Bridgend Council’s Cabinet is set to approve resettlement of 5 refugee families (pdf).
At the moment, 6 families are living in Bridgend (a total of 34 refugees, 3 of whom were born in Wales), with the last family resettled in September 2017.
Hafod housing association and the Wales Refugee Council will be responsible for resettling the new families at no direct cost to BCBC as the funding will come from the UK Home Office under the Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme.
There’ve been no problems with any of the families who’ve resettled and they’re said to have been welcomed by local communities. Some have also been referred to counselling for depression and PTSD relating to their experiences in Syria.
All of the children have “settled well” into their new schools and are being provided with resources to learn English as well as the services of an Arabic-speaking teaching assistant (again, funded by the UK Home Office). Refugees are also provided with a 12-month bus pass and have a 5-year leave to remain with permission to work.
