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Date submitted

21 July 2026

Submitted by

Interested party

Dear Planning Inspectorate, I am writing to object to the proposed expansion of Campsfield House Immigration Removal Centre. The application reference is CROWN/2026/0000004. There are a number of reasons for my objection, some personal, others environmental, and finally the lack of government transparency. On the personal level, I visited Campsfield detainees over a ten-year period from 2005 through 2015 and witnessed the detrimental effects that prolonged detention inflicts on individuals, both mentally and physically. Immigration detention not only causes serious harm to the people detained but its effects are also felt by families, communities, legal and advice services, health services and local residents. Expanding Campsfield would therefore have significant human and community consequences. Environmentally, the proposal would more than double the size of Campsfield, from 160 to 400 places, on Green Belt land. I am concerned that the expansion would make the site more built up, harm the openness of the Green Belt, and add pressure to local roads, services and infrastructure. Finally, The Home Office has not clearly shown why 240 additional detention places are needed at Campsfield, or why existing capacity, alternatives to detention or other estate options would not be sufficient. This is especially important because the proposal would involve permanent development on protected land. I am also concerned that key information has been withheld or redacted, including details of the layout, transport, lighting, landscaping and how the site would operate. This makes it difficult for the public to understand the full impact of the proposal. For these reasons, I ask that the application is refused. If it is not refused at this stage, I ask that it be examined through a full public inquiry. Yours faithfully,