Over 80 refugees granted visas to stay with families in Cornwall

Dozens of people across the Duchy have opened up their homes to people fleeing the conflict

Author: Matt Soanes and Sarah YeomanPublished 8th Apr 2022

Around 83 refugees have so far been granted permission to come to Cornwall under the Homes for Ukraine Sponsorship scheme.

The data has been published by the Home Office and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities.

The scheme allows Ukrainian nationals and their family members to come to the UK if they have a named sponsor.

As of April 5th, its estimated 4.3 million people have left Ukraine, fleeing the Russian invasion. A small number have been granted permission to come to the UK

Visas have been issued to local authorities based on the postcode of the sponsor's address, or of the accommodation address if the applicant is not staying with the sponsor.

The data is provisional and is likely to include some duplicate records, so may not be an exact record of the number of individuals who have been issued visas.

Around 4.3 million people have fled Ukraine since the war started in late February

Cornwall initially saw the largest response to the Homes for Ukraine scheme in the country, with over 2,000 offers.

Weekly meetings have been set up between partners across Cornwall to ensure they are doing all they can to keep the process as smooth as possible.

Speaking in March, Cllr Linda Taylor, leader of Cornwall Council, said: "More detail is now emerging on the Government’s schemes, and I am so proud that Cornwall is at the forefront of this outpouring of support for those affected by this horrendous war.

"We are concentrating on the immediate needs of how to keep people safe as they are matched with residents, and when they arrive in Cornwall.

“It is, of course, a very fluid situation, and we will continue to meet at least once a week to ensure we do all we can to help".

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