The cost of the Welsh Government's "super sponsor" scheme which offered sanctuary to more than 3,000 refugees from Ukraine has been made public.
WalesOnline has obtained figures through Freedom of Information showing £5.17 million was paid to the Urdd to use one of its facilities as a welcome centre for people from Ukraine, see our feature on Ukranian families at the centre here, and a further £5.4 million spent on hotels to house Ukrainian refugees in temporary accommodation in Wales. A total of 27 hotels are understood to have been used by the Welsh government.
The Welsh Government's super sponsor scheme was launched in addition to the UK government's Homes for Ukraine scheme, which paired refugees with sponsors who gave them a home anywhere in the UK. In the Welsh Government scheme, ministers initially said they would offer up to 1,000 people from Ukraine accommodation, support and care in Wales.
The initial hope was that these refugees would be housed in welcome centres, such as the Urdd facility, initially before being moved on to medium and longer-term accommodation options. However as of January 17, data from the Home Office shows 3,028 people had fled the Russian invasion of Ukraine and arrived in Wales directly sponsored by the Welsh Government. And it has proved more difficult than anticipated to find longer-term accommodation options. See more on that here.
The welcome centres were designed to provide "wrap-around support" to help people find work and enrol children in schools as they settle into life in Wales as well as finding out if they are eligible for Universal Credit payments. Initially provided to fleeing families free of charge until they were in a position to move on to more suitable long-term housing in the community, some small charges were introduced in the New Year as people took longer than anticipated to move on. Instead of taking weeks, refugees were instead taking months, meaning additional capacity had to be sought out.
As a result, the Welsh Government turned to hotels to plug the gap in available accommodation. To date, £5,431,614 has been paid to hotels to accommodate Ukrainian refugees, although this has not been without problems.
The Welsh Government also secured accommodation at universities and holiday parks in Wales at a cost of £864,410 to date. Last week it was announced that the site of a former school in the Vale of Glamorgan will be used to temporarily house Ukrainian refugees thanks to a "significant investment" by both the council and Welsh Government.
Back in December, the Welsh Government said it was trying to reduce the numbers being put up in hotels as it worked to move people into longer-term options more quickly. At that point, almost 3,000 Ukrainian refugees had arrived in Wales as part of the super sponsor scheme with approximately 1,500 refugees accommodated in initial accommodation including 27 hotels in Wales. However, only around 500 had managed to move into longer-term accommodation in Wales.
WalesOnline heard how some refugees found staying in hotels was "isolating" and actually limited their options in terms of finding work and moving on. Looking at the unravelling crisis we heard how those trying to leave welcome centres had been caught up in a “vicious cycle” thanks to a lack of sponsors coming forward as well as a lack of homes for refugees who arrived through the super sponsor scheme trying to leave initial accommodation.
The Welsh Government's scheme was in addition to the UK government Homes for Ukraine scheme which paired refugees with sponsors.. Home Office data shows around 100,000 refugees from Ukraine have arrived into the UK by this route of whom around 3,310 came to Wales. Sponsors were offered £350 a month to thank them and help cover their costs, which has since risen to £500 a month. However some sponsors have since pulled out, leaving refugees at risk of homelessness. We spoke to one mother and daughter affected by this here.
In a freedom of information request submitted at the end of December, the Welsh Government confirmed that £12,373,973 has been spent on initial accommodation for Ukrainian refugees to date, with a further £13,000,000 committed to cover costs up to the current date.
It's understood more than 800 Ukrainian refugees arriving on the government super sponsor scheme have settled into longer term accommodation in Wales such as host arrangements or the private rental sector.
New arrivals into Wales have a three-phase approach to getting settled: an initial five-week welcome phase free of any payments followed by a second five-week support phase where they will be able to start receiving Universal Credit if they qualify and be put onto housing lists. The final move on phase sees Ukrainians leave their initial accommodation and settle into their own homes.
A spokesperson for the Welsh Government said: “We are pleased to be providing sanctuary for so many people. This has been a huge Team Wales response to a terrible conflict. This partnership approach will continue as we support people to move on into longer-term accommodation – either to hosts or into private or social housing across Wales. Anyone coming to the end of their sponsorship arrangement should approach their local authority to discuss alternative arrangements and appropriate support.
“We are working with local authorities, social landlords and partners to increase capacity of high quality accommodation options, including providing more host accommodation, to support everyone who needs a home in Wales. In 2022-23 we are investing £89m through our Transitional Accommodation Capital Programme to deliver more good quality longer term accommodation to help everyone in housing need. We are also investing over £197m in homelessness and housing support services.
“We have also taken the decision to include £40m in our Draft Budget to continue our support of people from Ukraine in Wales in 2023-24 and a further allocation of £20m in 2024-25. These allocations underline our ongoing commitment as a Nation of Sanctuary to resettle those we have already welcomed and those who are still to arrive.”
Read next:
- The Ukrainian refugees who have families ready to welcome them in Wales but are waiting on a flawed and 'embarrassing' system
We asked people in Wales if they would offer a room in their home to a refugee from Ukraine
Woman who fled war in Ukraine gets £100 tax bill from HMRC after arriving in Wales
