Andy Burnham is set to spend over £700,000 on programmes aimed at helping migrants and refugees access benefits, housing and public services in Greater Manchester.
The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), led by the mayor, plans to fund schemes designed to remove “barriers” that stop refugees from getting housing, welfare and local support. The focus is mainly on people who have already been granted asylum.
As part of the “Safe Transitions” programme, refugees will be offered community guidance and extra help, including a lodging scheme designed to support people settling into the area.
Greater Manchester currently accommodates more than 8,500 asylum seekers in hotels and other temporary housing across the region.
Supporters of Burnham have previously suggested that, if he became Prime Minister, responsibility for asylum accommodation could be handed to local councils, with Home Office contracts with private providers potentially scrapped.
The Safe Transitions guidance says people with asylum backgrounds are often overrepresented in homelessness and rough sleeping services, pointing to difficulties in understanding UK systems and accessing housing, welfare and other services.
The contract to develop this guidance is worth nearly £370,000.
Separately, the GMCA is also running a “Refugee Lodging Scheme” to help prevent homelessness among refugees, who currently have just 42 days after being granted asylum to find new accommodation once they leave Home Office housing.
More than 18,000 people in Greater Manchester are estimated to be without a permanent home, according to Shelter, with over 9,500 homeless in Manchester alone — around half of them children.
Under the scheme, refugees are matched with “resident landlords” who provide support with housing, benefits, work, education, English language learning, healthcare and community connections. The contract for this part of the programme is worth over £350,000.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp criticised the plans, accusing Burnham of directing significant public funds toward supporting migrants and linking it to wider pressures on taxpayers and public spending.
The GMCA said the Safe Transitions programme is aimed at early intervention, helping prevent homelessness before it happens and reducing the need for more costly emergency support.
Officials also said evaluations suggest the schemes can save more money than they cost, and that the wider £40 million homelessness programme supports a range of vulnerable groups, including veterans, young people, former prisoners, women, refugees and asylum seekers.
