Initial guidance for councils and citizens was published on 18 March, but the LGA and councils sought further clarity on roles, responsibilities and risks of and for councils.
The Government published updated guidance for councils for the Homes for Ukraine scheme on Wednesday 13 April, with further updates expected this week. The Government listened to local government regarding the legal liability of councils in relation to safeguarding and accommodation checks, something which LGA’s Chairman, Cllr Jamieson raised with the Levelling Up Committee as part of their inquiry on Ukrainian refugees on Wednesday 30 March.
However, our substantive asks regarding providing a clear framework for housing checks; guidance around dealing with safeguarding issues beyond just the initial DBS check; clear steer on breakdown of placements and rematching and clarity of data still require further detail. The LGA will continue to work with the Government on these and other issues of priority for councils:
Current priorities
1. Clear process: we are keen to work with government to set out clearly and quickly the expectations of and risks to councils, particularly around both initial and ongoing safeguarding and housing checks, with aligned communications to sponsors about the asks of them. The LGA is sharing good practice to enable councils to develop local policies and processes.
2. Homelessness risks: councils are also reporting requests for housing support via all routes. Councils also need clear guidance on what happens when sponsor arrangements are assessed to be unsafe, break down, or end, to ensure families swiftly move to other sponsorships regardless of their route to the UK.
3. Parity across both routes: Councils should receive funding and data for both schemes as councils will have a crucial role in providing accommodation for homeless families, ensuring integration and access to local services. Confirmation is needed on whether visa route families can move across to the sponsor route to avoid becoming homeless.
4. Unaccompanied children: we would also be keen to continue to work with government on any potential arrival of lone children, with councils already reporting lone children requesting support via existing routes.
5. Engagement: there is a need for clearer engagement structures to enable local government representatives to work with central government at a local, regional and national level to share issues and solutions, including on the next iteration of the guidance.
Making it work
6. DBS checks: councils are raising concerns on the pace of these being issued and the expectations of them in terms of assessing sponsor suitability before these are issued. Councils would also like to use their own local intelligence to supplement checks.
7. Resources: we would welcome ongoing review y on what the £10,500 per person payment is to cover across the range of council and local services required, particularly around high cost areas like social care and special educational needs. We would support early planning for future years and ongoing work on funding flows in two tier areas.
8. Cross system pressures. Services from local partners cannot be found within existing capacity budgets, with acknowledged pressures on ESOL/EAL provision and health, particularly specialist mental health support. There will also also costs for national and local community, faith and voluntary sector for their role
9. Port authorities we welcome further work on clarifying what is the role of port authorities in welcoming new arrivals, particularly if numbers rapidly upscale.
10. Wider system: there is an ongoing need to tackle ongoing pressures and issues in related schemes for asylum and resettlement given both to the reduce the impacts on all new arrivals and the cumulative pressures on local areas
Planning ahead – phase two and beyond
11. Cross system approach: we are keen to continue work with government and the community, faith and the voluntary sector, and other local partners, to build a process at pace and scale for both stage 2 and for the end of sponsorship. This will enable local partners understand and meet the needs for those sponsoring and those sponsored.
12. Accommodation solutions: joint work, alongside housing providers and other partners, is needed to find innovative solutions at pace and at scale around access to housing at the end of sponsorship.