Large Asylum Centre

What we know so far

So what’s the Home Office’s plan?

Confidential sources have revealed that the Home Office is looking to house 1,500 male asylum seekers, (more than the entire population of Wethersfield) at Wethersfield Airfield in a mixture of existing barrack blocks and portacabins. The Home Office have failed to consult the local community, the local council, our local MP, the police and health services, (in fact everyone other than themselves) so exact details of what they intend to do are sparse.

We now understand that the Home Office want to move the first 500 asylum seekers onto the site on in April. Incredibly the Home Office is still saying that a final decision has not been made. Yet in the last few weeks:

• Army families living on site are all being moved off within the next few months.

• Large trees have been cut down on site to make way for security fencing.

• Huge amounts of expensive temporary fencing has been erected on site.

• Electronic security systems in the barrack blocks have been updated.

The Home Office has failed to consult the local community at all on their plans and it appears that no meaningful consultation has happened yet with the local council, our local MP, or the police and health services. It looks like the Home Office want to push through their plans before anyone has time to object.

And this is instead of the Mega Prison Proposal?

NO, incredibly the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) are still interested in part of the site for the 3,400 inmate mega prison! So we could end up with both, that’s nearly 5,000 people housed on the site and at least 1,500 people working there.

What is an asylum reception centre?

People seeking asylum would be bused here whilst their application for asylum is processed. That should take around 6 months, but the majority are now taking al­most 2 years. Currently they wouldn’t be detained. However, in light of the gov­ernment’s recent announcement on detaining asylum seekers that could change.

And why isn’t Wethersfield suitable for an asylum reception centre?

Lots of the same reasons why Wethersfield isn’t suitable for a mega prison:

• How will our narrow roads and bridges cope with up to 600 extra car move­ments per day plus all the extra lorries delivering food and other supplies to the site?

• With low unemployment locally, where will they find the 300 people needed to staff the asylum centre?

• What effect will such a large influx of people have on the already over-stretched local health service and police force?

What about the asylum seekers themselves?

Putting vulnerable people in such an isolated location isn’t a good idea for them either:

• The rural nature of the site, 2 miles from the centre of Wethersfield and with limited local facilities or public transport, means the asylum seekers will effectively be imprisoned. They will receive an allowance of £1.14 a day, not even enough for a bus ticket on the limited bus service to Braintree (9 miles away).

• Current guidance suggests those seeking asylum should be housed in urban areas, within easy reach of services, with a choice of recreational activities, having capability for multi-agency working by local authorities, police and health services.

• Wethersfield won’t offer them the support they need and being an ex-military location will be likely to retraumatise them.

• There are also question marks over contamination at the site which will need thorough investigation.

Crowd Justice Fund

The Home Office announced on the 29th March, that it intends to house 1500 asylum seekers at Wethersfield Airfield.

The only way to stop this going ahead is by a successful legal challenge.

We welcome the news that Braintree District Council is taking legal action against the Home Office. This does NOT remove the need for residents to take their own action. To defeat the Home Office we want to make sure every possible legal angle is explored and all compelling arguments against the Home Office are raised in court.

The Fields Association is not able to bring a legal challenge itself. However, a local resident who has lived in Wethersfield since childhood is prepared to bring the challenge himself. We fully support him in this.

Your donations will help to get independent legal advice, pay court fees and legal costs.

He has a formidable legal team, Deighton Pierce Glynn Solicitors instructing Alex Goodman KC and Charles Bishop from Landmark Chambers. The team has years of experience challenging unlawful decisions by the Home Secretary. They have recently brought successful claims against the Home Secretary for her unlawful use of Napier Barracks in Kent and Penally Camp in Wales.

Please follow the link to donate and get updates: Crowd Justice