West Lindsey District Council has received confirmation that our appeal against the decision of Mrs Justice Thornton, where we challenged the Home Office’s decision to use RAF Scampton to house up to 2,000 asylum seekers, will take place on 11 and 12 June 2024.
This will also be heard alongside other appeals brought by Braintree District Council for the RAF Wethersfield on site and a resident from Wethersfield.
We understand the Home Office still plan to extend the temporary use of the site for at least a further three years by seeking planning permission through a Special Development Order (SDO) when their emergency permitted development rights (known as Class Q) expire in April.
Leader of West Lindsey District Council Cllr Trevor Young said:
“We understand the SDO still has not been laid but is imminent with the expiration of Class Q on 13 April 2024. Given the Home Office have been working on this for more than12 months, it is quite incredible that they have taken this approach leaving the matter to the very last minute and assume the SDO will be granted.
“The Council was given the opportunity to provide our comments on this process where we raised various concerns, including impact on Heritage as well as the lack of information provided and the failure to ensure meaningful engagement with stakeholders and the local community.
“We have received a letter from the Home Office in response to the SDO and it does not address the Council’s concerns. It also makes it clear that a further Environmental Impact Assessment screening direction is to be sought, this will be the fourth screening direction requested on this site within a year which is wholly inappropriate. The legislation doesn’t make provision for ‘rolling EIA’ assessments and this shows that in the Council’s view the development proposal to accommodate up to 2000 asylum seekers at RAF Scampton has never had appropriate planning consent.”
The SDO letter we have received has now been published and is available to read in our planning application database.
Residents can keep updated on the asylum accommodation via the Home Office’s factsheets on the GOV website - this aims to address any concerns and questions raised locally. Home Office’s factsheets - asylum accommodation