TORRIDGE District Council has said it is ‘willing and available to assist’ with relocating refugees in the face of the continuing crisis in Syria.

The type of assistance provided to asylum-seekers and refugees is led by governmental policy. In the particular case of asylum-seekers, the Home Office’s services are delivered through Border Control and the National Asylum Seekers Service. 

In light of the continuing Syrian Crisis, it is possible that both district and county councils across the country may be asked to provide additional assistance. This will form part of the Government’s plan to extend the existing Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme, to provide assistance to 20,000 vulnerable Syrian refugees in camps near the border, over the next five years.

The leader of Torridge District Council Cllr Jane Whittaker has said that the council will play its part in helping with the crisis when called upon.

She said: ‘Stories in the national press have led to speculation that perhaps councils are not doing everything they can to help refugees in the current crisis. However the simple truth of the matter is that the council has not yet been approached to provide any assistance or found a channel through which it could offer practical help.

‘From TDC’s perspective, we remain willing and available to assist, in whatever way we can, should we be called on or an opportunity to do so presents itself. In the meantime I understand that if people wish to provide more immediate assistance, then they can contact the Refugee Council for Great Britain who may be able to explain the different ways in which residents can provide help.’

Locally, it is likely that such a process will be primarily co-ordinated by Devon County Council with assistance from the districts. Devon’s social services authority will play a key part in any local offer of support, but Torridge District Council anticipates that it may be called upon to assist with other welfare and resettlement issues in due course.

The council also understands that the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees will help identify Syrians to be prioritised for resettlement and organise transport to UK airports. The Refugee Council will then transfer refugees to areas offering support. This is a voluntary scheme and to date it has been mainly larger cities and towns involved in the complex process of resettling refugees.

For those residents who wish to provide more immediate assistance to people fleeing Syria, the council would urge them to contact The Refugee Council of Great Britain for more information on the type of support that they require.

As a housing authority, Torridge District Council would expect to work with the county council and assist in helping to place refugees that may be allocated to the area.

Currently, only Exeter and Plymouth operate as asylum seeker ‘dispersal areas’ in Devon, but this may be subject to change.