Peterborough has taken in more than 100 Afghans, new figures show

Peterborough has taken in more than 100 Afghans and is now home to 25 families who fled Afghanistan when the Taliban took power, new figures reveal.

The figures come as a humanitarian organisation has warned the Government is failing vulnerable Afghan refugees.

In response to the Taliban retaking control of the country, the Government launched two schemes to relocate Afghan citizens in 2021 and 2022.

These schemes have a particular focus on helping those who worked with the UK during the war in Afghanistan, and vulnerable groups.

New figures from the Home Office show more than 20,000 Afghans fleeing the conflict have settled in the UK through the two schemes, at the end of June.

Of them, 123 lived in Peterborough – an increase from the 89 living in the area in March.

Of the 25 families now settled here, nine chose to move to the city and found their own accommodation, Peterborough City Council (PCC) says.

Those who have found permanent residence are living in a mixture of social housing, council-leased properties and private rented properties.

Others have been settled under Government schemes; the council agreed to help settle around 100 individuals, largely in family units, in the city as part of the national Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP).

Campaigners and charities have criticised both national schemes – branding them too slow to process applications.

The International Rescue Committee UK said the numbers “reveal the shocking reality of the Government’s failure to provide protection for vulnerable Afghans”.

For comparison, the Homes for Ukraine scheme – which offers temporary accommodation to Ukrainians escaping the Russian invasion – has seen more than 120,000 arrivals across the UK since it launched by the end of June.

This included 304 due to stay with hosts in Peterborough.

‘Routes simply aren’t matching the scale of the need’

Laura Kyrke-Smith, executive director of the International Rescue Committee said: “In pushing forward the Illegal Migration Act, the Government time and time again assured concerned Parliamentarians and the British public that there existed ‘safe routes’ for refugees from countries like Afghanistan.

“These statistics show that these routes simply aren’t matching the scale of the need. Instead, the majority of the almost 10,000 Afghans seeking safety in the UK were forced to make dangerous journeys across the Channel.”

Separate Home Office figures show at least 1,474 Afghan nationals arrived in the UK in small boats from January to June.

The International Rescue Committee called on the Government to “urgently deliver on its commitments to eligible Afghans waiting to find safety in the UK.”

There were 6,575 Afghans in hotels or serviced accommodation by the end of June – half of whom were children, figures show.

They were given a deadline to leave hotels by the end of August – Cabinet Office minister Johnny Mercer admitted earlier this month that the announcement had been controversial, but said it had been made “with compassion in mind” to get people into permanent accommodation.

The Home Office said it is continuing to work to locate and help those at risk settle in the UK.

A spokesperson said: “No one should be risking their lives by crossing the Channel or taking dangerous and illegal routes to reach the UK – there are safe and legal routes to come here.

“The number of Afghans which the UK has committed to resettling under the ACRS scheme is generous, and greater than many of our international counterparts.”

Here’s how the Taliban take over has impacted Peterborough:

• August 2021: PCC says it will help home refugees fleeing Afghanistan after Kabul takeover
• October 2021: Preparations begin for first arrivals
• February 2022: Faizan e Madinah mosque in Peterborough raises £4,000 to support people of Afghanistan
• July 2022: Nine children from Afghanistan confirmed to have been given places at Peterborough schools
• November 2022: Council learns the Great Northern and The Verve will be used to house asylum seekers. It also considers, then drops, court action to try to prevent the former being used
• March 2023: Council says it won’t waste taxpayers’ money trying to remove asylum seekers from Great Northern as it doesn’t have a reasonable chance of success
• July 2023: Council agrees to buy 25 new homes to resettle refugees from Afghanistan and Ukraine
• August 2023: 25 families confirmed to be settled; hotels remain occupied by asylum seekers