Fires in Napier Barracks Launch Concern for Migrant Housing Conditions

In September 2020, the UK Home Office began to use the Napier Barracks to provide temporary accommodation for asylum seekers.

A fire at the Napier Barracks in Folkestone, Kent broke out on 29 January and has since drawn attention from around the globe. The initial response of police and fire reported no injuries and arrested five men for the disturbance. The event occurred after an outbreak of COVID-19 in the barracks.

Since September, 400 migrants have been living in the previously abandoned ex-military site which is said to be in line with public health standards. In late January, about one in four living in the barracks tested positive for COVID-19, inciting calls from Coventry South MP Zarah Sultana to Home Secretary Priti Patel to close the camp and provide safe and liveable housing instead.

Conditions at the barracks, described as inhumane and likened to a prison, includes 16 blocks of dormitory-style sleeping quarters which each house 28 people sharing two toilets, two showers, and a communal eating space. A local health board describes this style of living as unsuitable for people who “may have experienced trauma, great hardship, and who have been separated from their families;” migrants report that they do not feel safe or mentally stable in these conditions, and in the span of one month ambulances responded to mental health crises at Napier 19 times.

Amidst the outbreak of more than 100 cases of COVID-19, these conditions made it impossible to socially distance; throughout January, some residents slept outdoors to avoid catching the virus while about 59 people were transferred off site. Dr Claire van Nispen tot Pannerden, an infectious disease consultant at Doctors of the World, claims the Home Office’s assessment of the accommodations was “beyond negligent” and failed to address the reality of the ongoing pandemic. After the fire, asylum seekers at Napier were left without drinking water, electricity, and heating. 

In the hours following the fire, Patel released a statement calling the events “deeply offensive to the taxpayers of this country.” Immigration minister Chris Philp says the barracks represent a particularly good value for money; the Home Office’s equality impact statement reasons that housing people seeking asylum in more “generous” accommodation would “undermine public confidence in the asylum system.” Additionally, it notes that people seeking asylum are “not analogous” to British citizens and the “less generous” support provided is justified by the need to keep immigration under control.

Critics of the statement claim ministers are “pandering to prejudice” and putting people’s health at risk for “political ends” and to manage public opinion over refugees’ wellbeing.