Doug Pullen

A councillor says he hopes Syrian refugees will “find peace and happiness” in Lichfield.

A Syrian refugee camp. Pic: Cmacauley
A Syrian refugee camp. Pic: Cmacauley

The Syrian Vunlenrable Persons Scheme (VPS) has so far seen seven families given new homes across the Lichfield and Burntwood area, the Staffordshire Moorlands and East Staffordshire.

They have been welcomed as part of a partnership between Staffordshire County Council and local authorities, including Lichfield District Council.

Cllr Doug Pullen
Cllr Doug Pullen

Cllr Doug Pullen, Cabinet member for regulatory services, housing and wellbeing at Lichfield District Council, said: “We know Lichfield District communities are keen to welcome these families who are fleeing war and persecution.

“Key partners are working together to help the families settle into their new homes, and we hope they will enjoy living in Lichfield and find peace and happiness here.”

The councils have also been working with Refugee Action to ensure access to medical provision, housing and school places are in position ahead of the arrival of the Syrian refugees.

Cllr Gill Heath, Staffordshire County Council’s Cabinet member for communities, said: “This programme is about helping those refugees in the greatest need, including people requiring urgent medical treatment, survivors of torture and women and children who are most at risk.

“As a county, we are doing all that we can to help.

“We have had some great support from our district and borough councils, and have been working with them and Refugee Action over the past few months. There have been a great deal of logistical details to sort out prior to their arrival, and we are only taking those we know we can safely and readily accommodate.

“We hope that these people, who are most at risk and cannot be supported in their own country, are able to rebuild their lives and are able to integrate with local communities in the area.”

The Syrian VPS initiative priorities those who are most at risk and who cannot be supported in their own country.

Faye Jeffery, West Midlands resettlement manager at Refugee Action, said: “We’re delighted to be continuing our work with the council and other local partners to welcome more Syrian refugees to Staffordshire.

“Our caseworkers and volunteers meet the families at the airport and take them to their new homes, where they receive a care package of essentials such as tea, bread, milk and nappies.

“We provide integration support to ensure the families have access to English language lessons, health and education services, so they can start to rebuild their lives and contribute to their new communities.”

Founder of Lichfield Live and editor of the site.

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John Griffin
5 years ago

I usually don’t compliment Tory politicians, but this is a warming news item. Well said!

Nodge
5 years ago

Sometimes I wonder if Doug Pullen is really a Tory at heart, but hey if being in the Blue team gets him elected, so be it.

Nellygb
5 years ago

And I hope as a Council Tax Payer that I am kept up to date with just how much this costs us going forward, how their English lessons go and just when they are able to start work and become productive citizens paying taxes and contributing to society. I also hope I don’t have to wait too long but lets say I won’t be holding my breath while waiting for any straight answers.

Laurence Skermer
5 years ago

NellyGB, do you demand that amount of information about anyone who is supported by the taxpayer, or only the foreign ones? What makes you think you are entitled to any of those answers about anyone?

Denyse
5 years ago

“We provide integration support to ensure the families have access to English language lessons, health and education services, so they can start to rebuild their lives and contribute to their new communities.”

Spark Brook
Balsall Heath
Handsworth
Aston
Bordesley Green
Alum Rock
Erdington
Neachells

Caldmore
Pleck
Chuckery

… Lichfield

Asellus aquaticus
5 years ago

Denyse, we’re talking 7 families across Lichfield District, Staffordshire Moorlands and East Staffordshire. So let’s assume they are reasonably big families averaging at 6 people each. So that’s perhaps 42 people swamping the existing 316,627 (ONS 2015 mid year statistics) already living in those areas.

But don’t let facts like that get in the way of your paranoia.

Nellygb
5 years ago

No I don’t Laurence Skermer but if it suites the governments narrative I am constantly force fed it.
“Cllr Doug Pullen, Cabinet member for regulatory services, housing and wellbeing at Lichfield District Council, said: “We know Lichfield District communities are keen to welcome these families who are fleeing war and persecution.””

Those are the councillors hopes, and I’m sure all the data will be fed to him good or bad, and my hopes are stated above in my O/P. Now I don’t know about you but I was neither consulted on whether these refugees should come to the district or whether I am keen to welcome these families, so they have been forced on me. They will become a burden on council tax payers if they do not get in to the position of becoming productive citizens and it is my hope they use the infinite resources that will undoubtedly be thrown their way to relieve me and other council tax payers who don’t welcome them of that burden.

Oh and the first question the councillor can answer is whether or not we are renting homes for them or did the council magically find the £750,000 they said it would take to purchase the homes for them.

//lichfieldlive.co.uk/2016/01/08/report-reveals-lichfield-district-council-could-spend-750000-on-new-homes-for-syrian-refugees/

Just sayin’ sorry if it doesn’t match your views on the subject.

Laurence Skermer
5 years ago

Says it all, Nellygb, hiding behind your anonymous keyboard warrior persona. You are only interested in these people because they are foreign and have been ‘forced’ on you. Plenty of other people move into the area and receive benefits, but you don’t care about them because they are not ‘foreign’. Do you really believe that they willl receive ‘infinite resources’? That comment alone condemns you with your own words. There’s a word for people like you, it rhymes with racist.

Nellygb
5 years ago

Oh how I knew that was coming. Not long before the R word rears it’s head is it. Yes they are foreign and yes I am interested in them because they are foreign and been forced on me, but how does that make it wrong to ask the questions. We do reside in a country that promotes free speech as being the difference between us and “them” and preach that our way is the right way.

Well let me ask this question, when and where has integration worked for the good of the indigenous population? I’m fed up with being culturally enriched by those coming to this country, being treated better than those that have paid in (be that through taxes on money earned or money spent, something that the plenty of others entering in to the district that are not “foreign” do, those I’m not bothered about) then spitting in our faces.

Also notice how I have not profiled you Laurence Skermer because I don’t know you but you have taken it on yourself to profile me as a racist and a keyboard warrior because it fits your narrow views of those that don’t tow the party line. I am simply asking that tax payers are informed of how their money is being spent on proven failed project, one that was forced upon us all, whether they support the project or not.

Those are the facts, live with them and understand that some people don’t see eye to eye with your view of the world. You are entitled to that view and I am entitled to mine and nothing I have said or will ever say is “racist”. End Of

Laurence Skermer
5 years ago

Integration has worked extremely well in the NHS, where, if it weren’t for immigrants the decent taxpayers of this country would have no-one to treat them. I’m afraid your racism is proved because you wish to treat these people differently because they are foreign.
You do indeed have freedom of speech. I have, in no way attempted to silence you or stop you from commenting, but I also have the freedom to challenge what you say. I am not sure where you get the idea that my views are narrow – that is incidentally what I think you mean by ‘profilling’.
I wonder what your ‘proof’ for the ‘failed project’ is. Are you sure it’s not just your opinion?

Incidentally, it’s ‘toe the line’.

Keyboard Warrior – an anonymous poster.

apple9686
5 years ago

Famous quote from Thomas Sewell ” Since this is in an era when many people are concerned about ‘fairness’ and ‘Social justice’ what is your ‘fair share’ of what someone else has worked for”.

Darryl Godden
5 years ago

What sad reading these comments make.

AgitatorofPeople
5 years ago

The British Government has been involved in Syria for years, even prior to “The Airstrikes” we had troops on the ground training and arming Syrian rebel forces, along with the U.S. Saudi Arabia and Qatar fighting Russian and Iranian supported Syrian Government forces.

The fall out of it all is our “side” is directly fighting not only Syrians but Russian and Iranian “Contractors” I have yet to see anything about how much this is costing the UK tax payer, Theresa May hasn’t exactly been laying out our total involvement in this, but its got to be in the £Billions since its inception.

And people are getting worked up about how much a handful of Syrian families who have been living in the worst conditions imaginable are going to be such a burden to us as tax payers in our local community, its the very least we can do to help, and frankly, we have done next to nothing as a nation to help in camparison to our military involvement.

Not exactly Britains finest hour.