How you can help Ukrainians

We have all been moved by the terrible conflict in Ukraine. Families have been separated. People have been injured. Lives have been lost. 

At least 3 million people have now fled their homes to escape. Leaving behind jobs, belongings and loved ones, they now face an uncertain future. The Disasters Emergency Committee predicts that 18 million people will be affected by the escalating conflict in Ukraine, with 4 million people expected to flee their homes as the war continues.

Greater Manchester is known for being a welcoming and generous city region and we know that many of customers will be considering how they can help.  

Donate

You can help people in Ukraine by making a donation to the DEC’s Ukrainian Humanitarian Appeal – they work with many charities, including the British Red Cross, to provide food, water, shelter and healthcare to refugees and displaced families.

Welcome a refugee into your home

The Homes for Ukraine Scheme offers a lifeline to those forced to flee their homes and you can help by welcoming a Ukrainian person or family into your home for at least six months.

We will make it as easy as possible for customers to host refugees. Here are more details about the resettlement scheme and how to let us know if you’re taking part, or considering this.

How it works

Individuals, charities, community groups and businesses can volunteer accommodation and provide a route to safety for Ukrainians, and their immediate family members, forced to escape their homeland.

The accommodation must be available for at least 6 months, be fit for people to live in, and be suitable for the number of people to be accommodated.

People arriving under this scheme will be able to live and work in the UK for up to three years and access healthcare, benefits, employment support, education, and English language tuition

From Friday 18 March the scheme will open for visa applications from Ukrainians and immediate family members who already have named people willing to sponsor them.

People wanting to be sponsors who do not know anyone personally fleeing Ukraine can also record their interest in being a sponsor. You can record your interest as an individual or as an organisation (for example charity, business, community group).

You can find out more information about the scheme here. There is also a set of FAQs that may answer some of the questions you have, which can be viewed here. We encourage you to consider this information carefully before deciding and contact us so that we can consider your request.

Things to consider

• Do you have room? There are rules around how many people can live in our homes so that they are not overcrowded. These rules are set out in housing law. You can find this information in your tenancy agreement.
• Living costs. Whilst you won’t be expected to provide meals for your guests, having another person in your home will mean your household bills, such as gas and electric, will increase. You will not be able to charge any individuals you host, but the government is giving hosts £350 per month as a thank you payment and to help towards the running costs of your home.
• Financial help with your rent. Having people living with you, even short-term, could affect any financial help that you get towards your rent, such as housing benefit or universal credit. Please check to see how you may be affected.
• Insurance arrangements. It is worth checking whether your home contents insurance policies to see if you need to make any changes or notify them that you have someone else living with you.

Please let us know if you are considering signing up as a host.

It’s great that you are considering this, and we want to make sure that this is as easy as possible for you to become a host. Please complete this form below to let us know if you are considering or registering to be a host. We will then contact you to chat about your application. We promise to give our consent to this wherever we can.