Role of sponsors, voluntary and community sector, councils, and where to focus tariff funding: Homes for Ukraine
The role sponsors, the voluntary and community sector (VCS), and councils play in the scheme. Includes how tariff funding is designed for councils.
Role of sponsors
Sponsors should be aware that guests have experienced trauma and will have unique needs, experiences and worries. Local councils may want to discuss these areas with sponsors:
- being sensitive to their guests’ needs
- risks of exploitation and abuse
- sources of support
Sponsors are required to:
- Meet the eligibility and suitability requirements to be approved as a sponsor.
- Provide suitable accommodation for a minimum of 6 months. Accommodation needs to be free from serious health and safety hazards ensuring the property is safe for guests and in a suitable condition, with considerations set out in the guidance for sponsors.
- Check their mortgage lenders website for guidance.
- Check their home insurer’s website for guidance. UK homeowners who want to temporarily house people from Ukraine who have been displaced by the conflict in Ukraine, as non-paying guests with them in their primary residence do not need to inform their insurer and their cover will remain the same. Sponsors should be aware of any existing terms that might apply to non-paying guests within their insurance policy and contact their insurer if they wish to discuss their cover or other changes in circumstances. They can refer to the Association of British Insurers’ statement for more details.
- Stay in regular contact with their guests prior to their arrival to help organise and coordinate their arrival in the UK, meet them on arrival, and provide their guests with instructions on how to reach their accommodation if they are unable to meet them. Note: councils will still be required to provide general welcome point arrangements and immediate support on arrival if guests require it (see section below).
- Support and help guests to adapt to life in the UK, initially checking if they have enough food and supplies such as toiletries, along with checking if they have access to a mobile phone and internet to stay in touch with family members.
- Help direct their guests to public services for example, registering with a GP or NHS dentist.
Role of the Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS)
The government has published a list of Recognised Providers, which are voluntary and community sector (VCS) organisations running schemes that provide support for people on the scheme and help to match people from Ukraine with sponsors in the UK.
Recognised Providers have been encouraged to establish a communication channel to the relevant local councils where sponsors are based to ensure there is a link to the support councils are providing.
Role of local councils
Councils have an essential role to play in supporting people in their area under the Homes for Ukraine scheme. They are expected to offer support in many areas, which are explained in the sections below:
Where councils should focus tariff funding
The government has set out the conditions on use of the tariff grant in grant determination letters which have been published. The government will continue to work with local councils to be assured that spending in relation to the scheme is in line with both grant conditions and our priorities for the scheme. Further information on how we will work with local councils to obtain assurance will be provided.
To give local authorities the flexibility to plan ahead, any remaining tariff funding for 2022/23 can be rolled over and spent in 2023/24, providing that this is spent in accordance with the conditions set out in the grant determination letters. If there are services that need to be provided within 2022/23 financial year, the money should be prioritised for that.
From 1 January 2023, the government is providing funding for local authorities across the UK of £5,900 per arrival in their area to support guests and their sponsors. Councils will continue to receive the existing year 1 tariff to support those Ukrainians that have already arrived, as previously set out. The tariff, to be provided to local authorities across the UK from 1 January 2023 will remain un-ringfenced and it is therefore up to the discretion of local councils to spend the tariff according to local need and expertise.
We ask councils to prioritise their tariff funding to achieve the following key outcomes outlined below:
- Welcoming, safeguarding and settling in
- Integration and work
- Long-term sustainable housing
- Reporting and data management
Welcome, safeguarding and settling in
Supporting guests (including unaccompanied minors) and sponsors by ensuring they are housed within safe arrangements. Ensuring sponsors are adequately supported, including through timely payment of thank you payments.
This should include:
- sponsor and guest safeguarding checks
- accommodation checks
- welfare checks
- initial support such as interim cash for new guests and transport arrangements
- paying thank you payments on time
- service referrals such as adult social care, children services and mental health services
This could also include:
- ensuring sponsors and guests are aware of the support available to them in the local community and provided by the council, such as coffee mornings, charity outreach, and citizens advice
- ensuring sponsors are supported in helping guests create bank accounts and access other public services such as the GP
Integration and work
Supporting guests to access economic opportunities in the UK, including work and/ or education, providing them with wraparound integration support, for instance English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) provision and other interventions aimed at identifying and addressing the needs of guests.
This should include:
- supporting guests to access local Jobcentres Plus appointments for benefit assessment and finding jobs
- signposting guests to help available from Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Transport
- supporting guests with public service referrals
- working with voluntary sector to assist with CV writing and interview skills
- working to increase employment opportunities through running drop-in sessions and career advice
This could also include:
- supporting guests to access ESOL training through the Adult Education Budget and Level 3 Free Courses for Job Offer and Skills Bootcamps
- organising and running community events, to increase interaction with Ukrainians and people in the local area
- working with community champions and interfaith networks
- developing networks of Ukrainians to meet other people who may be experiencing similar issues
Long-term sustainable housing
Supporting guests into secure, safe, and sustainable accommodation, including through appropriate Private Rented Sector (PRS) access schemes, such as support for one off costs. This also includes supporting the longevity of sponsorship.
This should include:
- working with guests and hosts as they approach the end of sponsorship arrangements to ensure that guests understand what their move-on accommodation options are and where appropriate, encouraging sponsorship to continue
- supporting guests to overcome barriers to accessing PRS, such as by supporting with deposits, rent advances, rent top ups or furniture
- supporting guests to find a new host or ‘rematch’ where necessary, including ratifying VCS-led or self-rematches
- supporting Ukrainians who present as homeless, despite interventions being made
Reporting and data management
Maintaining accurate records for UK-wide reporting on and tracking guests (including unaccompanied minors) for safeguarding and counter-fraud and error purposes.
This should include:
- updating Foundry as soon as possible and ideally on a weekly basis
- updating DELTA within designated time frames
- ensuring records on ‘thank you’ payments are kept up to date
- recording rematching data
- conducting regular checks to counter fraud and error
This could also include:
- maintaining records regarding the end of sponsorships and guests move-on plans, such as returning to Ukraine, moving to another council or moving to own accommodation via into PRS
This is not an exclusive or exhaustive list but an indication of what types of support we know some councils are providing. It remains up to each council’s discretion to spend the tariff in ways to ensure that welcoming, safeguarding and settling, integration and work, long-term sustainable housing and reporting and data management are all being delivered effectively.
Where councils should focus the new £150 million funding
The UK government will also provide £150 million of new UK-wide funding in the 2023/24 financial year to local authorities and devolved governments to help support Ukrainian guests move into their own homes and reduce the risk of homelessness.
Councils will continue to receive the £5,900 tariff in the 2023/24 financial year to support new arrivals in their first 12 months, in addition to receiving this £150m to support guests in 2023/24.
Local authorities are best placed to understand the support needed for local communities and as is typically the case for various local authority funding, they will also be able to use this funding to support other people at risk of homelessness.
Our ambition is to provide this funding at the start of 2023/24 and it will be allocated between the different parts of the UK relative to their proportion of Ukrainian guests.
We will engage closely with councils and devolved governments on how this will be delivered and how it should be spent and will publish further details.