of Migrant Hotel Tracker. This article explains exactly how we gather data, which sources we trust, how calculations are performed, and what our limitations are.
Our Source Hierarchy
Not all sources carry equal weight. We operate a strict hierarchy when determining which data to use:
Tier 1: Official Government Publications
Home Office Immigration Statistics, National Audit Office investigation reports, HM Treasury Supply Estimates, ONS datasets, and parliamentary written answers. These are our primary sources and take precedence over all others.
Tier 2: Academic and Research Bodies
The Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, the Institute for Fiscal Studies, the Refugee Council, and university research papers. These sources provide analysis and context that government statistics alone cannot.
Tier 3: Verified News Investigations
BBC, Reuters, The Guardian, The Times, and other established news organisations that have conducted original reporting on asylum costs, hotel locations, and government contracts. News sources corroborate but do not replace official data.
Tier 4: Community Contributions
User-submitted locations and updates are valuable but treated as unverified until confirmed against other sources. Community submissions are marked distinctly on the map and go through a review process before being fully integrated.
How the Live Counter Works
The live spending counter on the homepage is one of our most visible features. Here is exactly how it is calculated:
Step 1: Annual Total
We take the most recent verified annual spending figure for the UK asylum system. Currently this is approximately £11.8 billion for 2024/25, derived from National Audit Office reports and Home Office publications. This figure covers all government departments.
Step 2: Daily Rate
Annual total divided by 365 gives a daily spending rate of approximately £32.3 million. This assumes even distribution across the year, which is a simplification (actual spending fluctuates with arrivals and seasonal factors).
Step 3: Per-Second Increment
The daily rate divided by 86,400 (seconds in a day) gives the per-second increment. The counter accumulates from the start of the current financial year at this rate, synchronised to server time to ensure consistency across all visitors.
Full technical details are available on our Methodology page.
How Hotel Locations Are Verified
Every hotel and accommodation site on our map goes through a verification process:
- 1.Initial identification. Sites are identified through Home Office publications, FOI responses, council planning applications, news reports, or community submissions.
- 2.Cross-referencing. Each location is checked against at least one independent source. For government-identified sites, we verify the address and operating status. For community submissions, we look for corroborating evidence.
- 3.Cost estimation. If bed counts are available from official sources, we use those. Otherwise, we estimate from hotel capacity data. Costs are calculated using the £170 per person per day average rate.
- 4.Ongoing monitoring. Sites are checked for closure announcements, contract changes, and updated bed counts. The community voting system helps flag sites that may have changed status.
What We Do Not Do
Maintaining credibility requires being clear about boundaries:
- -We do not fabricate or exaggerate data. If a figure cannot be verified, we either exclude it or clearly state that it is an estimate with our reasoning.
- -We do not take political positions. The site presents data and allows users to draw their own conclusions. Our job is transparency, not advocacy.
- -We do not publish personal information about asylum seekers or staff at accommodation sites. All data relates to locations, costs, and systems.
- -We do not use unverified social media posts as primary sources. Social media can alert us to new information, but it must be verified before being added to the site.
Known Limitations
No data platform is perfect. We are transparent about our limitations:
- -Data lag. Government figures are published quarterly or annually. Our counter uses the most recent available data, which may not reflect very recent changes.
- -Occupancy assumptions. We assume full occupancy for hotel cost estimates. Actual occupancy rates vary and the real cost may be lower than displayed.
- -Cross-department complexity. Some costs attributed to the asylum system also cover broader immigration functions. Separating asylum-specific costs from general immigration costs is not always possible.
- -Site completeness. Our map may not include every asylum accommodation site. Some sites operate without public disclosure, and new sites open regularly. We rely on a combination of official data and community reporting to maintain coverage.
Help Improve Our Data
If you know of an asylum accommodation site that is not on our map, or if you have corrections to existing data, you can submit updates through the map interface. Create a free account and use the "Add Location" feature to contribute.
For data corrections or press enquiries, contact us at contact@migrantsnearme.com.
Key Sources
- National Audit Office — Investigation into asylum accommodation (2024)
- Home Office — Immigration Statistics, year ending September 2024
- Migration Observatory, University of Oxford — Asylum and refugee resettlement in the UK
- PSSRU/YHEC — Unit Costs of Health and Social Care (2023)
- ONS — Multiple datasets (Construction, Population, Employment)
For the complete list of 48+ sources, visit our Data Sources page.