Residents of Crowborough, Sussex protested today against the Government's use of a former military training base as an asylum seeker accommodation centre. The camp currently houses 350 migrants with capacity planned to increase to 540, but locals have raised concerns about resident safety, strain on resources and the scale of the facility. Both pro- and anti-migration demonstrators attended, with Sussex Police imposing restrictions including a ban on face coverings.

The protest reflects a broader pattern of local opposition across the UK. In Piddington, Oxfordshire, residents voted 285 to 26 in a symbolic referendum against Government plans to convert a former military base into accommodation for 1,256 male asylum seekers—which would outnumber the village's 350 residents nearly four to one. Up to 500 councillors across Britain are reportedly considering following the "Piddington blueprint" in response. The Government first announced the Crowborough plans in October with confirmation in January, prompting the establishment of the local campaign group "Crowborough Says No", whose founder Liam Tomsett was arrested but later had charges dropped.