Refugee Week: 20-26 June 2005

Refugee and Asylum Seekers Week aims to increase awareness of what people fleeing to this country have to face and the great contribution refugees make when here. This month we look at the facts behind refugees and some of the issues they face.

Anyone at all is allowed to ask for sanctuary in another country if they are suffering persecution in their own. An asylum seeker is someone who has submitted an application for asylum and is waiting for a decision. A refugee is someone who has had their application thoroughly investigated, and who has proven that they have ‘a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion’ in their homeland and are afraid to return to that country. They are therefore entitled to protection. Asylum seekers are not allowed to work while their cases are being assessed and only receive 70% of Income Support levels. Councils receive extra funding from the government to make housing available for asylum seekers. This is often achieved by by repairing housing stock in poor condition. Most of them are housed in private accommodation. None of this is paid for out of council tax. Children are educated in Sheffield schools like everyone else, and the costs of this are met through specific grants. Local services have not suffered. The arrival of new families has even helped revitalise many neighbourhoods.

The number of asylum seekers being supported in Sheffield is tiny. Local authorities in the Sheffield region have an agreement with the government that numbers will not ever be greater than half of one percent of the population. In Sheffield asylum seekers make up approximately 0.36% of the total population, which amounts to 1,638 individuals including dependent children (February 2005).

The asylum system is very tough and sorts out people who are genuinely in fear of their safety from those who have other reasons for leaving their home country. Asylum seekers have to prove their case if they want to stay and the evidence shows that many have their claims accepted. In the meantime, all asylum seekers are entitled to be treated with respect and dignity whilst they are living in our communities.