28 New Anti-Migrant Vigilante Groups in Britain: Patrols, Ports and Channel Actions
At least 28 anti-migrant vigilante groups have formed in the United Kingdom in the last 18 months, according to Guardian analysis published on Sept. 12, 2026. The Guardian
Researchers were able to establish start dates for 31 active vigilante groups. At least 28 of those dates fall inside the 18-month window. The number of active groups has risen sharply since summer 2025.
A vigilante group, in this context, means a group without legal authority that claims to enforce rules or protect the public on its own. The groups vary in size, tactics and geographic focus. Some present themselves as neighbourhood security patrols. Others operate around ports and asylum accommodation, meaning housing provided for asylum seekers, or travel across the Channel to intercept crossings.
A diffuse network
In Glasgow, a group calling itself Scots Active conducts late-night patrols around the city centre. It claims to protect the public from migrants. Members sometimes wear balaclavas and stab-proof vests on patrol. Scots Active was one of two groups banned from TikTok earlier in 2026 after reportedly sharing footage claiming to expose migrant hotels.
Another formation, the British Security Project, states on its Facebook page that it aims to provide 124,000 security personnel to public spaces by 2035. That stated number points to a plan much larger than local patrols.
Other groups have focused directly on small-boat crossings. Members of Raise the Colours made several trips to France in 2025 to try to stop migrants crossing the Channel in small boats. Members filmed themselves claiming to have slashed dinghies on French beaches. France subsequently banned 10 members of Raise the Colours from the country.
Members of the far-right Patriot Platform blocked roads near Dover for several hours, disrupting traffic to and from the port. Kent police later admitted officers had failed to act on calls made on Friday evening about the Dover unrest, after initially saying they had received no warning.
About 200 black-clad men gathered in Portsmouth after 120 asylum seekers rescued from a dinghy were brought ashore there. The Portsmouth group blocked roads and allegedly assaulted several police officers. That mobilisation came a day after hundreds of masked anti-immigration protesters blocked roads leading to Britain's busiest ferry port, an action the U.K. government condemned. New Haven Register
Ports and the Channel
British protesters tried to stop the arrival of migrants from France in early September 2026. Reuters On Sept. 6, 2026, migrants waded through water off a French beach to board an inflatable dinghy to attempt crossing the English Channel to England. Reuters
Those events followed a longer cycle of protest around asylum accommodation. As of Aug. 24, 2025, Britain had seen regular protests in recent weeks outside hotels housing asylum seekers. Reuters
The government described anti-migrant protesters involved in the September port actions as "thuggish." CBC Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood urged police to curb the activities of vigilante groups, telling senior officers to make full use of their powers.
The broader context here is a change from demonstration to taking enforcement into private hands. Patrols claim a public-protection role. Port blockades stop freight and passenger movement. Trips across the Channel move the confrontation onto French territory. Hotel protests express opposition to asylum policy. Patrols, road blockades and claims of dinghy sabotage assert a right to enforce it. That difference matters for how police, prosecutors and local authorities classify conduct, and for how deterrence is set.
In my view, three pressure points will shape what comes next, along with how police respond. The first is control at ports. Dover and Portsmouth work like narrow doorways for trade, travel and emergency response, so even short blockades force police to choose between public order, traffic flow and protection of new arrivals. The second is coordination with France. The ban on 10 members shows Paris treats foreign activism on its beaches as a sovereignty question, and private intervention creates added risks for migrants, activists and French police. The third is video and organising online. The TikTok bans show the role of short-form video in recruitment, targeting of housing sites and after-action publicity. Removal limits one channel but does not dismantle networks that can move across platforms. Enforcement consistency, prosecutorial follow-through and whether port actions stay episodic or become routine will be central, and Kent police's admission about the Friday evening calls will test Mahmood's instruction. The count itself, at least 28 new groups in 18 months, points to a pattern that is no longer marginal or tied only to single landings.
