Hundreds of Afghan, Syrian and Ukrainian refugees found shelter in the Highlands including at the Cameron Barracks and 7 hotels across the north
The Highlands has provided shelter for hundreds of people seeking refuge from three of the most devastating conflict situations in recent years – Syria, Afghanistan and Ukraine, according to Highland Council.
Among the key revelations is the number of hotels used to house the refugees or displaced persons has fallen from seven to one and the Cameron Barracks in Inverness is a temporary home to 153 Afghans and their children.
The local authority observed near total silence for years about how it organised “national resettlement and humanitarian programmes” including where many people were located in the region.
The report titled “Update on Resettlement and Humanitarian Schemes” details the work done to secure accommodation - including the use of hotels, the Cameron Barracks and Ministry of Defence (MoD) properties.
It also outlines how High Life Highland, New Start Highland and others provided training, education and classes to help refugees integrate into the Highland way of life and find opportunities for employment and development.
The first scheme that saw refugees and displaced persons was the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme (VPRS) so Syrians could be “resettled into properties provided by the council”.
The council pledged to help resettle 25-30 families in the region and since then 20 Syrian families have been provided secure council house tenancies, they were later joined by a further three though they have been relocated elsewhere.
That included five years of resettlement support and helping individuals to apply for ‘indefinite leave to remain’ in the UK, which all the families have now done and they are in the process of being granted British citizenship.
Despite the formal Home Office funding for the scheme ending in October 2024, many of the links between community groups, agencies and the Syrian families will continue on an informal basis.
The council’s resettlement team worked to help the families manage the impact of the trauma and displacement they experienced and to “overcome cultural and social diversities so they can start a new life” in the north.
The second scheme was the Afghan Relocation and Resettlement Programme (ARAP), which was launched in 2021 following the chaotic withdrawal of coalition forces from the country and the fall of Kabul to the Taliban.
In what was an international embarrassment for the White House and No. 10, woes were compounded by the often ineffective attempts to evacuate those Afghans who worked with them and were at extreme risk of persecution by the Taliban.
Afghan locally employed staff worked for the UK and risked their lives alongside British forces in Afghanistan and consequently were “assessed to be at high risk of imminent threat to life”.
Since June, the Cameron Barracks in Inverness has been used as “transitional accommodation” but currently 153 Afghans remain resident there while their children have been enrolled in local primary and secondary schools.
Eight Ministry of Defence properties in Inverness were ring-fenced to support some families who wanted to remain in the Highlands but the council’s supporting role goes back to September 2021.
At that time it agreed to support Afghan families to “receive vital support to rebuild their lives, find employment, pursue education and integrate into the local community”.
In all, 13 families arrived in Autumn 2021 under a three-year programme of resettlement support, of which five have subsequently relocated to be closer to families and communities in other parts of the UK.
A further 11 families arrived since December 2023 and were placed in “bridging hotels” and in MoD properties in the Inner Moray Firth area.
Afghan women embraced the opportunities provided by High Life Highland including women-only swimming classes, cycling lessons, driving theory tests and hill walking.
The Afghan men have also been heavily involved with community activities such as volunteering - and maintaining and landscaping the green spaces - at Hilton Church. The men were recommended to a well-established landscaping company in Nairn and five of them were offered employment.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022 and the UK government set up the ‘Homes for Ukraine’ scheme to support Ukrainian Displaced Persons with the Highlands having one of the highest ‘expressions of interest’.
In March 2022, the council debated the attack on Ukraine and gave unequivocal support to the people of Ukraine and to date Highland sponsors have hosted a total of 233 people.
Council services and partner agencies helped sponsor households accommodating Ukrainians. That includes the administration of host payments; access to benefits; facilitating English classes; employability support; developing links to higher education; and other means to help the households integrate.
Most Ukrainians have settled in the Highlands very successfully and have been well supported by community groups to integrate into local life by finding jobs, and their children have engaged well in local schools.
Some say they “consider Highland to be their new home” while others say they will return to Ukraine as soon as it is safe to do so – some have already chosen to return but 74 have taken up social tenancies on the Highland Housing Register.
A further 88 Ukrainians were in hosting arrangements through the Scottish Super Sponsorship Scheme.
From June 2022, the Scottish Government placed Ukrainians in temporary hotel accommodation in response to the high numbers arriving in Scotland and seeking sanctuary.
By December 2022, there were seven contracted hotels across the Highlands that accommodated 412 Ukrainians while all children in the temporary hotel accommodation were registered in local schools, provided with uniforms, transport and school meals.
