Will you be opening your home up to Ukrainian refugees?

[musicalfrog]

Interested to see how popular this will be considering so many of us want desperately to make a tangible difference.

My OH wouldn't be up for it I don't think, and we don't have a spare room so I will avoid that particular argument. But otherwise I think it would be such a great thing to do.

The govt is asking for a minimum commitment of 6 months. Will you be signing up?

sorry but no
it might be for 6 months then what, where will they go then?
theres not enough housing for our own people

I work in this sector. I think people need to think hard about the time and emotional commitment as well as the space and financial commitment.

What we do not need are people who underestimate the commitment and then re-traumatise a family further by a failed placement.

Really, I think the government needs to reform the entire asylum and refugee housing system. Local authorities need to be persuaded to accept asylum seeker accommodation into their areas. This will let pressure out of the system, creating the capacity for influxes in demand as seen in the syrian, afghani or ukrainian crises.

It really shouldn't fall to individuals which are well meaning, but likely out of their depth, to shoulder the failures of the home office.

@OohRahhMaki123

I work in this sector. I think people need to think hard about the time and emotional commitment as well as the space and financial commitment.

What we do not need are people who underestimate the commitment and then re-traumatise a family further by a failed placement.

Really, I think the government needs to reform the entire asylum and refugee housing system. Local authorities need to be persuaded to accept asylum seeker accommodation into their areas. This will let pressure out of the system, creating the capacity for influxes in demand as seen in the syrian, afghani or ukrainian crises.

It really shouldn't fall to individuals which are well meaning, but likely out of their depth, to shoulder the failures of the home office.

Thank you for this. Are you able to share any anecdotes, positive, negative or neutral?

I'd like to say I would - we have the space - but I don't think I could handle it. I work from home so we would be on top of each other during the day. I know I'm not very tolerant, so living with the noise and mess would be tough. We took in our DS's girlfriend for about 6 months when she was homeless and that was difficult even though she was lovely and clean/tidy.
We'll donate money instead.

We are thinking about it, we have a small spare room with double bed and use of own bathroom and no children at home anymore.

I have worked with Refugees and asylum seekers in the past and the vast majority just want some safety and stability and are no different from anyone else you might encounter in your lifetime, maybe I have been fortunate that my experiences of people are generally positive and I do not regard all strangers as a danger.

My DIL is also Ukrainian but has lived in the UK since she was around 7yrs old, her DM also lives near us so would help with their integration.

No.

I want to say yes- we have a spare double room. And chances are if we offered it to a Mum & child it would be fine. However, it's a stranger in my home and with my young children does concern me. I wouldn't know anything about that person. So the discussion is ongoing this weekend, here at home.

I would love to, if we had the money. If we got £100-£200 a month for their food and bills I would absolutely do it.

We don't have space but I definitely would if I had!

@OohRahhMaki123

I work in this sector. I think people need to think hard about the time and emotional commitment as well as the space and financial commitment.

What we do not need are people who underestimate the commitment and then re-traumatise a family further by a failed placement.

Really, I think the government needs to reform the entire asylum and refugee housing system. Local authorities need to be persuaded to accept asylum seeker accommodation into their areas. This will let pressure out of the system, creating the capacity for influxes in demand as seen in the syrian, afghani or ukrainian crises.

It really shouldn't fall to individuals which are well meaning, but likely out of their depth, to shoulder the failures of the home office.

It is not a sustainable solution and I wouldnt trust the government not to drag their heels on admin, support and red tape so 6 months becomes a year. The conflict will not be over soon.

Call me a cynic but all I can hear is the Cabinet cackling 'Brilliant, all the Remainers can put their money (and accommodation) where their mouth is". Hopefully it was just a rousing soundbite to silence the peasants and other housing initiatives are also being implemented.

It would be so good to believe that the precious few migrants that get here will have a very positive experience and not just be expected to be grateful for substandard accommodation and scraps,

The point being @OohRahhMaki123 that the crisis in Ukraine is happening now, not in 5 years when the government has reformed anything. When the Syrian war broke out huge numbers of refugees fled into adjoining countries such as Lebanon and Turkey. Were they all housed in ideal circumstances with a suite of trained professionals on hand to support their orientation and mental health? No, and the Ukrainians wont be in Poland or Romania or Moldova either. But things will go a little easier all round if the burden of dealing with this crisis is spread a little more evenly over Europe.

The reality is of course people will underestimate the difficulties involved in opening their homes. I'm sure that happened all through WW2 as well. This isnt a Disney movie, this is real life. Doesnt mean we should let the quest for perfection become the enemy of the good.

@OohRahhMaki123 local authorities have no capacity my partner works in housing so I know that first hand, they already use b&b etc there is no spaces/surplus accommodation just lying about empty. Not sure that is what you meant, so apologise if I am getting the wrong end of the stick...

My sons girlfriend is half Romanian. Her family have been driving right across the country to take Ukrainian refugee families into their homes. Romania isn't rich and they can afford far fewer refugees than the uk. But those people have huge hearts, they remember being part of the soviet bloc and want to help.

I'm not sure British people would do the same. I hope they would. My church works with refugees, currently mainly Syrian. We do household provisions including furniture, integration classes, English classes. These people are now coming back and volunteering with us to help others. We've recently had some Yemeni families - now that's a tragedy we should be focusing on!

We're one of the richest countries in the world. If I had space, I'd host refugees. There are hundreds, if not thousands of flats sitting empty in London mainly, bought as investments by people from the Middle East and china, and never rented. That's a crime.

We could take Ukrainians if we wanted. We don't want to. That's the issue.

If it materialized (and I really don't think it will on a significant scale) then the government would probably introduce incentives like food vouchers and council tax reductions to encourage people to sign up.

@themonkeysnuts

sorry but no it might be for 6 months then what, where will they go then? theres not enough housing for our own people

This with all due respect

We are considering it . We have rooms and can afford to but live rurally with poor transport so I'm not sure how useful or helpful it would be

I have not read the full thread but will there be any monetary compensation or funding to assist?

We maybe could as we have a room big enough for a double bed or two singles but money wise feeding and housing two extra people when our own country is trying to financially cripple us all would be a stretch. We said we would to each other but realistically I don't think we can.

@DrSbaitso too many to tell!

Frankly, the entire system needs root and branch reform, and not in the way Priti Patel is proposing! But if there is anything in particular you'd like to know about just ask.

What I would suggest is that if people are genuinely interested in opening their home to people who have been displaced by war, then do some prep.

NHS Scotland run an online course which is fantastic. The trauma informed approach is essential if you are supporting vulnerable people.

www.transformingpsychologicaltrauma.scot/
You have to sign up - but it is free!

My husband and I have already decided to host Ukrainian refugees. We have 2 spare bedrooms so a mother and two children or 2 / 3 older single women. Yes - some of them MIGHT be mentally unbalanced etc, and they MIGHT prove a danger. But honestly? Most of them are just like you and me - have been used to shopping in Zara and the local supermarket and just getting on with their lives. We're all so fortunate that we aren't standing in their shoes.
I know that not everyone has a big enough home to host - I'm not judging other people's decisions here. And I realise that it won't be easy - we've had people stay with us for months in the past (all lovely!) and I really did want our home back at the end of it. But the desperation on the faces of women just like our daughters and the stunned looks of children just like our grandchildren..... We'll apply asap.
And finally - as Christians, my husband and I know we often get things wrong and I was always worried about hosting men as my husband used to be out of our home a lot, but this verse from Matthew has made it a no brainer for us.
'For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in....'

I would never have any stranger living in my home. I'm more than happy to give money to help home them though. I honestly think money for rent/hotels etc is the more dignified option for refugees - why don't they deserve their own space?

But our country drags its feet about homing the people who already live here, so unfortunately my donations are a drop in the ocean.

If I had the space yes absolutely but we’re a large ish family in a small house so unfortunately I can’t

@AskingforaBaskin

I have not read the full thread but will there be any monetary compensation or funding to assist?

We maybe could as we have a room big enough for a double bed or two singles but money wise feeding and housing two extra people when our own country is trying to financially cripple us all would be a stretch. We said we would to each other but realistically I don't think we can.

Sanctuary is looking to set up community sources of funding (churches, social groups etc.) to cover the costs. They outline other practical ways of being involved.

www.sanctuaryfoundation.org.uk/

In theory there's nothing stopping us. We have a large room with ensuite shower and its own front door, and a large garden for children to play. Ours is a friendly community, but not at all diverse, and work opportunities/school places are scarce. So it would completely depend on having a lot more detail.

But it would leave no space for our DS to come back from university, and like others here (haven't RTFT) six months seems a long time to accommodate strangers, possibly without much common language, and I wouldn't put any trust in this government. I would expect pressure for the shelter to be extended until the end of never.

@ilovebrie8

Oh I'm aware - local authorities are stretched to the max. I don't envy your partner's job right now at all, I 100% get that the councils are doing what they can in a really tough situation!

However, asylum seekers are not generally housed in local authority properties. Rather contractors sub-let or build private property in these local authority areas. But they need LA permission. The Home Office pay the LAs to allow asylum seekers to use the schools, hospitals and general infrastructure.

The issue is the Home Office are paying far too little. So, for example only 1 local authority in Scotland are allowing asylum seekers to be housed in the area.

People are ending up in hotels or other unsustainable properties as they have to stay within a certain local authority limit. This is despite some areas of Scotland crying out for people to move into the area to fulfill jobs or to keep schools open.

Overall, my point is that if the Home Office offered more cash to local authorities to incentivise accommodating asylum seekers, the whole system would be depressurised.

That would perhaps create enough capacity so that the Government would stop trying to solve the issue of thousands of families in need of proper support by borrowing Brenda's back bedroom for 6 months!

No