UKRAINIANS of Wiltshire have written an open letter to local councils and organisations, asking for a meeting to help organise the resettlement process of Ukrainian people as they leave sponsors and pursue private housing.
The group, made up of Ukrainians staying in Wiltshire under the ‘Homes for Ukraine’ programme, say that the official period of stay is due to end six months after it started, and many sponsors cannot extent their guests’ stay to a year. Many Ukrainians also want to rent their own place, but they are faced with problems such as the high cost and shortage of housing, financial issues, as well as incidents of bias of the landlord against Ukrainian refugees.
Echoing the Ukrainian refugee community’s concerns, Adrienne Westbrook, who is hosting a family said, “It is not a good picture in Wiltshire at the moment, there is no hope for families in getting private accommodation. My Ukrainian family have been here for four months and I have said that they can stay the year, so that takes them until next May. Quite a few hosts are saying that after the initial six months, their families must move on. This is not something that I will be doing, but May next year will soon be with us and nobody has realistically made any sensible statements on what will happen then.
“I know that from chatting that they know they won’t to be able to afford private rental as most don’t have any credit ratings. They were encouraged to use online banks when they came to the UK, but they don’t help to build up a credit rating. They know they need to go down the social housing route but find Housing Benefit rules confusing. They also know that to get a house in the town they have settled in is like gold dust. It’s so difficult for them. They are also all working and that means they have no time to get all the information that they need.”
The open letter from Ukrainians of Wiltshire reads, “The first thing we would like to do is express our gratitude to our sponsors and the government – your efforts and your support have been so invaluable and so touching!
“The official period of stay with sponsors is ending after six months, which expires very soon. And everyone has a question: what to do next? Many of us would like to go back home. Our decision to come here was forced, to save ourselves and our children from the war. But unfortunately, in Ukraine we cannot feel safe now, we are afraid for our lives and the lives of our children, and therefore we are forced to ask for an extension of our stay in the UK.
“Our sponsors have opened their homes and hearts to us, but unfortunately not all of them can extend their guests’ stay to 1 year. We also understand that living together for a long period is not easy for both parties and would be happy to start an independent life and rent our own accommodation. Many of us have already made attempts to rent housing through agencies.
“But here we are faced with the following problems: high cost and shortage of housing, and a complex procedure for registering a lease, which requires confirmation of income, a guarantor, and a large deposit. Sometimes there has even been bias of the landlord against Ukrainian refugees and as a result most cases were refused.
“Many Ukrainian refugees are simply not able to start an independent life now, because in a few months they have not been able to adapt psychologically, they do not speak English well, and therefore they cannot earn a normal income to pay for the cost of renting their own housing and utilities. Most of us are women with children. Many of us are trying to find a job or are already working. But caring for children does not allow women to work full-time, and part-time earnings are not able to cover the cost of renting our own housing.”
To view the letter in its entirety visit: https://moderngov.microshadeapplications.co.uk/melkshamtc/documents/s8760/Ukrainians%20Appeal_Open%20Letter.pdf
