Martyn Bromley is all too familiar with the devastation facing the people of Ukraine every day. His daughter Iulia is in Kharkiv in the north east of the country, where much of life goes on underground.
After her home was damaged by shelling she fled to live with her boyfriend in the stricken city. Martyn, who lives in Penarth, says his daughter - at just 23 years old - is “a true hero”.
Iulia (pronounced Julia) is an ambulance worker and believes she can stay behind in Kharkiv and make a significant contribution to defending her land. But unlike Iulia, more than four million Ukrainian people have now fled their homes, and others are desperate to do the same. That’s where Martyn feels he can help too.
Read more: Flags in support of Ukraine torn down in small Welsh village and locals branded 'Nazi sympathisers'
Martyn isn’t alone. There are tens of thousands like him across Britain who have decided they can take in one or more refugees from Ukraine, but many say they and the refugees they are trying to help are being let down by a flawed system.
As of March 30 just 2,700 visas have been granted to Ukrainians desperate to come to the UK under the Homes for Ukraine scheme, despite 28,300 applications to that point. Martyn and others like him have told WalesOnline that this staggeringly slow process is due to too much red tape, hurdles at every corner, and a sheer lack of perspective from the Home Office. You can read more of our politics coverage by subscribing to our daily Wales Matters newsletter here.
He is one of a growing group in Penarth and Cardiff who submitted visa applications for Ukrainian refugees on March 18 when the scheme went live. The community group has worked in conjunction in the hope they can bring in all of the 30 applicants. As of Thursday, March 31, just one refugee has arrived.
Heartbreakingly, many generous families across Wales who wish to take in refugees have told WalesOnline that they are now advising Ukrainians to look elsewhere across Europe. “One person from the group has managed to take in a refugee and that is because she has gone herself to get her,” Martyn said, speaking from Foxy’s Deli in Penarth town centre which owner Sian Fox has offered as a “hub” for the town’s efforts to house those fleeing the war.
Martyn is hoping to take in a woman and her mother. “We’re on the phone to them every day. They were on the phone constantly asking what certain things meant in the visa applications,” he said. “They are literally in a hostel somewhere trying to get a decent internet connection doing these forms on a mobile phone.”
After they submitted the forms almost two weeks ago, those Martyn is trying to help have heard nothing. It is a story of frustration repeated again and again.
“When the war broke out, like many, I just wanted to help in any way I could,” Sian said. “The first thing I thought was: ‘Okay, I know I can give someone a room.’ Then I thought because the deli is so popular and a bit of a community hub in Penarth, we could use it as a hub for people wanting to welcome refugees into their homes or to give donations.
“So we set up the group and we have about 20 houses now along with translators, drivers, people who will go to Poland themselves to pick refugees up. It’s been an amazing response - but now of course we need to get these people here.
“We are talking to a woman and a child because we have the one room with a bathroom for them. They’re in a village outside of Kiev at the moment while her husband is involved in the war.
“We’re waiting for the government to approve the applications but we’ve had nothing, and we’re now on day 12. The embarrassing thing is that we’ve launched ourselves as this super sponsor, and clearly we’re not.”
The Home Office says it is moving “as quickly as possible” to accommodate refugees, and said it had “streamlined its process”. The statistics though make for bleak reading.
Of the four million to have fled, more than 2.2 million have gone to Poland, more than 600,000 are in Romania, 400,000 are thought to be in Moldova, and more than 250,000 in Germany. As of March 29 - the latest available data - 22,800 Ukraine family visas had been issued for the UK and 2,700 Ukrainian sponsorship visas had been issued through the Homes for Ukraine scheme - 10.5% of the total number of applicants through the scheme.
Sue Gulwell, from Caerphilly, met the 45-year-old Ukrainian woman and her 12-year-old son she hopes to take in on Facebook. She speaks with them every day, and feels connected to them. She says she is embarrassed and saddened to now be advising them to look elsewhere.
“It’s a joke, it really is,” the mother of two boys said. Her youngest has moved into his brother’s bedroom in the hope they can soon accommodate their new Ukrainian friends.
“I filled out the forms on behalf of both of them and it took me four hours. I did it in the comfort of my own home with good wifi and it took me that long. How does the government expect someone in a warzone to do it?
“I’m part of a Facebook group for the region trying to get families settled here. If there is a large refugee family, for example, we’re trying to get two homes close together that can take them in. Essentially we’re a community group doing what the government should be doing.
“I talk to her in Ukraine every day and I can hear the air raid sirens sometimes going off in the background. They often have to lie on the floor for hours on end.
“I have found an awful lot in common with her. I love speaking with her. She is a grateful and lovely person and as a family we really want to help them.
“It’s now been 12 days. The website went live on March 18 and we did the forms together on that day. It was extremely complicated.
“One example is that she had to show evidence that they were living in the Ukraine before January 1. When you’re fleeing your home in a war you’re probably not thinking about picking up an old utility bill. We’ve received nothing since we sent the application other than an acknowledgement email on March 18 which looked like a generic response to any standard visa application.
“She’s now talking about going to Germany and I wouldn’t blame them at all. I’ve told them that at the end of the day they are in a war and need to get out. I’d really want to help them but I mostly want them to be safe as quickly as possible.” A woman in the Vale of Glamorgan has just snapped up a new home and is throwing the doors open to a Ukrainian mum and her son. You can read about that here.
Sian Laius, who lives in Cardiff Bay, is ready to take in a family of four from Lviv. She said: “There are barriers at every turn in this whole process. After not hearing anything I contacted my local MP who in fairness has done his best, and told me there was a hold up with it due to DBS checks, which was completely new to me.
“One of my main gripes is the relative risk factors in this whole saga. The government is essentially more concerned with me potentially being a criminal or whatever, rather than the risk to these people in Ukraine.
“Wouldn’t it be better to get these people to the UK, and then check if I’m suitable? And if they decide I’m not, let them be looked after by someone who is. It’s a totally bizarre situation.
“The message that we would get these people into the country in a matter of days is just spurious. The UK government led people to believe they were welcoming of these people, but they are not.”
A spokeswoman for the Home Office said: “We are moving as quickly as possible to ensure that those fleeing Ukraine can find safety in the UK through the Ukraine Family Scheme and Homes for Ukraine.
“We have streamlined the process so valid passport holders do not have to attend in-person appointments before arriving in the UK, simplified our forms and boosted caseworker numbers, while ensuring vital security checks are carried out.
“We continue to speed up visa processing across both schemes, with 25,500 visa issued in the last three weeks alone and thousands more expected to come through these uncapped routes.”
