YOUNG refugees have been arriving in the UK ahead of the clearance of the Calais 'Jungle' camp, which is beginning today.

One of those who has taken an interest in their plight is photojournalist Daniel James Homewood, 36, from Faringdon.

The father-of-one has visited the camp on three occasions and taken a series of photos.

Mr Homewood, who is working on a self-funded long-term project to document the journeys of migrants, said: "Over the last few months I have set out on what I predict to become several years’ work, documenting the effect of the European migrant trail.

"Starting in the UK, I will be visiting a range of locations in France, Hungary, Serbia, Macedonia, Greece, Turkey and Lebanon.

"So far, I have made several trips to the camp in Calais, and to the city itself to try to get beneath the skin of this frontier in northern France.

"'Les Calaisiens' are a unique group of people. Seemingly brash and forthright, they are an extraordinarily open-minded and tolerant species.

"The first tricklings of refugees began arriving in the area in 1999, and over the years their location and numbers have fluctuated, resulting in some 10,000 human beings living in the camp known as the Jungle.

"Throughout this period, I have heard many stories of the kindness offered to these people; including the fostering of children, finding families safety and security in homes both in France and the UK, and of a former Jungle resident called Alpha, who now lives in a permanent address in central Calais thriving as a freelance artist."

Mr Homewood warned there was a 'growing faction' who were very much against the Calais camp.

He added: "There have been several protests this year alone, resulting heated clashes.

"On October 1, I was in Calais during a protest that went ahead, despite a 24-hour blanket ban on such activities."

The photographer said the camp being broken up was a 'double-edged sword' and added: "There need to be provisions in place for everyone. Most of the refugees I saw were from Sudan and Eritrea."

A dozen teenagers arriving in the UK from Calais last week were met with cheers and applause as the transfer of vulnerable children from the Jungle continued.

Relatives and supporters waited behind barricades, some holding 'welcome' signs, as the children made their way inside the Home Office building in Croydon.

Oxfordshire County Council said one young refugee from the Calais camp had already arrived in Oxfordshire.

Spokesman Paul Smith said: "We have responded to the Home Office request to assist with the placing of children from the Calais camp with family members living in the UK – and have already helped enable this to happen in one case.

"Like other councils, we have a safeguarding role to ensure that relatives are able to provide a safe environment for children, but this is not the same as taking children into care.

"The council has a statutory responsibility for unaccompanied asylum seeking children otherwise arriving in Oxfordshire.

"Though the circumstances in which such children come to the council’s attention are obviously very different from other children coming into the care system, care arrangements for all children are made based on an assessment of the individual needs of the child.

"Typically a foster care arrangement, residential placement or supported accommodation would be the most likely outcome for children."

He added that there were 58 unaccompanied asylum seeking children currently in the care of the county council.

"Their countries of birth are Afghanistan, Albania, Egypt, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Syria," Mr Smith added.

Jericho and Osney county councillor Susanna Pressel said child refugees who came to Oxfordshire from the Calais camp could end up being 'fine upstanding citizens and a great asset.'

She added: "This country has always been proud to welcome refugees, especially children who can be in danger of being abused or trafficked - other countries should do their bit as well.

"As far as I am aware, Oxfordshire already does take child refugees because, from time to time, they arrive on lorries and are dumped near the M40.

"Now the Calais camp is going to be broken up it is even more urgent to make suitable arrangements but we are incredibly short of foster carers."

More children are expected to arrive after a team of British officials were sent to Calais to help French authorities speed up the transfer of minors ahead of the dismantling of the camp.

Campaigners, including Citizens UK, which said it had reunited 60 children from Calais with relatives in Britain since March, claim to have identified hundreds of children in the camp who have a right to come to the UK.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has written to the Prime Minister Theresa May asking her to act urgently to bring more vulnerable children to the UK.

But some critics have argued that the new arrivals appeared to be much older than 18.

Earlier this month there was a demonstration at Carfax by Oxfordshire councillors, trade union representatives and campaigners in support of the refugees at the Calais camp including 1,000 children.

Cathy Augustine, 55, from Didcot, who works in internal communications, is the secretary of the Oxford branch of Stand Up to Racism.

She attended the Carfax protest and said: "It has already been proved that some of the Calais child refugees – as many as 300 to 500 – have a legal right to come to this country so it is frustrating that they are still stuck there."