Asylum seekers at a troubled immigration centre in the UK are being taken on shopping trips to keep them entertained following warnings that ‘boredom’ could lead to serious violence.

There have been issues of violence at Wethersfield airbase in Essex, which is home to hundreds of migrants, many of whom arrived in Britain after crossing the Channel.

Former border watchdog David Neal visited the isolated site near Braintree in December and February after insiders reported ‘almost nightly fighting’ between different nationalities.

He described a feeling of ‘hopelessness caused by boredom’ among residents, and warned this would ‘lead to increased criminality, including arson’. The Home Office has rejected his assessment.

Now, new photos have emerged showing migrants boarding a minibus after a trip into Braintree, which is 15 minutes away from the airbase.

It comes as the atmosphere at the centre, set to house 1,7000 migrants, is said to be ‘horrendous’.

Marion Parker, 44, who lives in the town said it was a ‘complete joke’ to see the men out shopping.

The administrator said: ‘What message does it send out to others who want to come here? You get free journeys into towns to shop. It’s a complete joke.

‘I’m not against immigration at all. But this is a reward for breaking immigration law. Why don’t homeless Brits get free trips to shopping centres?’

David Price, who runs a campaign called Wethersfield Protest, said: ‘The situation has always been terrible and always will be terrible. It makes absolutely no sense to have it there.

‘The asylum seekers have told me when I have come across them that conditions there are not suited.

‘They complain it’s too cold and not good enough.

‘The whole situation is an almighty recipe for disaster. The situation in there is terrible.’