Planning permission granted for asylum site near Bicester

The UK government has granted planning permission for an asylum accommodation site at a former Ministry of Defence base near Bicester, but says it has not yet decided whether to proceed with the scheme.

The Home Office’s application covers accommodation for up to 1,256 men at the site in Oxfordshire. It was fast-tracked through an Urgent Crown Development application. The permission allows existing buildings to be demolished and modular accommodation, health and welfare facilities to be built.

A government report said the decision received 3,177 objections and one representation in support. Housing Secretary Angela Rayner granted permission, citing what the report described as high national demand for asylum accommodation.

The approval follows opposition from nearby residents and campaigners. The village of Piddington held a symbolic vote to leave the UK in protest at the plans, and campaigners have challenged the proposal in court. The planning decision can itself be challenged in the High Court within six weeks of the day after it was made. The government says such a case can address whether the decision is legally flawed, not reconsider the planning merits.

A Home Office spokesperson said permission allowed the department to “continue to progress the use of MOD Bicester”, but stressed that a final decision to proceed had not been taken. The government says it plans to close asylum hotels and use alternatives, including former military sites, which it says will have round-the-clock security and CCTV.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp condemned the decision, while Liberal Democrat MP for Bicester and Woodstock Calum Miller called the proposal the wrong plan and site for local communities, asylum seekers and taxpayers.