THE number of refugees settling Gwent after fleeing conflict in Syria has dropped almost across the board according to Home Office figures - with only Monmouthshire showing a slight increase.

Caerphilly, Torfaen and Blaenau Gwent welcomed no further refugees through the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme in the last year - down from 10, five and five respectively.

Most of the refugees welcomed to Gwent in the last year settled in Newport - 38 - but the city still saw numbers drop from 53 in the previous year.

In Monmouthshire, six Syrian refugees were settled. This is up slightly on the figures from the previous year of two.

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.

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

With the scheme due to be wrapped up when the target is hit, charities are calling on the Government to clarify its long term plans.

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

“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, 123 people have been resettled in Newport under the scheme, 37 in Monmouthshire, 33 in Torfaen, 32 in Caerphilly and 20 in Blaenau Gwent.

Across Wales as a whole, the number stands at 1,411.