Community Sponsorship groups have welcomed families under the UK Resettlement Scheme (UKRS) since early 2021. This new resettlement scheme replaced the Syrian Vulnerable Person Resettlement Scheme (VPRS), Vulnerable Children’s Resettlement Scheme (VCRS) and the Gateway programme which closed having welcomed over 20,000 people to UK.
UKRS offers a broader global scope than the previous scheme, and the biggest change for Community Sponsorship groups is that number of refugees welcomed through Community Sponsorship will not be included in the number of resettlement places made available by Local Authorities. This means that neighbours and friends can join together and directly impact the number of refugees who can find a place of safety in the UK.
UKRS will give the UK Government the opportunity to respond to world events as they happen.
What does UKRS mean for Community Sponsorship groups?
- There is a strong need for four bedroom homes that can accommodate multigenerational or non-dependent adult families. We offer assistance in calculating likely benefits for these households. Please note that when securing four bedroomed properties, you will be able to claim 12 weeks of void property costs from the Home Office.
- There is a need for accessible properties. These could be properties where those with mobility needs could live, or those fully accessible to wheelchair users. It might be that a property could be adapted to make it possible for someone with accessibility needs to live there. The Home Office are able to make property adaptation costs available to property owners up to £30,000 to make this possible – this is on a case by case basis and only by prior agreement with the Home Office.
- Read our finding accommodation resource for further information on searching for a property.
- There are a high number of families where one or more members of the family have serious medical needs. If you are searching for or purchasing property, there is a demand for properties which have good access to hospitals. Read our medical needs page to find out more on what to consider.
- There is a need for single households for new adults (that is someone who has just turned 18). Supporting a single person household will be very different from supporting a family unit.
- Many families welcomed through UKRS are Arabic or Kurdish speaking, however, if you can support speakers of other languages, please make this clear in your application form.
- The Home Office have also announced a new scheme, the Afghan Citizen Resettlement Scheme. UKRS remains open and families are being allocated through this scheme.
Reset are always happy to talk through your plans and support confidentiality. Please do not hesitate to contact us if we can assist.