WREXHAM is set to double the number of asylum seekers living in the town.

Under a six year-old agreement on dispersal of asylum seekers with the Home Office, Wrexham was identified as an area which could take up to 200.

But in reality, the town has only ever taken between 35-70.

Now UK Borders Association has asked Wrexham Borough Council if it will increase its asylum seeker intake to 150.

Leader of Wrexham Aled Roberts said: “We have a private sector dispersal agreement with the Home Office going back to 2002. They have indicated they want to go to 150, although legally and technically they can go to 200 without permission.

“But given the council has not discussed it for six years it’s only fair the council gets the opportunity to discuss this current situation.”

A private organisation is responsible for providing the accommodation.

“The only implication for the authority is if there are children who need schooling,” said Coun Roberts.

But since the number of children is likely to be small and the Welsh Assembly Government funds the English as an additional language service, the cost to Wrexham will be minimal.

The company providing the accommodation, Clearsprings, has expressed an interest in increasing its bed spaces in Wrexham.

In a report to Wrexham’s executive on Tuesday officials said: “There is currently no significant pressure on the homelessness team from refugee applications for accommodation. This is due to the relatively small numbers applying and of those the majority of people are single and are therefore not classified as ‘priority status’.

“UKBA anticipate that this trend will continue. An increase in the number of asylum seekers / bed spaces in Wrexham could potentially increase pressure on the service, particularly if there was an increase in the number of families seeking asylum.

“The Wrexham Local Health Board currently provides two dedicated health visitors, two days per week to support asylum seekers and refugees.

“The funding for this work is under review. In future a small team of health visitors will be jointly responsible for supporting the health needs of a range of ‘vulnerable’ groups including refugees, asylum seekers, gypsies and travellers and migrant workers.”

Coun Roberts said possibly more accommodation would be available as the number of migrant workers declines.