Piddington women warn asylum plan could leave them outnumbered 10 to one

Early reports suggested the Home Office had deemed a former Ministry of Defence site near Piddington and Upper Arncott could house around 1,250 migrants.

But new details, denied by the department, have revealed that number could nearly triple - with locals warning the plans would overwhelm their historic community.

Now, the Women of Piddington, a group of female residents opposing the plans, have urged MPs not to abandon them in an open letter.

They have written to female MPs in particular because they fear the arrival of more than 1,200 predominantly male asylum seekers will leave local women feeling increasingly vulnerable and unsafe in their own community.

They wrote: "Dear Women of Parliament, We are the Women of Piddington - and we are facing a crisis.

"We are 133 females living in a tiny rural community. The Government is planning to open nondetained asylum accommodation for 1,256 men right beside our village.

"They would outnumber us 10 to one."

The letter continued: "As fellow women, you will understand the serious risks this will expose us to. Our safety, our security and our freedoms will be under threat. Life as we know it will be destroyed. We will not feel safe walking our streets. We are already living in fear.

"As the women of Westminster, you have both the power and the responsibility to speak out and protect us from this plan. It is your duty to act. By continuing to stay silent you are choosing to put us at risk.

"There are no safeguards in place. You will be complicit. You will be to blame.

"We are issuing an urgent call for you to stand up for the Women of Piddington. We need your solidarity and support. We are counting on you. Please do not desert us."

The plea follows residents’ release of a protest anthem and accompanying music video titled "Battle for Britain" which shows the community’s defiant campaign against the Home Office proposals.

The village has also announced an extraordinary referendum on independence from the United Kingdom, scheduled for September 15, as a protest against what locals describe as ministers systematically disregarding them.

Locals have repeatedly demanded that the Prime Minister scrap the asylum seeker housing scheme entirely.

They have urged him to intervene personally and reverse the Home Office’s plans before the site becomes operational.

Speaking to GB News last month, Mr Burnham said he had "begun to become aware" of the campaign from Piddington and pledged to listen to locals’ conerns.

"I don’t know the issue yet in detail, but in some ways, as I understand it, it is about creating a secure space and not having the HMO issues that you were talking about earlier," he added.

"It’s obviously going to be challenging, but I am prepared always to listen to people, to work with people and to pick up legitimate concerns, and I will address those concerns.

"I do have to say we cannot have a situation where it’s only the poorest communities in the country that receive all of the dispersal of refugees and asylum seekers. I do believe all parts of the country need to work to play their part. It’s a challenging issue. We’re working at it, we understand people’s concerns, and I will look into the issues raised by the good people of Piddington."

The Home Office has long sought military sites as alternative accommodation as it pushes to end the use of migrant hotels by 2029.

The number of asylum seekers housed in hotels has been slashed to 16,000, down from a peak of 56,000 in September 2023 - though rather than being deported, most of them have simply been moved to alternative accommodation.

The number of hotels in use has fallen from a peak of 400 to fewer than 160.

In a statement, a Home Office spokesman previously said: "It is categorically untrue to suggest we are seeking to house 3,510 people at the MoD Bicester.

"As our planning application clearly states, we are considering the site to accommodate up to 1,256 asylum seekers."