Michael Gove announces new sponsorship scheme to help people fleeing Ukraine will launch on Friday, 18 March
Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, today announced in the House of Commons that the second of the Government's two visa schemes to help people fleeing the war in Ukraine will launch this Friday, 18 March.
Image credit: WikipediaThe new Homes for Ukraine scheme will allow individuals, charities, community groups and businesses in the UK to sponsor Ukrainians and bring them to the UK. Unlike the existing Ukraine Family Scheme, eligibility for the new Homes for Ukraine will include Ukrainians with no family ties to the UK.
Michael Gove said that sponsors can be of any nationality with any immigration status, but they are required to have at least six months leave to remain within the UK. Sponsors will need to provide refugees with housing for at least six months.
The scheme will be open to all Ukrainian nationals and residents. They will be given full and unrestricted access to UK benefits, healthcare, employment and other support.
The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities explained in a press release today: "[T]he scheme will allow sponsors in the UK to nominate a named Ukrainian or a named Ukrainian family to stay with them in their home or in a separate property. […] Individual sponsors will be asked to provide homes or a spare room rent-free for as long as they are able, with a minimum stay of 6 months. In return, they will receive £350 per month. […] Ukrainians arriving in the UK under this scheme will be granted 3 years leave to remain, with entitlement to work, and access benefits and public services."
A webpage for sponsors to record their interest ahead of the scheme's official opening was launched today and is available here. The initial guidance page by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities with frequently asked questions is here.
Responding to Michael Gove's statement in the House of Commons, Labour's Lisa Nandy asked for clarification over the Government role in the scheme. In particular, Nandy questioned whether the Secretary of State would play a role in matching Ukrainian families to UK sponsors. Nandy warned that without such Government support, the scheme risked being a "DIY asylum scheme" where Ukrainian refugees would effectively need to 'advertise' themselves in the hope of attracting the attention of someone in the UK.
Michael Gove said that the Government was working with NGOs and local government to ensure that Ukrainians in need can be found sponsors in the UK and brought here as quickly as possible. Gove said that NGOs had welcomed the scheme's sponsorship approach.
The Secretary of State was later asked about some of the potential practical difficulties of the scheme, such as if the relationship with a sponsor broke down before the end of the 6-month minimum housing commitment or before the end of the 3-year visa. In answering, Gove said that sponsors would be undertaking a "quite significant commitment" and experiences with previous sponsorship programmes suggested that the number of sponsors terminating early would be small. In the event of the relationship with a sponsor breaking down, Gove said the Ukrainian refugees affected would be supported in the UK by central and local government and civil society.
A number of refugee groups have expressed concern about the new scheme.
Following initial media reports of the scheme yesterday, the Refugee Council said in response: "[W]e are concerned that people from Ukraine are still not being recognised as refugees and being asked to apply for visas when they just need to be guaranteed protection. This programme falls short of enabling any Ukrainian, particularly the most vulnerable such as children who are alone, to seek safety in the UK and access the full support they urgently need. By establishing a visa route and naming scheme, it will inevitably be restricted to those who are known to people in the UK and be a quite complex lengthy visa application process. A humanitarian crisis requires a speedy and compassionate response not one that puts bureaucratic hurdles ahead of the immediate needs of people whose lives have been ripped apart."
Refugee Action said it was concerned that the scheme asks members of the public to take in traumatised people without vital safeguarding and training, putting too much responsibility on their shoulders while leaving refugees at risk of exploitation.
Refugee Action added: "We understand that Ukrainians arriving through this scheme will not be given refugee status, which falls far short of the protection guarantee they should expect. It will also limit their access to benefits which could leave them without support they would desperately need if they have difficulties with their sponsor."
Refugees at Home welcomed the scheme, but called for full checks to be carried out on sponsors.
The charity said: "We want to see as many refugees housed as soon as possible. However, matching hosts to guests requires sensitivity and experience, and it is important that homes are properly assessed prior to a placement being made. A simple DBS check is not enough. A proper home visit needs to be undertaken to ensure that homes are suitable and that everyone in the host household is fully committed and knows what to expect; follow-up support need to be provided to both hosts and guests; move-on plans must be put in place; and there needs to be a fallback for the rare situations in which a placement does not work out."
Refugees at Home added that the geographical location of the hosts should also be an important consideration, with experience showing that most refugee guests prefer to be housed in large cities where they can receive community support and assistance.
According to news reports this evening, over 43,000 people signed up to register their interest on the Government's Homes for Ukraine webpage within the first five hours of it going live.
Refugee Action noted that current community sponsorship schemes in the UK only settle around 150 refugees a year.