Buckinghamshire community welcomes its first Afghan family

Recent events in Afghanistan have left many women, children and men in the country feeling vulnerable and fearing for their lives. Many Afghan nationals have managed to leave the country, with some now seeking to rebuild their lives in the UK.

Buckinghamshire Council is committed to keeping people safe from vulnerable situations, which is why we’re working hard, together with our partners, to welcome people arriving here from Afghanistan who are in urgent need of protection.

After months of planning and discussions with the Home Office and matching a family to our accommodation offer, Buckinghamshire is now welcoming its first family.

The family is being helped to integrate into society and build a new life –  ensuring they do not feel alone and isolated – receiving help with medical needs, arranging English lessons, if required, finding jobs and getting children into education. Part of the arrival package includes donated furniture, a welcome pack and access to local support networks to help them settle in.

A further twenty-nine families are expected to arrive within the next few years as part of Buckinghamshire’s pledge to take in up to 30 families who worked with UK forces in Afghanistan.

Leader of Buckinghamshire Council, Martin Tett said: “The families are arriving as part of the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) which was put in place to help resettle those who were at risk from the Taliban because of their work with UK forces in Afghanistan.

Since the first ARAP flight on 22 June, around 7,000 Afghans and their family members have been relocated to the UK. This is in addition to the government’s national commitment to welcome around 5,000 of the most vulnerable Afghan families in the first year of the separate Afghan Citizen Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) and up to 20,000 over the coming years.

Our local community have been frankly amazing; landlords across the county have responded to the call for much-needed homes, huge offers of support have come in from communities and considerable amounts of money have been donated to the Afghan Crisis Fund, hosted by Heart of Bucks, which currently stands at £65,000.

At the same time as welcoming the new families to our area, I would like to reassure our residents that when finding suitable places for the families we are ensuring that they are able to settle in easily whilst at the same time being cautious and not placing any additional pressures on local services such as schools and GPs.”

For people wanting to support in other ways, there are a number of volunteer organisations and groups that we work with who you can contact about volunteering, befriending opportunities or donating clothes and toys for the Afghan nationals in your area: https://www.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/community-and-safety/how-we-are-supporting-the-afghan-crisis/

For individuals wishing to donate money, you may want to consider donating to the Buckinghamshire Afghan Crisis Fund – https://www.totalgiving.co.uk/appeal/helping-hand

 Further information is available on GOV.UK at https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/afghanistan-uk-government-response.