Service users at the Hallmark Hotel, who were previously at the Park Inn, are being prioritised. We have held welfare conversations with service users, with representatives present from the Scottish Refugee Council and Glasgow City Council Social Services.
The Dispersed Accommodation that we are arranging moves to is safe, habitable and fit for purpose and meets all contractual and regulatory standards. Accommodation is cleaned prior to moves and any essential repairs carried out. Further repairs and improvements can be made and any issues should be reported to Mears or through Migrant Help.
We have offered counselling and support to service users who were at the Park Inn. Glasgow City Council provided four social workers from their Major Incident Support Team to be on site. The NHS are supporting, through the Asylum Health Bridging Team, with independent and confidential counselling and with onwards referrals to relevant pathways such as NHS and support networks. We would like to acknowledge and thank The Govan Community Project who immediately after the incident offered there counselling service to the service users.We are assisting with provisions of clothing, top-ups, toiletries including provision of telephones in certain cases, through the Scottish Refugee Council.
In hotel accommodation, service users are provided with three meals a day and the nutritional content is in line with NHS Eatwell guidelines. Menus are different every day and they are reviewed and changed on a three week cycle. Mears staff and NHS staff also eat the food in the hotels along with residents. When asylum seekers have provided feedback on the food we have taken this on board and redesigned menus and improved the preparation of food. In a recent June survey, a majority of asylum seekers in hotels have rated the food provided either okay, good or very good.
There are daily inspections by Mears staff of the hotels. NHS staff are also on site on a daily basis. Rooms are thoroughly cleaned and sheets changed on a weekly basis in all hotels.
