17 March, 2022 Open access
17 March, 2022 Open access
Scottish Government's proposal to act as a 'supersponsor' will short-circuit requirements under the UK scheme to have individual sponsors in place to speed up the process of Ukranians reaching sanctuary
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has outlined the Scottish Government’s plans to offer temporary accommodation to Ukrainian refugees as a ‘supersponsor’ to enable significant numbers to come to Scotland immediately.
In a statement on refugees from Ukraine in Holyrood yesterday, Ms Sturgeon confirmed the Scottish Government’s plans to ‘short circuit’ the first phase of the UK Government’s Homes for Ukraine scheme so that refugees will not have to be matched to an individual sponsor before arrival in the UK, advising that -
‘We want and have offered to act as a single supersponsor to allow significant numbers of people who are fleeing Ukraine to come to Scotland immediately. We have offered to sponsor 3,000 people straight away, and in the longer term we have given an uncapped commitment to support at least 10 per cent of the total number who seek sanctuary in the UK.’
Ms Sturgeon added that in practice this will mean that people from Ukraine will not need to be matched with individual sponsors before being allowed entry to the UK and that, once in Scotland -
‘We will provide temporary accommodation and then, with people already safely here and, I am sure, wrapped in a warm Scottish welcome, we will work at speed with partners including local councils, the Scottish Refugee Council, the national health service, Disclosure Scotland and others to complete safeguarding checks; put in place wider health, education, practical and befriending support; and arrange longer-term accommodation.’
When pressed on whether refugees will face prolonged periods in temporary accommodation, Ms Sturgeon said -
‘Our first priority - this is the whole intention of the supersponsor proposal - is to get people to sanctuary in Scotland as quickly as possible, rather than having bureaucratic processes that take a long time while people are still in Poland or other countries. Because we will want to do the longer-term matching process while people are in Scotland, that will mean that there will be a period in which we house them in temporary accommodation …
I think that having people in short-term accommodation is preferable to their having to go through long-standing bureaucratic processes just to get here in the first place. Speed of action is really important here, but that must be underpinned by all the proper safeguarding and other processes that everybody has a right to expect.’
In addition, in relation to the Scottish Government’s plans for longer-term housing support, Ms Sturgeon confirmed that the options are currently being assessed, including provision of local authority and housing association properties, but also private sector or holiday accommodation.
Turning to address the resources to be allocated to deliver the package of support, Ms Sturgeon confirmed that -
‘… in addition to financial support that the UK Government will provide, the Scottish Government is allocating £15 million to support our immediate refugee response. Just over £11 million of that will be allocated to local authorities, £2.25 million will be set aside for temporary accommodation, and a further £1.4 million is being allocated to the Scottish Refugee Council for the expansion of its refugee integration service.’
For more information on the Scottish Government’s funding package, see £15 million for Ukraine response and Support for Ukrainians from gov.scot
NB - the Welsh Government has issued an update about its Homes for Ukraine scheme, advising that it is also planning to become a 'supersponsor' - continuing to work with the UK Government to finalise details to enable the first matches to be made - and is working closely with councils and third sector organisations in Wales to ensure the right support is available for Ukrainians arriving in Wales.
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