The Home Office has brought a detention facility near Oxford back into operation, with capacity for up to 400 people awaiting immigration proceedings.
Campsfield immigration removal centre in Kidlington, Oxfordshire, resumed operations on December 1st, receiving its first arrivals two days later. The facility had been shuttered since May 2019 following recommendations from the Stephen Shaw Review, which documented serious concerns about conditions and operations, including incidents of unrest, self-harm, and property mishandling that led critics to deem it inadequate.
The Labour government has reopened the site as part of efforts to expand detention capacity for individuals including foreign nationals who have committed crimes, immigration law violators, unauthorized channel crossers, and those whose asylum claims have been rejected. Detainees may arrive directly from prisons or following enforcement operations.
Border security and asylum minister Alex Norris defended the decision, stating the government has returned nearly 50,000 people without legal residence status—the highest figure in almost ten years. He described Campsfield as “the first step in a major expansion of secure detention facilities” aimed at accelerating removals.
The Home Office reports the facility has undergone refurbishment to meet enhanced security specifications. The initial phase added 160 beds, with plans to reach 400 beds in a second phase. Combined with the Haslar centre in Gosport, Hampshire, officials aim to create 1,000 additional detention spaces.
The reopening has drawn sharp criticism from local officials and advocacy groups. Green party councillor Ian Middleton noted that elected representatives across all levels of local government, along with the area’s MP, have opposed the move. Protesters gathered near Oxford Airport this week, with campaigner Don Redding calling it “a desperate day” for the government to proceed “against all evidence and good sense.”
