Welcome to everyone, and especially to new hosts receiving this ‘Support for Ukraine community update’ from us for the first time. We send these out on a regular basis with new and relevant information for hosts in South Cambridgeshire as well as to District Councillors, community coordinators and parish council colleagues, sharing the latest updates we have in support for the Homes for Ukraine scheme.
Please do read through all the latest information shared below and check-in on the important reminders at the bottom of the newsletter. All information previously shared here can be found on our Support for Ukraine webpage – where you will also find our ‘Ukrainian Guest information hub’ which we encourage you to share with your guests. This is our equivalent of a ‘Welcome pack’ for guests who should be able to switch to view in their own language if they wish.
Campaign for more Hosts to join the Homes for Ukraine scheme
This week we launched our campaign to encourage more local people to join our current Homes for Ukraine hosts. South Cambridgeshire and the city of Cambridge has almost 500 hosts who have already been providing housing to guests. However, with the war in Ukraine continuing, it is not safe for many of the families currently living here to return to their homeland. Therefore there is an ongoing and urgent demand to continue to provide them with a safe place to stay and, where their current accommodation is no longer available, we are keen to try to offer them alternative hosting close to where they have been living.
Our campaign to find new hosts to help meet this need will make use of eye-catching messages centred around the fact that the first requirement local households need to be able to host is a spare room. Targeted television adverts will be broadcast to Sky customers in Cambridge City and South Cambridgeshire, digital indoor and outdoor signage will be used, and adverts will be placed in local newspapers. We will also have messages going out on social media platforms – Facebook or at the top of our Council Facebook page, Twitter and LinkedIn. Please do share and spread these messages so we can encourage more people to get in touch with us to explain what it is like to be a host and to see if it is a good fit for them. We would also encourage you to watch and share the supporting video content where you can hear from current hosts and guests: Homes for Ukraine: Rend’s story – YouTube Homes for Ukraine: Isobel’s story – YouTube Homes for Ukraine: Amy’s story – YouTube
We would very much appreciate any help you are able to give us with spreading the word. The following text and image below can also be shared within your local groups, friends, and family:
Support for Ukraine: It all starts with a spare room
A major campaign has been launched to appeal for more hosts in South Cambridgeshire and the city of Cambridge to support families from Ukraine. Anyone who can offer a room is being asked to text ROOM to 88802.
Between the two areas, a total of almost 500 hosts have already been providing housing to guests. However, with the war in Ukraine continuing, and with it not being safe for many families to return, there is an ongoing demand to provide them with a safe place to stay.
Anyone who can offer a spare room and warm welcome is being asked to text ROOM to 88802 so that the councils can support them through the process and match hosts to guests who have already started to settle in the local area.
Read more, and watch video stories from current hosts and guests, at www.scambs.gov.uk/support-for-ukraine-it-all-starts-with-a-spare-room
Reminder: Christmas Holiday and Food schemes
Guest families in receipt of income-related free school meals can apply to a holiday scheme for up to 16 hours per child which also include a meal and snacks daily. The Christmas Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme is being run by Cambridgeshire County Council and is funded by the Department for Education. Ukrainian and other refugee families can attend, as well as families struggling financially. Read details about the Christmas programme – click on ‘South Cambridgeshire Schemes’.
Support for groups helping Ukrainian guests
There is lots of help available for local groups who wish to support Ukrainian guests in our communities, and also places where hosts and guests can find out what is available.
For example, the organisation H.A.Y. South Cambs! How Are You? promotes positive mental health in South Cambridgeshire, shining a spotlight on all those things going on in the community that are good for our mental wellbeing. Its website features a dedicated page for Ukrainian guests and host families with details of local groups who can provide your guests with local information, cultural advice and support with English, as well as an opportunity to meet and socialise with others.
The website page also includes a map showing where different support groups are situated, which may be useful to those who have arrived in neighbouring parishes where there’s limited support in place.
If you know of any groups in your village helping or support Ukrainian guests, please encourage them to complete the Community Support for Ukraine form. We will endeavour to help them get the support they need.
Safe ‘meeting place’ for young Ukrainian guests on private Facebook page
A private Facebook group especially for young Ukrainian guests aged 13 to 19, who have arrived in South Cambridgeshire as part of the Homes for Ukraine scheme, has been set up to enable them to connect, chat with and support each other.
The page is being administered by South Cambridgeshire District Council, with an adult moderator on the group making sure it’s a safe and secure environment in which they can participate as young people together. Please note, this is a group for young Ukrainians, not adults or parents. If you have young Ukrainian guests staying with you, please encourage them to take a look at https://www.facebook.com/groups/1424735478018690
Chance for young Ukrainian guests to tread the boards
Drama can be a great release for our mental wellbeing and we would like to find out whether there are young Ukrainian guests on our area who would be interested in joining Drama Classes?
The classes are likely to take place at Cottenham in the new year and would be for children/teenagers of 9 to 15 years old may. They would run on Thursdays in the first and third week of each month, from 3:45pm – 5:15pm. The suggested dates being considered are 5 and 19 January, 2 and 16 February, 2 and 16 March, 30 April, 4 and 18 May, and 1 and 15 June.
They will start with a physical warm-up as a group, followed by drama activities and games tailored to follow what the group enjoys most, encouraging different ways of communication and entertainment and help for hidden talents to shine.
If your young guests would like to participate in such a scheme, please ask them to register their interest by emailing Sheila Gosling on sheeba3434@hotmail.com
More cycles needed for popular bike scheme
OWL Bikes, one of the three charities the Council has partnered with for our ‘free bikes for Ukrainians’ scheme, has put out a call for donations of more children’s bikes. The scheme has proved extremely popular and everyone is working hard to speed up the supply of cycles.
Donations of more bicycles will be gratefully received by all three charities – Owl Bikes , TAG Bikes and Camtrust..
To find out more about the scheme, see the Local Travel Support section of our Ukrainian Guest Information Hub. Hosts can apply on behalf of their guests and applications for bikes can be made online at https://bit.ly/3BhXHBB and the Council will put the applicant in touch with their supplier so they can arrange to collect their bicycle. If bikes are no longer needed, they can be returned to the supplier.
Visit Cambridge University Botanic Gardens for free
Don’t forget that The Cambridge University Botanic Garden is providing free admission to the Botanic Garden for Ukrainian refugees living in South Cambridgeshire. The Garden offers a beautiful green space in the centre of Cambridge to wander around and enjoy, whatever the weather.
Free tickets are available to those over the age of 16 (children aged 16 and under are already admitted free of charge). Host families will need to pay the standard garden admission fee if they visit with their guests. Guests can now apply for their tickets by filling out the application form. The tickets will be offered one per person and will be distributed weekly via post.
IMPORTANT REMINDERS
Please note that all hosts will receive information from us relating to DBS checks, accommodation checks, £350 monthly host and £350 one-off guest payments; plus the additional ‘opt-in’ payments of £150 per month to hosts on top of the £350 payments. The opt-in payment is specifically from South Cambridgeshire District Council for hosts in the district in recognition of the extra costs, particularly rising energy bills, currently being experienced by many households and impacting those hosting guests in their home. For any questions not covered in this e-newsletter or on our Support for Ukraine webpages, please email duty.communities@scambs.gov.uk
Thank you for taking the time to read this latest update. We hope that it is useful for you and your guests, and we thank you for your continued support.
Bill
Bill Handley
Lead Cabinet Member for Communities
South Cambridgeshire District Council