London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 02, 2025

Newport Central Hotel damaged after housing homeless people

Newport Central Hotel damaged after housing homeless people

A hotel was left with tens of thousands of pounds of damage after homeless people were housed in it by a council, it has been claimed.

Televisions and a lift were among items wrecked at Newport Central Hotel, said Na'im Payman, who runs a firm that manages it.

Gwent Police said a man was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage.

Newport council said the homeless people had since been given alternative accommodation.

It came after the hotel closed on 13 August because of a problem with fire regulations.

The council said people had been housed at Newport Central Hotel over the past 12 months, including, more recently, "a number of rough sleepers".

Mr Payman said about one floor had been used by homeless residents - about 16 rooms of the 61 room property.

He said the damage caused had impacted on their ability to take other people in.

"It will cost us tens of thousands of pounds," Mr Payman said. "We have made a loss by housing them."

'It's been a nightmare'


The hotel said drug paraphernalia was left in rooms used by homeless people


Sam Dabb, who runs nearby Le Pub, said 98% of the homeless people staying at the hotel on Newport's High Street were "amazing".

"But 2% have been a nightmare, fighting, stealing, doing drugs, threatening people. What they should have done was just kick out the 2%," she said.

"It's been a nightmare constantly having to police outside. You did not know what they might be getting up to."

She said after the hotel was closed down "about 12" homeless people returned to the property to squat. She said they had left by Friday.

"They were just coming and going, they had the door open," she said.


In a window a sign was put up informing prospective guests the property was "under maintenance"


Recent reviews of the hotel on Trip Advisor were unflattering.

One writer, Kendal Smith, said staff were "lovely" but warned of "drug addicts."

"It's awful and not safe, the homeless that stay here take drugs and abuse staff."

The author warned guests' doors were kicked, adding: "Do not stay here!"

Claire Crook said it was "too dangerous to ever go near again."

"When I arrived, I was confronted by a drunken brawl outside the hotel entrance and had to call the police as a woman with blood pouring from her head was lying on the floor," said the writer.

She called it the "worst hotel experience of my entire life."

A third, Ben W, said it was a "dangerous place for a family to stay."

Mr Payman apologised to guests, staff and nearby residents for "extreme discomfort" caused by some residents.

"At the same time we hope it will be appreciated that it is completely beyond our control as accommodation providers to resolve long-standing and complex behavioural patterns," he said.

'Breakages and damage'


Newport council said all residents it had housed at the hotel were moved to alternative accommodation by 15 August, "following instructions from South Wales Fire and Rescue Service," it said.

"Any issues relating to breakages and damages within the hotel, where caused by an individual placed there by the council, have been addressed," a council spokesman said.

Gwent Police said it was called to the hotel at 14:30 BST on 10 July following a report of criminal damage.

A spokesman said: "A 24-year-old man from Newport was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage and has been released under investigation."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
Vietnam Faces Up to $25 Billion Export Loss as U.S. Tariffs Bite
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Indonesia Court Upholds Military Law Amid Concerns Over Expanded Civilian Role
Larry Ellison, Michael Dell and Rupert Murdoch Join Trump-Backed Bid to Take Over TikTok
Trump and Musk Reunite Publicly for First Time Since Fallout at Kirk Memorial
Vietnam Closes 86 Million Untouched Bank Accounts Over Biometric ID Rules
×