Trend
-25 Latest quarter change
+135 Change across series
48 Official data points
Lewisham
258 on asylum support. Rank 122 nationally, 19 in London. Rate: 8.56 per 10,000 (54th percentile). Regional provider: Clearsprings Ready Homes.
Summary
Lewisham has 258 people on asylum support at quarter end, ranking 122 out of 361 local authorities nationally. The rate of 8.56 per 10,000 residents places it around the 54th percentile. 151 are in contingency accommodation (58.5% of total). No hotel evidence attached yet. These are quarter-end stock numbers, not throughput.
Supported asylum in Lewisham
Quarter-end stock series to Dec 2025. A rise or fall is a net change in the number of people on support at period end, not the number of new claims or distinct people moving through the caseload. Support stock also overlaps with, but is not identical to, the awaiting-decision backlog.
Local numbers
Accommodation split
Dispersal accommodation 81
Initial accommodation 0
Subsistence only 26
Contingency accommodation 151
Pathway breakdown
Other routes
Homes for Ukraine 930
Afghan programme 229
Resettlement cumulative 206
Population context
All pathways total 1,417
Share of local population 0.47%
Hotel evidence
No public hotel evidence attached to this area yet.
No public hotel evidence logged for this area yet.
Ethnic composition projection
Lewisham: WBI 37.2% (2021) → 8.3% (2051). 80% CI: 9.4–12.7%.
Ethnic composition — Lewisham
White British White Other Asian Black Mixed Other 80% CI
Model: Hamilton-Perry single-year CCRs, 1,000 Monte Carlo simulations, SNPP-constrained
Census 2011 → 2021 cohort change ratios. Shaded band = 80% confidence interval from stochastic perturbation (σ=0.04, calibrated from NEWETHPOP validation). Not a forecast.
Religion projection
Muslim 8.0% (2021) → 8.6% (2051). Christian 47.4% → 19.1%.
Religion — Lewisham
Christian No religion Muslim
Nativity
35.6% foreign-born (2021). Diversity: highly diverse (entropy 0.83). 83.8% main language English.
UK-born vs foreign-born — Lewisham
UK-born Foreign-born
high immigration gateway: High foreign-born share means ethnic change is migration-driven. Future projections are sensitive to immigration policy.
Why Lewisham is changing
-4.3ppWhite British change 2011–2021. Cyan = decline. Amber = growth.
Dominant driver: national trend. Shift-share methodology following Franklin (2014).
Economy & housing by ethnicity
Census 2021 employment, homeownership, and qualifications by ethnic group.
Employment rate
White British 68%
Mixed 70.7%
White Other 80.4%
Other 65.1%
Homeownership rate
White British 45.5%
Mixed 32.1%
White Other 40.2%
Other 32.2%
Degree+ qualification rate
White British 49.2%
Mixed 45.7%
White Other 58.4%
Other 37.1%
Source
Census 2021 RM018 (economic activity), RM134 (tenure), RM049 (qualifications) by ethnic group. Observed, not projected.
School ethnicity
DfE School Census 2024/25: 36,241 pupils. 25.2% White British. Schools are 12pp more diverse than the general population.
Pupil ethnicity
Black 31.9%
White British 25.2%
Mixed 18.9%
White Other 12%
Asian 7.5%
Other 4.5%
What this means
Schools are 12pp more diverse than the general population — schools show the future.
74.8% Minority pupils now
84.7% Projected 2041
Source
DfE School Census 2024/25. State-funded schools. Upper-tier LA level.
Service demand impact
Projected impact of demographic change on local services.
non-English speakers
NHS and council services will need increased interpreter/translation provision.
foreign-born growth to 2051
High foreign-born population growth will drive additional housing demand, particularly in the private rented sector.
EAL growth
Significant additional EAL (English as Additional Language) support likely needed.
National benchmarks
Supported asylum count
258 National distribution.
Supported asylum rate
8.56 Per 10,000 residents.
Contingency accommodation
151 Hotel and contingency placements.
Regional peers
Top 6 in London by supported asylum.