THE leader of Oxfordshire County Council yesterday said his authority stood ready to help refugees but warned a lack of funding could pile further pressure on local services.

At a full meeting of councillors, Ian Hudspeth said it was “both our legal and moral duty” to assist people fleeing from the conflict in Syria. But, he added, without Government help, the local authority could be forced to choose between the needs of Oxfordshire residents and helping those fleeing conflict.

His comments followed a city centre rally at the weekend of almost 2,000 people, who gathered in support of Syrian refugees trying to make their way to the UK.

Mr Hudspeth said the county council was holding talks with other public bodies and charities about how it could best respond.

He said: “Like everyone, I have been shocked and saddened by images we have seen of refugees fleeing brutal regimes such as Syria where civil war is raging.

“The numbers on the march in Oxford at the weekend shows the strength of feeling and compassion of the people of Oxfordshire.

“Public bodies, along with the voluntary sector, will all have to do their bit and – from a county council perspective – our priority is safeguarding children and providing support to families in need.”

But Mr Hudspeth said the council, which must still achieve savings of £80m by 2017/18 and could face further cuts of tens of millions, would need extra funding from the Government.

He added: “Without additional funding, we might find ourselves having to make difficult choices between the needs of local residents and those of new arrivals in the county at a time when we are already having to cut services.”

The county council said this week that it already faced huge pressure on children’s social care, with the number of looked after children rising from 427 two years ago to the current figure of 563.

It included almost 50 unaccompanied asylum seeker children, from countries including Afghanistan, Albania, Egypt, Eritrea, Iraq and Vietnam – more than double the number being looked a year ago.

Announcing on Monday that Britain would accept up to 20,000 refugees through a United Nations scheme over the next five years, Prime Minister and Witney MP David Cameron said vulnerable children would be prioritised.

Mr Hudspeth said: “The children’s services team is in the process of making sure we can respond to more arriving in the county. It is both our legal and moral duty to make sure that refugee children are looked after and kept safe, and the county council will always meet those duties.”

A spokesman for the Home Office last night said it was too early to say how many refugees could arrive in Oxfordshire, but added: “The Immigration Minister has already contacted the Local Government Association to make sure there is appropriate provision for people arriving in the UK.’’