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The youngsters are understood to have left the port in Northern France on Monday morning and will be reunited with relatives who are already in Britain.

After arriving, they will register with the Home Office in Croydon, south London.

Dozens more children are expected to arrive this week 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 Jungle.

The arrival of the group on Monday was welcomed by the charity Citizens UK, which said it has reunited 60 children from Calais with relatives in Britain since March.

Lord Dubs, whose amendment to the Immigration Act 2016, requires the Government to relocate unaccompanied refugee children from Europe, said: "In the coming days, Citizens UK's Safe Passage team will be working round the clock to ensure that all children with a legal right to sanctuary in the UK are brought to safety.

"This includes the children eligible under the Dubs amendment, for whom there is still no official process in place. No child must be left behind in the chaos of demolition."

He added: "Looking ahead we must never allow a repeat of Calais. The Government must learn lessons from this situation and realise that it has a duty to make the Dublin mechanism work across Europe, as well as establishing a clear procedure for children without family eligible for sanctuary under the Dubs amendment."

Actress Juliet Stevenson said it was a "proud moment" for Britain.

She added: "We did the right thing. The arrival of hundreds of vulnerable children from Calais to the UK in the coming days is in no small part due to the tireless campaigning of community leaders, the hard work of Citizens UK's lawyers, and the Safe Passage team in Calais who have been working to safeguard children for over a year.

"Many children will sleep safely in warm beds tonight but in the coming days we must make sure every last child with a right to sanctuary here is brought to safety."

Campaigners say they have identified hundreds of children in the camp who have a right to come to the UK - either because they have family ties here under the so-called Dublin regulations, or through the Dubs amendment.

The Government has faced criticism over efforts to identify and transfer youngsters through the routes.

Last week Home Secretary Amber Rudd told the Commons that more than 80 unaccompanied children had been accepted for transfer under the Dublin regulation so far this year.

Under the rule, asylum claims must be made in the first safe country a person reaches - but children can have their application transferred to another country if they have family members living there.

The Home Secretary also said that more than 50 children had been taken, largely from Greece, under Lord Dubs' amendment to the Immigration Act.

Dave Hill, president of the Association of Directors of Children's Services, said unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASCs) are "very vulnerable".

He said: "T hey've fled their home countries, faced unimaginable dangers and have risked their lives in search of safety.

"Councils take their responsibility to care for UASCs very seriously and a lot of work has been happening both in local areas and at a regional level to support the development of the national transfer scheme for UASCs."

Former Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams said he is "delighted" to welcome the children to the UK, but cautioned that this is the first step and more children need help urgently.

Addressing reporters in Croydon, he said: "Today is the beginning of what I hope will be, in the next couple of weeks, a serious, shared enterprise for Government and voluntary organisations in this country.

"We welcome the development. We do want to remind everyone, public and Government, that time is short. This is a matter of urgency and we want to see some progress not only on those children who already have the legal right to be here, but on those others who are covered by the Dubs amendment and whose needs can be considered by this country."

Anne Longfield, children's commissioner for England, said: "As the camp's closure looms, I am relieved that the first children are starting to come to the UK under fast track arrangements, and can now start recovering from their ordeals."

For those arriving plans must be in place to ensure they are supported to get over their traumatic experiences, into schools and that they get any health treatment needed, Ms Longfield said.

She added: " This is a huge logistical undertaking with the clock ticking towards the closure of the camp by French authorities next week. Apart from those with rights to come to the UK there are several hundred other children in the camp, the vast majority on their own."

It was hoped that some of the children with UK-based families would be reunited with them on Monday, but it is understood some will not get to do so until a later point.

The youngsters are said to originate from a variety of war-ravaged countries, including Syria and Sudan.

Campaigners said they expected most of the children to have their first interviews with the Home Office on Monday.

Outside the Home Office building, one man, Asif Khan, said his brother was among the refugees who had come over on Monday.

The 25-year-old chef has been living in the UK for 11 years, having fled Afghanistan himself.

He said his brother, Aimal Khan, 14, also from Afghanistan, had been stranded in the Jungle for six months.

He told the Press Association: "I really appreciate this. My brother was in Calais for the last six months. It was a blessing to receive him from there - I'm really happy.

"His journey was so difficult, it was by walking, by bus to Calais.

"He gets a new life now, because there are many people who died in Calais."

Asked what he would say to his brother when he saw him for the first time in more than a decade, he replied: "I will just hug him because I haven't seen him since I left - I just miss him.

"I came across the same way 11 years ago; every night was hell for me, so I'm relieved he is here."