Neighbours fear anti-social behaviour could return when former asylum seeker property is reoccupied

Residents living near a house that previously accommodated young male asylum seekers fear a return of anti-social behaviour unless adequate supervision is put in place when the property is occupied again.

The house on Gerard Road in Weston-super-Mare, North Somerset, accommodated four young male asylum seekers from 2023 until earlier this year, when it was unexpectedly left vacant.

During that period, neighbours reported a range of problems, including a persistent smell of cannabis, people and vehicles arriving and leaving at all hours, young girls gathering outside, late-night shouting, loud music, car horns and vehicles obstructing driveways.

Police vehicles were also spotted outside the property on a couple of occasions. One woman who lives nearby became anxious about walking past the house after experiencing aggressive sexual comments from men associated with the property.

Residents further complained that visitors regularly gathered outside, despite assurances from Curo, the housing association responsible for running the property, that loitering would not be permitted.

Following several months of refurbishment work, neighbours have now been informed that the house is due to be occupied again.

However, they have not been told who the future residents will be.

They have appealed to North Somerset Council and the property's owner, Affordable Accommodation (South West) Ltd, to ensure appropriate management arrangements are in place.

One neighbour, who requested anonymity, said:

"Nobody wants to go back to how it was before.

We have absolutely no issue with anybody living there because of their race, religion or where they come from.

"Our concern has always been about putting a group of young men together in a large house with very little supervision.

"We raised that concern before and were reassured it would be properly managed. Unfortunately, what happened afterwards was exactly what we were worried about."

Affordable Accommodation (South West) Ltd, whose director is Ciaran Taylor, purchased the Gerard Road property for £390,000 in August 2022.

The asylum accommodation project began operating at the address in 2023.

According to residents, they were initially told that somebody would visit the property during the day, an individual would be "on call" outside those hours and visitors would be required to "sign in".

They were also assured that the occupants would not have cars.

However, neighbours say numerous vehicles subsequently arrived and departed, several occupants learned to drive, and two cars were frequently parked either on the driveway or on the road outside the house.

Some occupants were also seen riding mopeds and motorbikes associated with delivery companies.

Asylum seekers are not normally permitted to work while their claims are being considered.

More recently, a man wearing a lanyard resembling those used by the Home Office and carrying a body-worn camera knocked on a neighbour's door to ask about one of the former occupants.

The concerns about behaviour around the property began soon after it opened.

Within weeks of its launch in 2023, a woman living nearby experienced loud, sexually abusive comments from a group of men, some of whom were residents of the house.

"I was alone and absolutely petrified," she said.

Curo later wrote to the woman, stating that it was taking the complaint "very seriously".

In an email seen by the Weston Independent News, the housing association said it had spoken to the residents and "discussed appropriate behaviours, particularly in respect of women, and detailed what is, and what is not acceptable".

The association also said it would review CCTV footage for evidence of large groups gathering outside, collect information about visitors and work alongside local PCSOs.

Despite these assurances, neighbours maintain that the problems did not stop.

Residents also claim that email addresses initially provided for reporting concerns later became inactive.

One neighbour said they were subsequently told by Curo that they would need to supply their date of birth before any action could be taken on a complaint about the property.

According to the resident, this added to a growing sense among neighbours that their concerns were not being properly addressed.

They emphasised that not all the occupants were responsible for causing problems. However, they said the smell of cannabis remained a recurring issue and was sometimes so strong that it reached inside his bedroom.

Cleaners attended the property weekly while the men were living there. Nevertheless, neighbours say rubbish built up behind the house, attracting rats.

Since the occupants moved out, substantial refurbishment work has been carried out at the property.

A tradesman working at the house reportedly told one neighbour that the former occupants had treated it with "no respect" and that considerable work was required to restore it to an acceptable standard.

He claimed people had smoked indoors, extinguished cigarettes on the flooring, spat inside the property and left stains throughout the house.

"I used to be live and let live but after seeing the disrespect they treated that house and the way they talked to us, it made me right wing," he told the neighbour.

The neighbour said: "This isn't an issue about asylum seekers or anybody's background.

"If you put four young men of any race or religion in a large house and effectively give them free rein with somebody merely on call if something goes wrong, we don't think that's sufficient.

"We simply don't want to return to that."

North Somerset Council has since been in contact with at least one resident about the property's future.

In an email seen by Weston Independent News, a council representative said it was "committed to ensuring that any future use of the property is appropriately managed".

The representative added: "We recognise the importance of maintaining positive relationships with local residents and ensuring that neighbours have confidence that any accommodation is operated responsibly."

The council also offered to discuss "the arrangements that will be in place moving forward".

Concluding their concerns, the neighbour said: "We aren't trying to decide who should or shouldn't live on our street.

"We're asking that whoever lives there, the property is managed properly."