In the UK as a whole in 2023, (the latest statistics) 102,283 people were offered a safe and legal (humanitarian) route to come to, or remain in, the UK; almost half were on Ukraine schemes.
Those with visas are free to enter the UK and live and work where they want. Not everyone entering the UK through the Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme (including those sponsored by the Scottish Government) will need accommodation provided to them. The Scottish Government does not collect data on Ukrainians coming into Scotland other than through Welcome accommodation.
Welcome accommodation in Scotland for those who have had to flee Ukraine comes in a range of types from hotels, apartments, aparthotels and, previously, cabins onboard M/S Victoria and M/S Ambition. The contract for the M/S Ambition ended on 31st March 2023.
The number of welcome rooms/accommodation in Scotland has declined since last year. In the latest statistics released about the scheme, there were around 1,315 welcome accommodation rooms booked across Scotland, with around 185 of these rooms unoccupied.
Displaced children from Ukraine have been attending schools in Scotland, this number has also decreased slightly. In the nation as a whole, 2839, and in Orkney, 7 – as at 26 January 2024. Two local authorities did not submit reports for January 2024, Orkney and East Renfrewshire, so this number was carried over.
The Ukraine Humanitarian Schemes, allow those who have lived in Ukraine, and their family members, to apply to stay in the UK for up to three years. In the UK Humanitarian Response Insight Survey 52% of adults intend to live in the UK most of the time even when they feel it is safe to return to Ukraine. This is mostly for employment opportunities and tend to be younger working age people.
The UK’s Department for Levelling up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) reported that Scotland has received 47,113 visa applications through the UK ‘Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme’, which includes those sponsored by the Scottish Government (Super Sponsor Scheme) and by Individual Sponsors as at 23 January 2024, with 39,632 visas issued.
As at 31st December 2023 Homes for Ukraine, not including Super Sponsors, (arrivals) numbered 31 in Orkney. For Scotland as a whole there were 26,416 Homes for Ukraine arrivals: 5,665 (Homes for Ukraine), and 20,751 ( Scottish Government Sponsored Scheme).
As of 23rd January 24, a total of 26,555 displaced people from Ukraine have arrived in the UK on a visa sponsored either by an individual Scottish sponsor or sponsored by the Scottish Government.
The Scottish Government provided £3.2 million in 2023-24 to support staffing of local authority resettlement teams. Housing is a power devolved to local authorities. This was the same amount as the previous year.
The Scottish Government received £30 million from the UK-wide allocation of £150 million to support Ukrainians into their own homes and prevent homelessness. This was passed on in full to local authorities.
In February 2022 Orkney saw possibly its largest peace vigil in the islands on the steps of St Magnus Cathedral in support of the people of Ukraine.
Fiona Grahame
Categories: Local News
