Oxfordshire County Council has objected to plans to expand Campsfield House near Kidlington from 160 to 400 immigration detention places.
Oxfordshire County Council has formally objected to plans to expand Campsfield Immigration Removal Centre near Kidlington, adding 240 places to the facility.
The council has written to the Planning Inspectorate opposing the proposal, which would increase the centre’s capacity from 160 to 400 places and involve new accommodation blocks, supporting facilities, additional parking, landscaping and associated infrastructure. The application is being considered as a Crown development application.
The proposal was submitted in June and is identified as application CROWN/2026/0000004. Cherwell District Council recorded an objection to the related Crown development application in July.
The expansion forms part of a wider Government programme to increase immigration detention capacity. In a parliamentary answer in June, the Home Office said the additional 240 places at Campsfield would contribute to around 1,000 additional long-term male detention places nationally, taking overall capacity to approximately 3,500 beds.
The Government said the additional capacity was intended to support higher levels of enforced returns, increase the ability to manage demand across the detention estate and address operational constraints caused by limited capacity.
County council maintains opposition
Oxfordshire County Council’s objection follows its longstanding opposition to the use of Campsfield House as an immigration detention centre.
The council’s full council supported a motion opposing the reopening of the site on 7 October 2022. In its latest submission, the authority said the current planning application did not address the concerns behind that resolution.
Councillor Neil Fawcett, the council’s deputy leader, said the proposal would increase the scale and permanence of a use to which the council had formally objected.
He also said the expansion could result in additional demands on Thames Valley Police and argued that immigration policy should place greater emphasis on safe and legal routes, timely decisions on asylum claims and support for people seeking sanctuary.
The council has urged the Secretary of State to refuse the expansion and to seek the permanent closure of the facility.
A wider local dispute
The Campsfield proposal has attracted representations from local residents, organisations and elected representatives.
The Planning Inspectorate’s published representations include objections concerning the scale of the development, its effect on the surrounding area, transport and infrastructure, the use of Green Belt land and the case for additional detention capacity.
Calum Miller, the Liberal Democrat MP for Bicester and Woodstock, also submitted a representation to the Planning Inspectorate in July.
The Government’s position is that the additional places are part of a national expansion programme intended to increase the capacity of the immigration enforcement system. The Home Office has said the additional capacity will support increased enforced returns and improve resilience across the detention estate.
The Planning Inspectorate is considering the Crown development application, with the published representations forming part of the planning process.
