A NEW charity to help Syrian refugees arriving in Bournemouth is to be launched by the town's religious leaders after David Cameron confirmed that 20,000 will be accepted into the UK.

Bournemouth's Christian, Jewish and Muslim communities have pledged to work together to help at least ten families arriving in the town every year.

The Rev Dr Ian Terry, team rector of Bournemouth Town Centre Parish in Bournemouth, said the decision was made by members at a meeting of the Bournemouth committee of The Council of Christians and Jews.

He told the Daily Echo: "We want to form a Bournemouth-based charitable organisation that will help in practical ways that might restore hope for at least ten families each year."

Now Rev Terry is urging anyone who is keen to be involved to attend an inaugural meeting at 11am on Monday September 21 at St Peter's Church in Hinton Road.

He said: "We shall meet for a well-focussed hour, in the lounge at St Peter's Church, and all of goodwill are welcome to join us and help to make a big difference to, at least, that small number of families.

"It is clearly not an option to just do nothing in the face of widespread and horrific suffering and displacement of peoples of all faiths and ethnicities in Syria.

"As people of faith, we first have very down to earth humanitarian concerns. Human life is sacred and we must do something, however small, to assert that sanctity and to alleviate the suffering where we can. "

Rev Terry has also offered St Peter's as a centre for directing emergency relief work of charities like Oxfam and the Red Cross and also as an information point.

He added: "Public opinion deserves to be well-informed, and that should generate appropriate compassion and action."