Housing staff told to prepare for arrival of young refugees

Councillors have unanimously backed calls to better prepare for young asylum seekers fleeing war-torn countries.

Perth and Kinross Council has been told to expect up to 20 unaccompanied refugee children as part of the new National Transfer Scheme, an agreement between local authorities, Cosla and the Scottish Government.

The Home Office hopes to resettle asylum-seeking children (UASC) in council areas throughout the country.

The majority are likely to be aged between 16 and 18, and come from Eritrea in East Africa.

Councillors agreed to commit existing housing support staff to prepare for UASC.

Discussions are under way with councils in neighbouring Dundee and Angus about establishing a collaborative approach to resettling child refugees.

The move was welcomed by Liberal Democrat councillor Peter Barrett, housing and communities convener.

“We can define the sort of community and society we aim and aspire to achieve in Perth and Kinross through the manner in which we treat asylum-seeking children and how we embrace and support them,” he said.

“What is important to me is that we do so willingly and enthusiastically. We do child protection and support better than any other authority in Scotland.

“We have experience of resettling Syrian refugee families successfully in our area. Those successes have not come without difficulties but we have been able to provide professional and expert third sector support.”

Mr Barrett said he recently spoke to young boys from Vietnam who had found shelter in Perthshire and had gone on to become role models for their community, volunteering with projects such as Beautiful Perth.

“I’ve seen how much they value things we take for granted, such as being able to practise their religion free from fear and persecution,” he said. “These boys embody and encapsulate how our community can be the richer for their membership,”he said.