- Piddington residents voted 285 to 26 for secession in a symbolic protest against the proposed asylum centre.
- The former Ministry of Defence Bicester site could house 1,256 male asylum seekers about 0.8 kilometers from the village.
- The public consultation ended September seventeenth, twenty twenty-six; the government says the site would help replace asylum hotels.
Residents of Piddington, Oxfordshire, voted to symbolically leave the UK on September 15, 2026, protesting Home Office plans to house 1,256 male asylum seekers at the nearby former MoD Bicester site. The proposed centre is about 0.8 kilometers from the village. The vote had no legal force.
The count was 285 in favor of secession and 26 against, with 1 spoiled ballot among 312 cast. The result was announced on September 16, 2026. The village has about 350 residents.
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The referendum offered a public measure of opposition. Residents said the proposal had caused “extraordinary distress,” with fears centered on personal safety, disruption and the future of village life.
The parish council organized the vote after a July 2026 decision backing the idea. It was a symbolic protest, not a change in the village’s legal status. Residents also criticized the consultation process as inadequate.
A group of 133 women sent an open letter to every female MP, warning that the plan threatened their security. Louise Brooker, a local resident, said: “We are terrified.”
The letter described the situation as a “crisis” and said “our safety, security and freedoms will be under threat.” It also appealed to women MPs directly:
“As fellow women, you will understand the serious risks this will expose us to.”
The letter warned: “Life as we know it will be destroyed. We will not feel safe walking our streets. We are already living in fear.” The public consultation on the proposal ended at midnight on 17 September 2026, two days after the village vote.
Women warn the plan could change daily life in the village
Residents have raised concerns about safety, crime, property prices and changes to the village’s character. Some said they feared the proposed population would outnumber local residents by nearly four to one.
The planned accommodation is for 1,256 people. Residents have discussed installing wireless CCTV cameras, setting up an emergency alert system and organizing security patrol teams. Women have also considered self-defence classes.
Herbert Owen, 76, said the dispute extended beyond the village. “This is not just a problem for Piddington but for the entire UK,” he said. He added: “The government is destabilizing the country. Whether they send them to detention centers or anywhere else, they are ruining people’s lives.”
The department announced the Bicester plan in June 2026 as part of its effort to reduce reliance on asylum hotels. It proposes using the site for a minimum of 10 years to accommodate single adult male asylum seekers.
The department says the site would house men for at least 10 years
A spokesperson said the government was closing asylum hotels and moving people into other accommodation, including former military sites. The department said those sites were designed to be “self-contained” and limit effects on nearby communities.
“We are working to fairly house asylum seekers across the country, moving asylum seekers into alternative accommodation, including former military sites which are designed to be self-contained to reduce impact on the local community.”
The spokesperson said officials engage with local authorities and police forces over safety and security in surrounding areas. The department also said: “The government is closing every asylum hotel, saving taxpayers over £1bn on asylum support since the election.”
That position puts the local dispute within a national shift away from hotel accommodation. The government has pledged to end asylum hotel use by 2029, while considering former military sites for alternative placements.
Hotel closures sit within a wider shift in asylum accommodation
As of June 2026, 89,089 people were living in asylum accommodation across the UK. Of those, 16,021 were in hotels, about 18% of the total.
The asylum system also had 40,168 people waiting for an initial decision in June 2026, across 32,401 asylum applications. Those figures sit alongside the government’s hotel-closing pledge and its plans to transfer people to other sites.
Bicester is not the only former military location proposed for asylum accommodation. Other sites under consideration include Barnham in Suffolk and Linton-on-Ouse in North Yorkshire.
The Bicester proposal remains a government plan for long-term accommodation, while the village vote records local resistance. The referendum result was announced on September 16, 2026, after the council-backed ballot the previous day.
