News

A new website to help support Ukrainian refugees 04/04/2022

Team Devon has launched a new website to help support Ukrainian refugees, with all the latest guidance and information.

Devon’s local authorities are supporting local residents who want to provide sanctuary to the Ukrainian refugees who have been forced to flee their homes. The new website now hosts the latest guidance and information as it becomes available.

Team Devon, including the Devon Association of Local Councils, pledged support to Ukraine and condemned Russia’s actions when it first invaded. The authorities are now giving particular support to families in Devon whose relatives in Ukraine are fleeing the conflict, as well as to households who volunteer to accommodate refugees.

The councils’ support of Ukraine follows their previous commitment, alongside health and voluntary sector partners and local communities, to help Syrian families and those fleeing conflict in Afghanistan.

Devon County Council is receiving the latest information from the government on the sponsors who have registered, and DBS checks on the sponsor families are being carried out, and Devon’s district authorities are using a common approach to assess each sponsor’s accommodation, which will help better assess any potential safeguarding risks.

Cllr John Hart, Leader of Devon County Council and Chair of the Team Devon partnership, says: “We are deeply concerned for those desperate people escaping conflict in Ukraine in huge numbers. We agreed that we have a duty to do what we can in Devon to support families fleeing Ukraine to join their family members here in the UK”


More information

All our guidance about how councils can help Ukraine, along with a briefing from NALC on the situation, can be found here.