Crowborough Training Camp

Crowborough Training Camp
Crowborough
Access road to the camp
Site information
Type	Training camp
Owner	Ministry of Defence
Operator	British Army
Location
Crowborough Training Camp Location within East Sussex
Coordinates	51°02′53″N0°07′59″E / 51.048°N 0.133°E / 51.048; 0.133
Site history
Built	c.1914
Built for	War Office
In use	C.1914–present

Crowborough Training Camp is a military training camp located near the town of Crowborough in East Sussex, owned by and operated by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation on behalf of the UK Ministry of Defence. ^[1] It consists of various facilities such as accommodation, ranges, and associated training area. Its sits within the wider footprint of the Cinque Ports Training Area (CPTA) within the South East England. ^[2]

History

The area surrounding Crowborough Town and the Ashdown Forrest were acquired by the War Office during the First World War. The Canadian Army established the Machine Gun School there during the war. ^{[3] [4] [5]}

The areas around Crowborough Camp were used extensively by various military units to accommodate and provide training prior to the Normandy landings in June 1944 during the Second World War. ^[6] There was a direct hit from a German V-1 flying bomb near to the camp, killing a number of troops, in July 1944. ^[7]

During the COVID-19 pandemic the UK Government selected Crowborough from several sites to use as a quarantine facility for British troops deploying and returning from operations. ^[8]

In 2024, the camp was used as a processing facility to accommodate people as part of the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy. ^{[9] [10] [11]}

In October 2025, the UK Government announced that Crowborough Training Camp would be one of two military sites repurposed to provide temporary accommodation for asylum seekers and that around 900 men would be distributed between these sites. ^{[12] [13] [14]}

Current use

The camp hosts the ACF, ATC and Royal Marines Cadets. ^{[15] [16]} Units undertake training in Ashdown Forest and the nearby Pippingford Park. ^[17] The area is also used for events such as mud runs, ^[18] driving events and festivals. ^[19]

References

1. "Crowborough". Locations landmarc. Retrieved 11 February 2025.
2. "Public information leaflet" (PDF). Defence Estates South East. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
3. "Guide to Sources Relating to Units of the Canadian Expeditionary Force Machine Gun Units" (PDF). Government of Canada. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
4. "Remembrance Day: A Machine Age warrior's story". CBC News. 11 November 2014. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
5. "First World War Veterans of Guysborough County: The Canadian Machine Gun Corps". Guysborough Great War Veteran. 15 June 2013. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
6. "WW2 People's War - War Memories from Residents of Crowborough - My wartime memories and contribution 1942-1945". BBC. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
7. "Tragedy at Crowborough". Peter Hibbs. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
8. "Training Estate delivery successes support Armed Forces". Inside DIO. 27 September 2021. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
9. "Inside Op Lazurite: British military operation to settle Afghans in UK". Forces News. 30 January 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
10. "Thousands of Afghans secretly flown to new life on military bases in UK". The National. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
11. "Military Bases: Asylum". They Work for You. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
12. "Asylum seekers to be housed in Inverness army barracks". Inverness Courier. 28 October 2025. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
13. "Two military sites earmarked as asylum seeker accommodation". BBC News. 28 October 2025. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
14. "Asylum seekers to be housed in military sites instead of hotels". The Times. 28 October 2025. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
15. "1414 (Crowborough) Sqn ATC". 1414 Sqn ATC. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
16. "Sussex Army Cadets" . Retrieved 28 October 2025.
17. "About Pippingford". Pippingford Estate Company Limited. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
18. "Pippingford Estate, UK Spartan Race". 5 October 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
19. "England's Medieval Festival". Living History Archive. Retrieved 28 October 2025.