Scarborough charity appealing for donations of clothes and essentials to help 92 Afghan refugees staying in the town

The Rainbow Centre has made the plea for items including baby clothes, nappies, wipes and toiletries for the families who are being housed in a Scarborough hotel while they wait to be found homes across the country.

On a post on its Facebook page, the Castle Road-based charity said: “This is a heartbreaking situation where they have had to leave their home, their loved ones and everything familiar behind.”

The leader of Scarborough Council, Cllr Steve Siddons, said that the arrangement had been made between the Home Office and the hotel but that the council supported the decision.

He said: “These are people who are fleeing persecution and are people who have helped the British forces in Afghanistan.

“Ultimately they will be housed elsewhere in the country but what we have got at the moment is an urgent crisis.

“My view is that most people in Scarborough would be supportive of helping people in this kind of situation as people are very kind.

“These are people who have helped our Armed Forces while they have been out there so I think we all owe them a debt of gratitude and support to try and make a new life.”

The Government is aiming to house more 20,000 people fleeing the country over the next five years after it fell to the Taliban.

Anyone with donations can take them to the Rainbow Centre in Castle Road or to Eastfield Medical Centre in High Street, Eastfield.