Council will resettle more refugees

Five more families of refugees fleeing the Middle East conflict will be resettled in Bridgend County Borough over the next two years, joining the six families that have already been welcomed to the area.

Forced to leave their war-torn homeland, the first Syrian family arrived in the county borough in November 2016, and a further five families have since been resettled, with the most recent arriving in September 2017.

In total, 31 Syrian refugees have moved to Bridgend County Borough, while three babies have been born here.

Cabinet Members from the local authority have today agreed to continue participating in the UK Government’s refugee resettlement programme, helping to provide safe, secure accommodation for five more families by 2020.

The council will continue to work with Hafod Housing who will manage tenancies in the private rented sector for the refugee families. Funding is being provided by the UK Government to help the council and other agencies support the refugees for up to five years.

If it is still unsafe for them to return home after five years, they will be able to apply to the UK Government to remain in the UK.

Since 2016 we have been proud to resettle Syrian families in various locations across the county borough, each with good access to local schools and amenities.

All of the refugees have been through extremely traumatic experiences and have had to leave everything that is familiar to them, so we are keen to do everything that we can and show the kindness that they deserve.

It makes me proud to hear about the neighbours who have taken the time to befriend the mums and dads, while their children are settling in really well to local schools. I also know that local churches have also been very supportive, providing donations and organising coffee mornings.

Councillor Dhanisha Patel, Cabinet Member for Wellbeing and Future Generations

Refugees resettling in the UK are allowed to bring their immediate family with them and are subject to strict Home Office vetting procedures. The number of refugees likely to be received in Wales is between 1,000 and 1,500.