A further eight refugee families who were forced to flee war-torn Syria are to be rehomed in Fife over the coming year.
The latest arrivals come after figures confirmed the kingdom has helped to resettle 140 Syrian refugees under the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme since it began in 2015, far higher than most other Scottish local authorities.
The relocation scheme was launched five years ago by the UK government, which pledged to accept an additional 20,000 Syrians by this year.
With the 2020 target now met, Fife Council and its partners are working on plans to take in a further eight families while a new national resettlement scheme for refugees is being drawn up.
Fife housing convener Councillor Judy Hamilton said: “The Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme comes to an end in 2020 and this year also marks our commitment to meeting the needs of the most vulnerable families in the world.
“We have successfully met our agreement to accommodate and integrate 140 Syrian refugees into Fife.
“A new government scheme is now being launched and I have asked officers to prepare a report on the new arrangements.
“But I have also asked the council to agree with me that we can accept a further eight families into Fife this coming year.”
The Syrian civil war has raged since protests against ruler President Bashar al-Assad in the “Arab Spring” of 2011.
A number of alleged war crimes have been committed in the conflict, including the use of poison gas, the recruitment of child soldiers and bombardment of civilian-areas.
As a result, estimates suggest up to 225,000 civilians may have lost their lives in the conflict.
In Courier country, Fife has led the way in terms of how many refugees it has taken in, with Fife’s rate of three per 10,000 people higher than Perth and Kinross’ two per 10,000 and Dundee’s one per 10,000 rates.
Only Aberdeenshire, Renfrewshire and North Ayrshire have taken in more refugees per head of population than the kingdom.
In UK terms, Northern Ireland is the region that has welcomed the highest number of refugees into the country, having resettled more than 1,500– a rate of around eight per 10,000 people.
