Only two Syrian refugee families have been resettled in the UK six months after the government's community sponsorship scheme was unveiled by the Home Secretary and the Archbishop of Canterbury.

The initiative is meant to support the Syrian vulnerable persons resettlement scheme which aims to bring 20,000 refugees from the Middle East to the UK by 2020.

Churches have been urged to sign up to the programme with the Good Faith Partnership and sponsor a refugee family to help reach the target set by former Prime Minister David Cameron. Dozens of churches have already registered but more were called to respond.

Russell Rook, founder and head of the Good Faith Partnership, pointed out the scheme was based on a Canadian equivalent that had taken 288,000 refugees since it was set up in 1979.

"Churches called on the government to create the scheme and are now queuing to welcome refugee families through it," he told Christian Today.

"The first two sponsored families have been welcomed by churches with more to come. We look forward to seeing many more refugees finding fresh hope and a new home in months to come."

Sponsors are required to provide housing for the family and take responsibility for their integration into British life.

The Archbishop of Canterbury was the first to resettle a family under the scheme when he welcomed a family to live in a cottage at Lambeth Palace.

But since then only one other family has been taken under the scheme, according to the Guardian.

A Home Office spokesperson said: "Our intention has always been that this relatively new scheme would start on a small scale and be monitored closely to ensure it delivers positive outcomes for resettled families and local communities.

"We have seen considerable interest in the scheme from across the UK and are working with a number of groups as they develop their plans. Supporting a vulnerable resettled family is a significant responsibility and it is only right that we carefully assess every sponsoring organisation.