The Home Office wants RAF Barnham to be in use for migrant accommodation for "a minimum of 10 years" and is trying to move the first occupants in by the end of the year.

Under the department's plans, the site will accommodate up to 1,250 single adult men between 18 and 65 who have applied for asylum in the UK.

There have been regular protests outside the gates of RAF Barnham since the plans were announced (Image: Newsquest)

The controversial scheme is being fast tracked by the government using emergency planning powers reserved for developments of "national importance", which will allow it to bypass local opposition.

The base is around a mile away from Thetford in the leafy village of Barnham, home to around 600 people. 

Many living in the quaint community fear that the base will transform their way of life.

Barnham has a population of around 600 (Image: Barnham Parish Council)

These concerns have been exacerbated by Andy Burnham’s recent comments that middle-class areas should “play their part” in accepting asylum seeker accommodation in their communities.

There have been regular protests around the base since the plans were announced in June, and these tensions boiled over last week when riots broke out in neighbouring Thetford.

Protestors - angry at the plans for RAF Barnham as well as asylum seekers being housed in HMOs in the town - vandalised properties and called for action from the government.

19 arrests have been made so far in connection with the disorder (Image: SWNS)

Asylum seekers were evacuated from the properties by police, who have so far made 19 arrests in connection with the disorder.

WHAT DOES THE HOME OFFICE SAY

The plans for the base, outlined in a 1,244 word fact sheet uploaded by the Home Office, reveal significant details about the scale of proposals.

It states “the site would be used for a minimum of 10 years” as part of Labour’s drive to move migrants out of hotels and into former military sites.

(Image: Henry Durand)

The plans have been submitted via........

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