Afghan asylum-seekers from the Stansted hijack are waiting to know their fate in a Sussex centre that has been highly praised by the Prime Minister.

They were settling at the weekend after their move on Friday to Tinsley House, a few hundred yards from Gatwick Airport. The Home Office decided to move the 79 asylum seekers from a temporary detention centre at the Fire Service College in Moreton-in Marsh in the Cotswolds.

The spartan setting of the two-storey centre close to the perimeter of Gatwick Airport and industrial buildings is deceptive. Inside the detainees will enjoy some good facilities and they will be cared for by staff who have won plaudits from Tony Blair.

Mr Blair praised the workers during a Commons debate last year. He was responding to Crawley MP Laura Moffatt's comments about how staff there worked to "a humane atmosphere in different and painful circumstances".

Mr Blair told the Commons then "Tinsley House is generally acknowledged for the excellence of the quality of its care and of the relationship between staff and detainees."

All the 79 passengers from the Stansted hijack are seeking asylum. The group includes several children, and the Gatwick centre has special facilities for youngsters.

The Afghans arrived in coaches and minibuses carrying what few possessions they have, accompanied by a police escort. Tinsley House sleeps about 150 people and was opened five years ago. The Afghan group is being kept segregated form other detainees for security reasons.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.