Shropshire residents fear for their safety as almost 100 asylum seekers are earmarked for new-build homes: 'We are vulnerable!'

Shropshire residents have told GB News that they feel "vulnerable" and fear for their safety after it was revealed that almost 100 asylum seekers are to be moved into new-build homes in their community.

Speaking to presenter Alex Armstrong, several residents expressed their concerns for the "danger" the asylum seekers pose to the women and children in the community.

Some 83 asylum seekers are set to move into the 21 smart new-build homes in Stoke Heath, worth £250,000 each.

The remote rural estate in the West Midlands currently hosts a population of less than 500 people, leaving the community in fear for their safety.

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Speaking to three local women, the residents told GB News that they only found out about the decision through a "Facebook post" from their local MP.

She revealed: "Well, it's an utter shock. We only found out via a Facebook post by the MP, so none of us knew anything about it.

"As far as we were concerned, they were going to be rented out or sold for affordable housing."

Another of the three women stressed that it is a female-heavy community, meaning they are "very vulnerable" to any undocumented men being moved into the area.

She stressed: "There's a lot of women around here, there aren't many men, so we are very vulnerable. I would class ourselves as that."

Another resident agreed, adding: "There's a lot of dog walkers as well. We're literally surrounded by fields, corn fields, and we all walk our dogs on there.

"So, if anything were to happen, I'm not saying it will, but if anything were to happen, we are very vulnerable and isolated.

"We all have cars, that's the only way we can get about. We have small children who play in the play park, but they probably won't be able to now."

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Speaking to another disabled resident, she revealed to Alex that the new-build estate had been destined "solely for the locals", and the playground on the estate was "Lottery funded for the children", who she says will no longer be allowed to play there if asylum seekers are moved in.

She told GB News: "These houses were built solely for the locals in the surrounding area, for the families on low income, and they've never had a chance at all because it's not been up for sale, so they've lost out on that. This area has lost out on it.

"And now we're seeing asylum seekers everywhere, which is putting our lives in danger and our children's lives in danger.

"They play freely around the estate, that has to stop. We leave our doors open because we all know each other, they'll have to be locked. Women walk down the field with the dogs happily, that'll have to stop. And who's going to be our security?"

Asked by Alex if she believes the "whole community will have to change", she strongly agreed.

She said: "I've lived on it since 1982, my son's moved on here with my grandson, and like a lot of families, their children have moved and bought houses on here, and we were hoping that was going to carry on with the new homes.

"But no, they'll be wandering around at nighttime, there's no amenities around here, and we've all seen the press, what they get up to, women are frightened of it. There's some single women on here, there's army wives on here, so we're all left frightened now."

GB News understands that the Stoke Heath development pre-dated the new processes introduced by Ms Mahmood earlier this year.

A Home Office spokesman told GB News: "New houses should never house asylum seekers. Earlier this year, the Home Secretary introduced robust processes to ensure new-build sites like Stoke Heath can never be considered again."

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