Newcastle: A City of Sanctuary

                                                       

                                                          Robert Hudson

 

 

 

In 2014, Newcastle became officially recognised as a ‘City of Sanctuary’ for its commitment to supporting and welcoming asylum seekers and refugees by providing several vital services such as housing, education and health.

These are run by voluntary and council organisations. Including, North East Solidarity and Teaching (N.E.S.T.) and others such as the Health Improvement Service which provides health advice and access to provision.

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In 2016, Newcastle confirmed that it would resettle 20 Syrian families a year until 2020 and was one of the first two North East councils to sign up for the SVPR scheme.  This is well above the needed uptake of each constituency settling one family per year to reach the target by 2020. This sits in contrast to the fact many councils would not accept any Syrian refugees as there is not any obligation.

In total, in 2016, 302 refugees were settled in the North East. As of 2018, the North East has settled 687 refugees from Syria: Gateshead has taken the highest, with 221, Newcastle (131) and Country Durham (112).

 

A report by The Commons Home Affairs Committee, in 2016, whilst praising the efforts of Newcastle and Gateshead, said the government needs to encourage a fairer distribution of asylum seekers throughout the country as there exists a two-tier system among local authorities where some councils provide support and others are not ‘pulling their weight’. However, this two-tier system still exists as the North East has now taken more than twice as many refugees as the South.