Refugee Action tells government free tuition should be given to migrants from all countries

A government pledge to spend £10m on English tuition for Syrian refugees in Britain, while ignoring those from other countries, is “madness”, according to the charity advising the Home Office on how to integrate refugees.

The government is making the pledge as it confirms that the local authority places needed to deliver on its commitment to resettle 20,000 Syrian refugees by 2020 have been found.

The commitment was undertaken a year ago after photographs of Alan Kurdi, a drowned three-year-old Syrian boy washed up on a Turkish beach, shocked the world.

Latest figures show that some 2,800 Syrians have arrived in more than 100 local authority areas under the Vulnerable Person Resettlement Scheme (VPRS) since it began, putting the government on course to meet its commitment, according to the home secretary, Amber Rudd.

“Securing the 20,000 pledges within 12 months is testament to the immense goodwill and generosity of the British people and the effort and determination of local authorities across the UK,” Rudd said. “We are on track and delivering our commitment to help the most vulnerable Syrians displaced by the conflict.”

The new £10m funding package to boost English tuition will mean all adults arriving under VPRS will receive an extra 12 hours a week of lessons for up to six months. This is in addition to the language support provided by local authorities.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Syrian refugees work with locals in Manchester – government has pledged £10m for English tuition to help families integrate. Photograph: Christopher Thomond/The Guardian

The government, which has been working with the charity Refugee Action to produce new guidance for local authorities on providing language tuition, hopes the extra cash will help Syrian families to integrate in their new communities more quickly and make it easier for them to find work.

But the charity’s chief executive, Stephen Hale, said that while he welcomed the extra money it made little sense for refugees from other countries to be denied the same support.

“It is madness to help one group of refugees to integrate fully while at the same time neglecting others,” Hale said. “We call on the government to make sure that all refugees rebuilding their lives [in the UK] have the opportunity to learn the language of their new home.”

Official figures show that, in addition to those arriving through VPRS, almost 15,000 people were granted refugee status in the 12 months to the end of June 2016.

Hale said the fact that almost 3,000 Syrians had arrived in the UK under the scheme was welcome but the government needed to do more. “The UK must go further and faster,” he said.