Further funding available for Bath and North East Somerset Ukrainian sponsors
The new total is seen as helping with the rising cost of bills.
People who provide accommodation for over six months for Ukrainian refugees in Bath and North East Somerset will get a further ÂŁ100 a month of Government money.
This is on top of the ÂŁ350, with the further money being seen as helping the rising cost of living.
Funding from the central government Homes for Ukraine scheme is being used to.
So far have seen more than 400 Ukrainian guests welcomed into our area.
Councillor Dine Romero, cabinet member for Children, Young People and Communities, said: “In general, the sponsorship arrangements have worked well and I would like to give a big thank you to all our sponsors. However, many sponsors only signed-up initially for a six-month period and so it makes sense to do everything we can to keep these arrangements going using the Government funding.
“We have huge pressures on housing in our area, whether that is social housing, private rented accommodation or temporary accommodation, so it is in everyone’s interests to support the continuation of sponsorship accommodation wherever possible. We also want to avoid the disruption that ending a sponsorship can bring, including to education and access to other local services.
“The funding for the top-up will come from the central government Homes for Ukraine grant, which is ringfenced to support the programme. However, I have also written to Secretary of State Michael Gove asking for urgent clarification about the government’s plans for the level of these thank you payments, particularly as the £350 level set nationally was put in place before the recent increases in inflation and particularly energy costs.”