RAF Fairford

RAF Fairford is in Gloucestershire, about half an hour north of Swindon. The 501st Combat Support Wing says it hosts the wing headquarters and the 420th Air Base Squadron, and that it is a bomber forward operating location. RAF Welford, in Oxfordshire, is a separate site the same page describes as munitions storage that supports Fairford. This guide is about Fairford. It does not print Welford rents.

The wing says the Croughton housing office serves Fairford and Welford. Read the RAF Croughton page for that office's government-housing list, OHA in the UK for the allowance rules, and the PCS to the UK checklist for passports, pets, and shipping.

1. Housing: OHA, not BAH

Off base, the allowance is Overseas Housing Allowance. DTMO says it reimburses rent up to the lease or the local ceiling, whichever is less, and that it has a separate utility allowance and a move-in allowance. Check current rate on the DTMO OHA calculator.

The Croughton housing page says a lease needs the 3rd Air Force military clause before OHA is paid, and that you should not sign until the office has reviewed it. The 2026 welcome guide says to report within two workdays. The same guide says a sponsor should arrange a non-availability letter if you need lodging and you are inbound to Fairford or Welford. Shepherd's Rest Inn, the lodging it names, is on RAF Croughton. No room rate is printed here.

The housing page's letting-agent range of £100 to £300, and the welcome guide's advance-rent range of £500 to £2,500, are installation ranges. They are not your OHA cap.

2. What rent actually looks like

Fairford town is in Cotswold district. ONS says the average private rent in Cotswold was £1,252 a month in August 2026, up 6.0% from £1,181 a year earlier (ONS, page dated 16 September 2026).

Bedrooms	Average monthly rent, August 2026
1	£870
2	£1,105
3	£1,343
4 or more	£2,037

That is the whole district, not Fairford village and not Swindon. Swindon is a different local authority. Check current listings in the town you are actually considering. A 3-bedroom at the district average is £1,343. Whether OHA covers it depends on the ceiling for your locality and pay grade, which this page does not have.

3. The housing office, and what is not on base

The wing's Fairford page says the Croughton housing office is the office for Fairford and Welford. It also says Fairford and Welford do not currently have a commissary or an AAFES store. Croughton has a small commissary and a small exchange. This page does not claim there is, or is not, a government family-housing neighborhood at Fairford. Ask that office.

Contact from the Croughton housing page: Building 62 at RAF Croughton, (+44) 1280-708-951, DSN 314-236-8951, [email protected], Monday to Friday 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. GMT.

The welcome guide says members assigned to Fairford mostly use the National Health Service, that Fairford is a TRICARE Prime Remote location, and that the clinic at Croughton can still be used for primary and dental care. It says the nearest USAF hospital is at RAF Lakenheath. No medical bill is printed here.

4. Council tax

Cotswold District Council publishes a visiting forces exemption form. The form asks a member of the U.S. military, or a DoD civilian employee, to list the occupants and to have a commanding officer certify them. Send it to the Local Taxation Service, Cotswold District Council, Trinity Road, Cirencester, GL7 1PX. The council's discounts page links that form. You have to apply. This page does not print a band or a bill. Check current rules on the form and with the housing office.

5. Schools

The Fairford wing page does not name a school on base. The 2026 welcome guide, which covers this community, says there are no DoDEA schools near RAF Croughton and points families to British state or private schools and a school liaison. The Croughton housing page still describes a kindergarten-through-6th-grade school on Croughton and gives a different liaison phone number. Both statements are on installation pages. Neither is treated as settled here.

6. Getting around and COLA

Driving rules are the UK rules plus the installation's permit. The Croughton housing page says a state license is required before PCS if you will drive, because it is needed for a 3rd Air Force permit. The welcome guide requires a local-conditions brief and the UK theory test for people who will drive. No pass mark is printed here. See GOV.UK and the Highway Code. Insurance, the MOT fee, and fuel are check current rate items. Weekly fuel prices are on GOV.UK.

COLA: check current rate on the DTMO COLA calculator. No amount is printed here.

Sample monthly costs

Item	Monthly	Source
3-bedroom rent, Cotswold average	£1,343	ONS, August 2026
OHA rent reimbursement	Check current rate	DTMO calculator
Utility allowance	Check current rate	DTMO calculator
Council tax	Check current rules	Cotswold visiting-forces form
Groceries	Check current rate	No commissary at Fairford, per the wing page

Before you sign

1. Call the Croughton housing office before you sign anything at Fairford.
2. Confirm you are not using another base's locality code.
3. Check current rate on the DTMO calculator the day you make an offer.
4. File the Cotswold visiting-forces form.
5. Ask the school liaison where children would actually go.

Update log

Date	Change
Oct 2026	First version. No OHA ceiling printed. ONS Cotswold rents for August 2026. Housing office from the 501st CSW Fairford page.