More asylum seekers were receiving support while their claim was processed than last year, figures show.

While awaiting a decision asylum seekers are unable to work but can be entitled to financial assistance and accommodation through what is known as 'Section 95' support.

Figures from the Home Office shows 349 people were claiming asylum assistance in Blackburn with Darwen as of December – up from 290 a year before.

Of these people, 335 were receiving Section 95 support.

Claimants may also be eligible for Section 98 – which is given to those who appear destitute and are waiting to see if they are eligible for Section 95 – or Section 4, for after a claim is rejected.

However, nobody was receiving Section 98 support in Blackburn with Darwen as of December.

The figures come as the UK's backlog in asylum applications topped 160,900.

This was up 60 per cent from 100,600 for the same period in 2021, and the highest figure since current records began in 2010.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has pledged to clear the 92,600 initial asylum claims in the system at the end of June 2022 by the end of 2023 – but the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford described the challenge as a “major headache” for the Government.

In an effort to speed up the process, thousands of asylum seekers will now be sent 10-page questionnaires to fill out instead of facing an interview, with officials warning their claim could be “withdrawn” if they do not reply with the required information.

A Home Office spokesman said: “Our priority is to stop the boats and ensure that people who come here illegally are detained and swiftly removed.

“We are working to speed up asylum processing so that people do not wait months or years in the backlog, at vast expense to the taxpayer, and to remove everyone who doesn’t have a legitimate reason to be here.”

A spokesperson for Blackburn with Darwen council said: "Blackburn with Darwen has established support for asylum and refugee communities living locally. 

"The number of people claiming Section 95 support, managed by Serco on behalf of the Home Office, has risen due to the increased number of asylum seekers entering the country.

"The Home Office and Serco work to a maximum number of asylum seekers in each local authority area of 1 asylum seeker to every 200 people in the local population (1:200).   

"Section 98 support, which is supposed to be provided for a short period, is generally offered on a full-board basis in Home Office hostels and often referred to as initial accommodation. The borough has no asylum seekers receiving Section 98 support as there is no initial accommodation in Blackburn with Darwen."