UK grants planning permission for Piddington asylum site

Housing Secretary Angela Rayner has granted planning permission for temporary, phased accommodation for up to 1,256 men seeking asylum at the former MoD Bicester site near Piddington, Oxfordshire. The approval was made through an urgent planning procedure for developments considered nationally important, despite substantial local opposition.

The permission allows existing buildings to be demolished and modular accommodation, health and welfare facilities to be built. The Home Office has described the proposed facilities as self-contained, with round-the-clock security and CCTV. It said permission allows work to progress but stressed that no final decision has been made on whether to proceed with the project.

A government planning report recorded 3,177 objections and one letter of support. The proposal has drawn opposition from residents and local representatives, who have raised concerns about the site and its effects on the community. Those objections do not alter the distinction between planning permission and a final decision by the Home Office to use the site.

Piddington held a symbolic referendum in September in response to the plans. Of 312 votes, 285 favored seceding from...