Councils may publish Amazon wishlist to help Banbury area residents make specific donations for Afghan people who fled their country

The council said it would publish publish an Amazon wishlist if there is a need for specific items in the future.

As is the case throughout the UK a small number of refugees are currently in temporary accommodation in the county having previously been in Covid quarantine after their initial arrival. In future there will be permanent homes for them in the UK, including some in Oxfordshire.

Cherwell District Council has agreed to provide 10 homes for people from Afghanistan which would be occupied in future weeks. Local agencies will be providing a wraparound package of care for new arrivals with experts from social care and education to the fore.

Cllr Barry Wood, leader of Cherwell District Council, said: “People in north Oxfordshire have been kind-hearted in making donations during August.

“Donations of further items are no longer required but there may be occasions when specific items are needed to meet specific needs as families gradually adapt to their new surroundings. An Amazon wishlist would be a great way of achieving this."

The Amazon wishlist would be activated should any needs arise and shared on the county council’s social media channels.

Oxfordshire County Council is also providing a wraparound package of care for new arrivals with experts from social care and education to the fore.

Cllr Liz Leffman, the leader of Oxfordshire County Council, said: “As we’ve said before the people of Oxfordshire have been incredibly generous in their response and many of the items they donated during August have been put to good use with the people who have arrived in our county.

“We are now at a stage where we don’t need further donations of items. However there may be occasions in future when we need very specific items to meet specific needs as families go through the very gradual process of adapting to their new surroundings away from their home country. We thought an Amazon wishlist would be an ideal way to get a message through to our kind-hearted residents if and when we need specific items quickly.

“As we’ve said before we are very limited in the extent to which we can give a commentary on the process we are going through with the refugees because we don’t want to reveal the locations at which they are being homed. They have been through a traumatic experience and they are now in an entirely new country. They will need to adjust and we need to give them the time, space and peace to do so.

“As councils we have the same safeguarding responsibilities to these new residents that we have to people who are in the care of our adult and children’s social care teams. However in delivering that care to the refugees there may be moments when the wider public can provide real assistance – and that’s where the wishlist will come in very useful.”

People are able to make donations to a number of national appeals including the British Red Cross and Asylum Welcome . Further information about the Asylum Welcome appeal can also be found here https://www.asylum-welcome.org/the-afghan-community-needs-our-support/