Dozens of Dutch churches offer accommodation to refugees

Dozens of churches in the Netherlands have offered to house people who have been granted asylum, with more than 100 refugees able to leave asylum centres as a result, the International Network of Local Initiatives with Asylum Seekers (INLIA) says.

Twenty churches are now preparing accommodation, including fitting carpets and beds and checking bathrooms, INLIA director John van Tilburg said. A further 40 churches have registered and are considering taking part. Applications are continuing to come in, the initiative, Actie Onderdak, said.

The plan is to house people in the town or city where they are already due to receive a home. Their departure would free places in asylum centres for new applicants and, the report says, help ease pressure on the overcrowded registration centre in Ter Apel.