Four Lancashire authorities are in the national top nine for asylum support per head

Counted per head of population, four East Lancashire authorities sit in the top nine of 361 UK local authorities for people on asylum support, at 30 June 2026.

Rank by rate	Council	On support	Per 10,000 people
1	Glasgow City	3,938	60.2
2	Hyndburn	426	49.0
3	Braintree	791	47.5
4	Burnley	471	46.7
5	Coventry	1,700	46.6
6	Blackburn with Darwen	760	46.4
7	Halton	604	45.8
8	Rugby	567	45.2
9	Pendle	441	44.0

Two rankings, two different answers. Ranked by the raw count, Burnley is 65th of 361 and Hyndburn 71st, which is how they appear on their own place pages and in most reporting. Ranked per head of population they are 4th and 2nd. Neither ranking is wrong. They answer different questions, and only the second one tells you what a place is actually carrying relative to its size.

Nowhere in the top ten by absolute count appears in the top nine by rate. The largest caseloads are in large cities. The heaviest loads are in small towns.

For comparison, elsewhere in Lancashire: Preston is 47th by rate on 24.7 per 10,000, Blackpool 94th on 16.5, and Ribble Valley 230th on 3.6. The four authorities above are not a Lancashire-wide pattern. They are an East Lancashire one.

The prime accommodation provider across the whole region is Serco, on a contract running to 2029.