Experiences of Homes for Ukraine scheme sponsors, UK: 7 to 14 July 2022

• Almost three-quarters (74%) of respondents to the Homes for Ukraine Sponsor Survey were providing accommodation at the time of the survey, 7 to 14 July 2022.

• There was variation in how long current sponsors wanted the hosting arrangements to last: 19% intended to provide accommodation for the initially agreed period of six months, while just under one-quarter (23%) intended to provide accommodation for longer than 12 months.

• Of those who planned to provide accommodation for between 6 and 12 months, 7 in 10 (70%) said continued £350 monthly payments would encourage them to host for longer.

• Around one-fifth (21%) of current or previous sponsors reported that the rising cost of living affected their ability to provide support on the scheme "quite a lot"; a further 9% said "very much".

• Almost all current or previous sponsors (99%) said they regularly provided some form of support beyond accommodation; the most reported form of support was showing guests around their new surroundings (92%).

• Among current or previous sponsors who reported challenges of hosting, the most reported were helping guests to apply for any benefits (53%) and to access public services (46%).

Support for sponsors and Ukrainians

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has produced information and guidance for Homes for Ukraine scheme sponsors.

The British Red Cross supports people from Ukraine who are in the UK. The Help for Ukrainian nationals page provides more information about services and support available.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has produced a guide for Ukrainians arriving in the UK.

In March 2022, the UK government launched the Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme (Homes for Ukraine). The scheme allows Ukrainian nationals and their family members to come to the UK if they have a named sponsor who can provide suitable accommodation.

The Homes for Ukraine Sponsor Survey aims to understand the experiences and intentions of all those registered as sponsors with the scheme. This includes those currently providing accommodation, those who have provided accommodation in the past and those who intend to provide accommodation in future.

The data collected from 7 to 14 July 2022 show that almost three-quarters (74%) of respondents were providing accommodation at the time of the survey. A further 4% had provided accommodation previously but guests had moved out.

Almost one-fifth (18%) said they had not provided accommodation but had guests due to move in and a further 3% said they had not provided accommodation but planned to in the future.

One-third (33%) of those with current or previous guests reported meeting their guests directly through social media. Other commonly reported routes included through a matching service (23%) and having been recently introduced by a friend, neighbour or colleague (21%).

Characteristics of current and previous sponsors

Of registered sponsors who were providing accommodation at the time of the survey, or who had done so in the past, more than two in five (43%) were working full-time. Just over one-fifth (21%) were retired (Figure 1). These data represent only registered sponsors and do not include other individuals who may be living in the household alongside guests.

Most registered sponsors with current or previous guests were female (56%), compared with 43% who were male.

Almost half (48%) of registered sponsors with current or previous guests were aged 50 to 69 years, followed by nearly two in five (39%) aged 30 to 49 years (Figure 2).

Characteristics of the guest accommodation

The majority (92%) of current or previous sponsors reported that the accommodation provided to guests was their own home. In a minority of cases the guest accommodation was another property owned by the sponsor (7%) or another property the sponsor did not own (2%).

One-third (33%) of current or previous sponsors reported that non-guest children (for example, their own children) were living in the guest accommodation at the same time as their Ukrainian guests.

Intentions of current sponsors

Current sponsors were asked how long they wanted the existing hosting arrangements to last. There was variation in responses (Figure 3). Almost one in five (19%) intended to provide accommodation for six months (the minimum length of time for which sponsors were asked to offer accommodation under the scheme). A minority (6%) wanted the arrangements to last less than six months. Just under one-quarter (23%) intended to provide accommodation for longer than 12 months.

Of current or previous sponsors, 1 in 10 (10%) reported that they were providing short-term emergency accommodation for guests, while the majority said they were providing longer-term accommodation until guests found an alternative (65%). Around one-fifth (19%) said they were providing more permanent accommodation.

Those who intended to provide accommodation for between 6 and 12 months were asked what would encourage them to continue hosting beyond 12 months. The majority (70%) said continued £350 monthly payments. Almost 4 in 10 (38%) said more support for being a sponsor, in general, would encourage them to host for longer.

Motivations of all sponsors

When asked what originally encouraged them to apply for the scheme, a minority (10%) of all sponsors selected the £350 monthly payments as a motivation [note 1].

The most reported motivation for applying, by 94% of sponsors, was to help people fleeing a war zone. Around half of sponsors (51%) were motivated by having the space in their house to meet this need.

Notes:

1. 'All sponsors' includes sponsors who were currently hosting, had hosted, had guests due to move in, or planned to host in future.

Almost all current or previous sponsors (99%) said they regularly provided some form of support beyond accommodation. The most reported form of support was showing guests around their new surroundings (92%). Helping guests settle into the community and taking them to appointments were both reported by 84% of current or previous sponsors (Figure 4).

Current and previous sponsors were asked whether they had supported guests with a range of administrative tasks. The majority (93%) had helped their guests set up services such as a phone or bank account. Similar proportions had helped guests to register with healthcare providers (91%) and apply for their £200 grant (90%).

Costs of hosting

Almost all current or previous sponsors (99%) said they had incurred additional costs as a result of hosting. Most (91%) reported additional utility costs (such as water, gas and electricity). Just over 7 in 10 (73%) reported additional food costs and a similar proportion (71%) reported costs relating to provision of bedding and toiletries for guests.

A minority (10%) of current or previous sponsors said that guests contributed financially to them or the household. The most reported form of contribution was towards food or groceries, reported by 9% of all current or previous sponsors.

Around one-fifth (21%) of current or previous sponsors reported that the rising cost of living affected their ability to provide support on the scheme "quite a lot". A further 9% said it affected their ability to provide support "very much".

Of current sponsors who said they wanted the hosting arrangements to last six months or less, just under one-quarter (23%) said they did not plan to continue because of rising costs of living or because they could no longer afford to. The most reported reason for not wanting to continue beyond six months was having only intended to provide short-term accommodation (58%).

Challenges of hosting and support required

Among current or previous sponsors who reported challenges of hosting, the most reported were helping guests to apply for any benefits (53%) and to access public services (46%) (Figure 5).

All sponsors were asked what support they thought would be useful for sponsors or hosts [note 1]. Almost 6 in 10 (58%) said that tips and advice about providing support and dealing with challenges would be useful. Over half (53%) said better signposting to available information and guidance, and half (50%) said information about Ukraine and Ukrainian culture.

Smaller proportions of respondents felt it would be helpful to have more contact with guests prior to their arrival (for example, by phone or online) (29%), or help with arranging initial welcome activities (22%).

Notes:

1. 'All sponsors' includes sponsors who were currently hosting, had hosted, had guests due to move in, or planned to host in future.

Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme

The Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme (Homes for Ukraine) allows Ukrainian nationals and their family members to come to the UK if they have a named sponsor (in Wales and Scotland this includes those sponsored directly by the Welsh Government or Scottish Government). 

Sponsor

Within this bulletin, the term "sponsor" refers to adults registered with the Homes for Ukraine scheme. Sponsors may or may not have provided accommodation.

Guest

Within this bulletin, the term "guest" refers to the Ukrainian nationals and their families who have arrived in the UK and are currently staying in accommodation provided under the Homes for Ukraine scheme.

Survey estimates

The data were collected between 7 and 14 July 2022. All adults (aged 18 years and over) who were registered with the Homes for Ukraine scheme in the UK on 7 July 2022 were invited to take part in the survey via email.

The achieved sample consists of 17,702 respondents. The response rate for this survey was 41%.

Percentages in this bulletin are based on weighted counts that are representative of the population of adults (aged 18 years and over) who were registered with the Homes for Ukraine scheme in the UK on 7 July 2022. They are adjusted to address age and sex bias in response rates. As with all surveys, these estimates have an associated margin of error.

The survey was conducted online via Smart Survey. Individuals were sent an email with a unique access code (UAC) inviting them to complete the survey, and all answers were self-reported. In a small number of cases (less than 0.2%) the survey was completed by telephone with an ONS telephone operator.

The statistics presented in this bulletin are Experimental Statistics and contain uncertainty; therefore, care needs to be taken when interpreting them.

Collaboration

The survey was compiled rapidly to inform the UK's response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent evacuation of individuals fleeing Ukraine, and to aid local and national emergency response planning.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) conducted this survey in collaboration with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC).

The main strengths of the Homes for Ukraine Sponsor Survey include:

• the timely production of data and statistics that can respond quickly to changes, aiding local and national emergency response planning
• quality assurance procedures that are undertaken throughout the analysis stages to minimise the risk of error
• confidence intervals that are available in the associated datasets as an assessment of quality

The main limitations of the Homes for Ukraine Sponsor Survey include:

• the Experimental Statistics presented in this bulletin contain uncertainty; as with all survey data based on a sample, there is an element of uncertainty as they are susceptible to respondent error and bias
• the survey was designed in a relatively simple way to encourage response, meaning that not all areas of interest could be covered in depth
• while the sample is weighted to adjust for age and sex bias in response rates it is not adjusted for regional bias, because complete population data were not available to do so