Great British PAC joins peaceful march against the RAF Barnham asylum accommodation proposal
This Sunday, 23 August, the Great British PAC will stand alongside local people in Thetford as opposition continues to grow against government proposals to use the former RAF Barnham site for asylum accommodation.
Our Suffolk County Director, Carlos Alves, will be there leading the Great British PAC team. Carlos attended a previous peaceful protest at Barnham, met local organisers and residents, and is coordinating our participation in what could become one of the largest local demonstrations so far.
We are asking supporters, residents and concerned members of the public to join us at Thetford Guildhall, Market Square, from 1pm. The march will leave at 1.30pm.
This is an opportunity for local people to come together peacefully, lawfully and visibly. It is a chance to show that communities in Thetford, Barnham and the surrounding villages will not simply accept a decision of this scale without being heard.
Bring your friends, bring your family and bring your Union Jacks. Above all, bring your voice.
Why we are marching
The Home Office announced on 25 June that it was considering the use of RAF Barnham, also known as Barnham Camp, as asylum accommodation. The site is one of three former military locations identified by the government, alongside Bicester in Oxfordshire and Linton-on-Ouse in North Yorkshire.
According to the government, the three sites could eventually accommodate approximately 3,750 asylum seekers. That figure remains subject to feasibility studies, planning permission and further approvals. Barnham has been widely reported as potentially accommodating up to 1,250 people, although the Home Office has not confirmed a final capacity for the individual site.
The government’s official Barnham factsheet states that the site, if approved, would accommodate single adult males aged between 18 and 65 who have applied for asylum. It also says that occupancy would be phased, beginning with smaller numbers, and that the site could operate for a minimum of ten years.
The Home Office says the accommodation would be basic, secure and largely self sufficient. It says a specialist provider would manage the site, with 24 hour security, CCTV, controlled access and mandatory screening checks against policing, immigration and criminality databases.
We recognise that the government must reduce the cost and disorder created by the asylum system. However, we do not believe that RAF Barnham is an appropriate location for accommodation on this scale. Moving people from hotels into a remote former military site may change the appearance of the problem, but it does not necessarily solve the underlying pressures on infrastructure, public services, policing or community cohesion.
Local councils have made their position clear
West Suffolk Council has formally opposed the proposal. At an extraordinary meeting on 1 July, councillors unanimously backed a motion stating that RAF Barnham is not a suitable location because of its rural setting, limited local infrastructure, constrained transport links and the likely impact on local services and communities.
The council has also raised environmental concerns. Barnham Camp sits close to the Breckland Special Protection Area and Special Area of Conservation, which support internationally important wildlife, including stone curlew. West Suffolk Council has said that environmental protections must apply regardless of the planning route used by the government.
Thetford Town Council has also unanimously resolved to object. The council has highlighted concerns about local infrastructure, healthcare, transport, policing and the capacity of public services. It has also criticised the lack of early engagement, noting that local representatives and residents appeared to learn about the proposal through media reports rather than through direct consultation with the Home Office.
Police representatives have separately raised concerns about the proposal. According to BBC News, Norfolk and Suffolk police have formally objected, warning that losing access to the site for specialist training could present a critical risk. They have also warned of the potential for increased community tension.
These are not minor objections. They come from democratically elected local authorities and from police forces with direct responsibility for public safety.
The national picture
The proposed use of RAF Barnham forms part of the government’s wider attempt to reduce its reliance on asylum hotels.
The latest official statistics show that 97,519 people were receiving asylum support at the end of March 2026. Of those, 20,885 people were being accommodated in hotels. That was 35 per cent lower than a year earlier and 63 per cent below the peak recorded in September 2023.
The government says that closing hotels and moving towards larger, state managed accommodation will save money and bring greater order to the asylum system. Ministers have stated that 13 more asylum hotels have been closed, contributing to estimated annual savings of £224 million.
We agree that the use of asylum hotels has been costly, damaging and unfair to local communities. However, replacing one unsuitable form of accommodation with another is not a long term solution. Decisions of this magnitude must be based on suitability, transparency, infrastructure and genuine engagement with the people who will live with the consequences.
The government has submitted an Urgent Crown Development application for Barnham. This means the final planning decision will not be made by West Suffolk Council in the normal way. Instead, the council will act as a consultee, with the decision resting with the relevant government department.
That makes public participation even more important. Local people must be able to demonstrate, calmly and clearly, that their concerns cannot be treated as an afterthought.
Our presence on Sunday
Carlos Alves and the Great British PAC team will be at Thetford Guildhall from 1pm. We will be there to meet residents, listen to their concerns and support a peaceful, professional and well organised demonstration.
We will also be inviting people to support our Email Warrior campaign, which helps residents make clear, respectful representations to decision makers. Public protest matters, but sustained civic pressure matters too. A march can show the strength of feeling in a single afternoon. Organised follow up can ensure that feeling is not ignored in the weeks and months that follow.
Our message for Sunday is simple. Be peaceful. Be respectful. Be visible. Follow the instructions of stewards and police officers, and do not engage with provocation or confrontation.
Our opposition is to the proposal, its location, its scale and the way it has been handled. It is not an excuse for hostility towards any individual. We want this demonstration to reflect the best of the local community, determined, dignified and impossible to dismiss.
Turn up. Stand up. Be counted.
For too long, communities have been expected to absorb major decisions without meaningful consultation. Thetford and Barnham deserve better.
This Sunday, we will stand with local residents who believe that RAF Barnham is the wrong site and that their concerns deserve to be heard at the highest level.
Meet us at Thetford Guildhall, Market Square, from 1pm. The march leaves at 1.30pm.
Do not leave this to somebody else. Turn up. Stand up. Be counted.
PEOPLE. ACTION. COUNTRY.
