DARK SECRETS: Chris whitbread | Rare Historical Photos

The battle over the Bell hotel: how a year of asylum protests tore apart a pretty, prosperous Essex town

Last summer, a 14-year-old girl was sexually assaulted by an asylum seeker in Epping and this small community was engulfed in protest. Can it recover?

The Guardian - UK · Jul 8

Epping council refused permission to appeal asylum hotel decision

The Bell Hotel in Epping became the focal point of several demonstrations and counter-protests in recent weeks

The Independent UK · Sep 2, 2025

Permission for council to appeal over Epping hotel decision refused

The Bell Hotel in Epping became the focal point of several demonstrations and counter-protests in recent weeks.

Evening Standard · Sep 2, 2025

Nigel Farage claims court ruling removing asylum seekers from hotel as 'victory'

NIGEL Farage has claimed a court decision allowing an English council to remove asylum seekers from a hotel as a “victory”.

The National (Scotland) · Aug 19, 2025

Government ‘does not have a plan’ to accommodate asylum seekers – council leader

Chris Whitbread was speaking after Epping Forest council was granted an injunction blocking asylum seekers from being housed at a local hotel.

Evening Standard · Aug 19, 2025

Ministers braced for further legal challenges after High Court Epping decision

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage hailed the decision a ‘victory’.

Evening Standard · Aug 19, 2025

Interim High Court injunction lodged by council in bid to stop asylum hotel

Documents in relation to the Bell Hotel in Epping were lodged with the High Court in London on Tuesday, Epping Forest District Council said.

The Independent UK · Aug 12, 2025

Epping Council goes to High Court in bid to remove migrants from asylum hotel

Essex council applies for an interim High Court injunction in bid to stop asylum seekers from being housed at hotel that has been at the centre of protests

Evening Standard · Aug 12, 2025

Police commissioner joins council to demand closure of asylum hotels after 'multiple serious incidents'

Council leader Chris Whitbread said: ‘Repeated warnings to the Home Office about the unsuitability of both sites have gone unheeded’

Evening Standard · Jul 24, 2025

'It's a powder keg': Government warned UK faces another summer of riots after Epping migrant hotel violence

Epping Forest District Council leader Chris Whitbread described the Essex town as a ‘powder keg’ after violent demonstrations outside the Bell Hotel on Sunday

Evening Standard · Jul 22, 2025