ABOVE: Following its closure in 2023, plans to redevelop the former RAF Scampton have been hindered by Home Office intentions to house asylum seekers on the site.
Lincolnshire County Council (LCC), the City of Lincoln Council (CoL) and West Lindsey District Council (WLDC) are calling for ‘urgent dialogue’ with the Minister and the Home Office to clarify the decommissioning and disposal timelines for the former RAF Scampton, which is currently owned by the Home Office.
However, following September’s news that the Home Office will no longer be using RAF Scampton to house asylum seekers, council leaders have expressed their collective concern that no clarity on the site’s disposal timeline has been given – impacting their own ability to provide information to their partners. “This delay not only affects our planning and development strategies but also raises serious concerns about the condition of the site and the preservation of its heritage assets,” explained Cllr Trevor Young, Leader of West Lindsey District Council.
“The delay in the disposal and sale of the site, which is still owned by the UK Home Office, is understandably causing frustration for the community and for us as developers,” said Scampton Holdings – which had previously agreed to revive the site and implement a multi-use plan, worth £300 million, through a deal with WLDC. “Our £300 million regeneration project is not only a vital economic opportunity for the region, but also a chance to preserve the rich heritage of this iconic site, including the legacy of the Dambusters and the Red Arrows”.
Eighteen months after government plans to establish a large asylum accommodation site at the former RAF base were unveiled, the Home Office decided the strategy longer represented value for money – with the cost of housing single male adult asylum seekers estimated at £122 million between Autumn 2024 and the end of its use in 2027.
At the time, Sally Grindrod-Smith, Director of Planning, Regeneration and Communities for WLDC said: “Work will now progress at pace to conclude the necessary contracting arranging and secure formal, long term access to the site. In the meantime, it will be important to work with the Home Office to ensure any works already completed on site can be decommissioned and removed sensitively so as to protect the heritage of the site”. It is believed £60 million has already been spent by the Home Office on the site although the scale and scope of these works have not been clarified.
The Home Office has been approached for comment.
IMAGE: WEST LINDSEY DISTRICT COUNCIL
