Shropshire refugee charity working on plans to support Ukrainians fleeing Russian invasion
A refugee charity says it is working with a council to develop plans for helping Ukrainians seeking sanctuary in the county.
Shropshire Supports Refugees said it is putting together a county-wide strategy with Shropshire Council for providing support to those fleeing the Russian invasion.
It comes as Telford & Wrekin Council also said it is contacting sponsors who are ready to take refugees, to offer advice and support ahead of their arrival.
The authority said that around 60 Ukrainian refugees have named people in the borough as stepping up as sponsors to host them.
Earlier this month the government announced the 'Homes for Ukraine – Local Sponsorship Scheme', which encourages people who are happy to offer a room in their home to a Ukrainian family for six or more months to register their details.
To date there have been approximately 200,000 registrations on the site.
Amanda Jones, chief executive of Shropshire Supports Refugees, said: “Shropshire Supports Refugees and Shropshire Council are currently putting together a countywide strategy to ensure that we make the situation as swift and as safe as possible for everybody involved."
Ms Jones said that the charity would be setting up a dedicated support centre in Shrewsbury's town centre, where it can offer help to those providing support, and those needing support.
She said: "Shropshire Supports Refugees will be acquiring a new support hub in Shrewsbury town centre where we can deliver information, guidance, and support as well as practical help with clothes, toys, and somewhere for guests to come and visit.
“We are collating all of the offers of support that come to our attention in whatever form that is, and we hope to be able to help to facilitate them in the very near future."
People who will be hosting families have also been urged not to try and get them into education or doctors surgeries – until the authorities are in a position to co-ordinate the efforts.
Ms Jones said: "We would ask that you do not try to enrol children into schools or enrol people into GPs just yet, as the council wish to co-ordinate that as there will be potentially a lot of arrivals."
Simon Jones, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for adult social care and public health, urged people who want to host refugees to ensure they are signed up to the government website.
He said: “There is a lot of work going on behind the scenes at the council, whilst we await further detailed guidance from the Government.
“We are working with the Government and Department of Education guidance and, as long as sponsors have registered with the official Government website, the council will receive their details and we will action accordingly.
“Our customer service staff are also collating customer details, and we will be in contact as soon as we are in a position to carry out home visits to assess the condition of properties and carry out the welfare assessments, which form a key part of the Government’s programme.”
Councillor Paul Watling, Telford & Wrekin Council’s cabinet member for stronger and safer communities, said: “Our role is to welcome Ukrainian guests coming to Telford and Wrekin, and make sure that they have access to the same public services that other residents of the borough enjoy.
“In this first stage in the national Homes for Ukraine scheme, we’ve been given the details of people in the borough who have been named as sponsors by around 60 refugees from Ukraine. We’re getting in touch with them to explain the process, arranging to carry out the necessary checks and property visits and letting them know about the range of support we can offer them and their guests.
“This is part of the wider national scheme but at the moment, we only have details of those specific named sponsors, so if you have registered for the national Homes for Ukraine scheme but don’t have a named guest, we won’t have your details to contact you just yet.
“Once this first phase is complete, we then expect the wider scheme to be opened up, with sponsor and refugees being matched up by the national system. Once we have those details we’ll be able to start contacting more people, so we’ll be in touch as soon as we can.”
Anyone wishing to register as a sponsor for the national Homes for Ukraine scheme should do so online at www.homesforukraine.gov.uk.
