As the tragic situation in Ukraine continues to evolve I know we want to support the victims of the conflict.
Residents across North West Norfolk have been in touch to offer their support to our neighbours across Europe, as well to find out how to secure sanctuary for friends and family in the UK.
Here you will find a list of resources to help with these questions. Please contact my office if you need any further assistance.
If you are affected by the conflict
The government’s Ukraine Family Scheme has been set up to help people come to the UK if they are family members of British nationals or family members of people settled in the UK. You can apply for a visa on the GOV.UK website.
If you have lost contact with family members in Ukraine, you can email findyour_family@redcross.org.uk, giving your full name and telephone number for help in finding them. Please keep trying to contact them in the meantime as the loss of contact is often temporary. This service is for finding people, it is not for help with transporting people out of Ukraine.
The government’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office website has lots of information about the Ukraine conflict.
If you want to help
The Homes for Ukraine scheme will allow individuals, charities, community groups and businesses in the UK to bring Ukrainians to safety – including those with no family ties to the UK.
The government has launched a webpage for sponsors to express their interest, ahead of the scheme opening for applications this Friday.
Show your interest on the Homes for Ukraine webpage
Phase One of the scheme will allow sponsors in the UK to nominate a named Ukrainian or a named Ukrainian family to stay with them in their home or in a separate property.
For frequently asked questions about the scheme please visit here
To help people with food, shelter, and other supplies, the most efficient way to provide support is through monetary donations that go directly to help provide food, aid, healthcare facilities, and repair vital community infrastructure directly in Ukraine.
The Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) has established a dedicated appeal and it is a national organisation working on behalf of 15 large charities to co-ordinate donations.
There are many smaller appeals. If you do decide to donate to a smaller charity, protect your donation by checking the charity first at Charity Checker.
If you would like to donate goods, please check local media and social media because the collections change all the time – different charities will organise their own collections, which may include different lists of goods that they’re looking for.
A good place to start is the charity Access. They work with migrants in this area and their Facebook page will tell you when and where they are collecting and what items they are looking for.
You can also make other offers of help – housing, jobs, settling in or specialist services – through the GOV.UK help refugees page. You need to choose East of England, then Norfolk.
