The land on which the Hostel stands was owned by Mr Gunton, who is commemorated in one of the street names. The surrounding fields were used to plant potatoes and cabbages, tended by German prisoners of war and also the girls of the Land Army.

After the war, the Chace Hostel became home to people of more than 15 nationalities, who arrived either as refugees or workers who had come to help with the reconstruction of Coventry. Families from the city whose homes had been destroyed in wartime also came to the hostel in 1949, although the families were split up. Women and children had to stay in the Baginton Fields Hostel ; men were housed in Block Z-3 at the Chace.

 By the time Coventry City Council took over from the Ministry of Supply in 1956, there was a static population of one thousand residents, many of whom had lived at the Hostel for several years. The multi-national mix of people included one lone Spaniard, Estonians, Latvians, Lithuanians, Ukrainians, Hungarians, Indians, West Africans and Italians.  A staff of 100 people ran the Hostel, which was also popular with those workers on short-term contracts. The manager, Mr H.W. Metcalfe, sometimes had to turn people away at the door because the accommodation was full : the maximum capacity was around 1,160 residents, with provision for 83 women.

The residential Guildhouse had single rooms only for men or women. In 1958, the weekly charge was £2. 16s. 6d for men and £2. 11s. 4d for women, including breakfast and evening meal on weekdays, and three meals on Sundays.

There were 26 Hostel blocks numbered from A to Z, each of which contained 45 single rooms. Each block had showers, a common room and a 24-hour central heating system ,which ensured a constant supply of hot water for baths. A state-registered nurse was in charge of a sick bay with 17 beds. There was also a laundry, a tea shop and a general shop. There were also rooms reserved for games and entertainment, providing a television with a 48inch screen, a library, a reading room, four billiard tables and table tennis and darts. The huge communal hall was used for a variety of purposes : three times a week it became a cinema, dances were held there and on Sundays Catholic church services were held there.

In the present day Chace Hostel, which continues to provide residential accommodation for men, the old dancehall and dining room are still in use. The original Hostel Manager’s distinctive white bungalow can still be seen on the corner of Gunton Avenue. The female staff quarters of the original Hostel stand on the corner of Chace and Stretton Avenues, although at present they are deserted and boarded up.