Lancashire Afghan resettlement plan
Afghan people who worked alongside British forces in the war-torn country could be resettled with their families in Pendle and other Lancashire boroughs, as part of a Government scheme to rehouse refugees across the UK.
Developments in Afghanistan have changed dramatically in recent days with the Taliban taking control of most of the country, 20 years after western military intervention.
The UK Government is bringing ‘considerable pressure’ on all local councils to rehouse Afghans needing refuge, according to an agenda for Pendle Borough Council’s Policy & Resources Committee meeting this week. The Government recently held a webinar with councils to highlight the situation, the agenda states.
OnThursday (August 19) Pendle’s Policy & Resources Committee will be asked to approve the borough council’s involvement in accepting refugees from early 2022 under the Government’s UK Resettlement Scheme and an additional programme called the Afghan Locally Engaged Staff Relocation Scheme.
In late 2019, all Lancashire district councils were approached by Lancashire County Council to take ten refugee households each over a four year period. But the Covid-19 pandemic meant that Pendle Borough Council felt it could not accept its first allocation of five households until February 2022.
The UK Resettlement Scheme caters for refugees from various countries, including from Syria, the Middle East and North Africa, and has now started again. Lancashire boroughs are being asked to reaffirm their commitment to it and also the Afghan scheme.
Lancashire County Council will receive Government funding and no costs should fall upon Pendle, according to notes for the Policy & Resources Committee meeting on Thursday evening at Nelson.
Previously, refugees from war-torn Syria have been offered new homes under the UK Resettlement Scheme. But now the situation in Afghanistan is seen as an urgent priority, the Pendle meeting agenda states.
If confirmed, Pendle Council will enter into an agreement with homes providers such as Calico Enterprise and Together Housing to deliver most of its obligations. These include furnished housing, early reception arrangements for Afghan refugees and a caseworker or other support provision for them.
The UK Resettlement Scheme is a long-term commitment and intended to help community cohesion, the Pendle agenda states. Refugee families are not expected to arrive all at once in any area.