ABERYSTWYTH University is considering offering free scholarships to five refugees from war-torn countries.

The institution, which welcomes around 150 new non-EU foreign nationals in its intake each year, said it is “exploring options” and calculating the cost of offering the scholarships.

A report put before the university’s council said the university executive is “developing proposals to offer scholarships for five asylum seekers in the United Kingdom”.

Council members “welcomed” the report and outline proposal but said that “further work was required, in particular on the financial aspects, to develop the plans in detail.”

Over 1,600 people have so far been resettled in the UK from Syria and the Middle East under the government’s Vulnerable Persons Resettlement scheme. Ceredigion took in 10 Syrian refugees, with another 10 set to arrive later this year.

See this week’s south editions for the full story, in shops and online on Wednesday