NO refugees resettled in Tendring, or Colchester, last year through a scheme for those fleeing the Syrian conflict.

The coronavirus pandemic has brought a halt to the possibility of any arrivals for now - with the Home Office just short of its goal of resettling 20,000 refugees nationally.

But Home Office figures have revealed no refugees resettled under the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme (VPRS) in 2019/20 in Tendring or Colchester.

Colchester saw no resettled refugees the previous year either.

Across the country, the number of resettled refugees dropped from 5,020 to 4,450 over the two years.

Altogether, 19,768 have been granted humanitarian protection after being affected by the Syrian conflict under the scheme, since its launch in 2014.

Louise Calvey, head of resettlement at Refugee Action, said: "The hugely successful refugee resettlement programme helped hundreds of families and thousands of people rebuild their lives in the UK.

“However, a lack of clarity on what happens after March 31 next year is threatening the future of refugee resettlement, because local authorities providing services to people are unable to plan for arrivals and arrange necessary support for vulnerable families.

“The Government must give more certainty and urgently make a long-term commitment to resettle 10,000 refugees every year.”

Since its launch, ten people have been resettled in Tendring under the scheme, among 1,057 across the East of England.

A Home Office report on the effects of the pandemic on immigration said asylum applications, and initial decisions made, have "fallen sharply" since the start of Covid-19 restrictions.

Seb Klier, parliamentary manager at the Refugee Council, said: "The pause on refugee resettlement flights to the UK, while completely understandable as part of the public health response to Covid-19, does mean that refugees are left waiting for longer to restart their lives.

"Once it is safe to do so, the Government needs to focus on fulfilling its commitments under the VPRS and its aim to resettle an additional 5,000 people in the next year under its new consolidated scheme."

A Home Office spokesman said: “Under the VPRS, the Government is now close to fulfilling its commitment to resettle 20,000 vulnerable refugees affected by the Syrian civil war."