Support for Syrian, Afghan and Ukrainian refugees lauded at meeting of Newark and Sherwood District Council

The enthusiasm and kindness of residents, groups and charities and council workers in supporting refugees has been lauded at a council meeting.

Praise was given to the work of residents, groups, charities and Newark and Sherwood District Council’s Resettlement Team at Monday’s policy and performance improvement commitment.

This year, an opportunity arose to review and streamline the council’s resettlement work and, in January, officers across the Housing Services Business Unit were brought together to establish a resettlement team consisting of a resettlement co-ordinator, two support workers and an administration assistant.

In their work across the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme, the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy, and the UK Resettlement Scheme, they help Afghan nationals who have worked for or alongside the UK government and people who have assisted the UK efforts in Afghanistan, standing up for values such as democracy, women’s rights, freedom of speech and rule of law, as well as vulnerable people, including women, girls and members of minority groups at risk.

They currently support seven households across the three schemes with support for the latest arrivals set to continue until September 2027.

The Homes for Ukraine scheme, supporting households who host individuals and families fleeing Ukraine, has also been very successful locally.

The remarkable generosity of residents has seen 105 local households involved with 67 in current host placements and three new arrivals expected in the coming weeks.

Part of the council’s role in this scheme is to complete a home assessment and safeguarding check of the host accommodation before arrival and to undertake safe and well visits after guests have arrived to make sure the arrangement is working for all.

Lee Brazier, portfolio holder for housing at Newark and Sherwood District Council said: “I’m so proud of our team for the amazing work they’ve been doing to support people and families who’ve been forced to flee their homes in awful circumstances.

“I know that we couldn’t do this without the fantastic partners we work alongside and I’d like to express my heartfelt thanks to the agencies, charities and voluntary groups who support and deliver training on our behalf, helping households to settle into their communities.”

One of the aims in establishing the resettlement service was to ensure the best possible use of government grants and support and this has already resulted in Newark and Sherwood being the only council in the county to successfully apply to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities’ £500m Local Authority Housing Fund.

This will support the purchase of 14 homes, helping to meet resettlement and homelessness needs, with five already purchased and the other nine identified and under offers that have been accepted. 35% of the homes secured already and the rest due to be acquired by November.

An additional three homes have also been supplied by Barratt Homes for a two-year period for temporary resettlements.

One of the council’s previous resettlement projects, under the scheme previously known as the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Scheme, ran from 2016 to 2021 and saw 13 households supported, all of whom have settled well into their communities and are now living independently.

Any individual or household coming to the UK under any of the Syrian or Afghan schemes is granted a five-year right to remain in the UK.

There are currently seven families households housed under those schemes with the last family arriving in September 2022.

In addition housebuilder Barratt Homes has provided the council with three houses for two years to temporarily house individuals.

Although the council has no data on the numbers of Ukrainians housed in private addresses under the Homes for Ukraine scheme, as it sits outside the schemes the council is responsible for, it is unaware of any at risk of homelessness.

The district has no holding hotels for refugees or asylum seekers.