Offer to share your home with a refugee

If you plan to share your home with refugees the accommodation must:

• be safe
• be heated
• be free from health hazards
• give your guests adequate access to bathroom and kitchen facilities

It may affect your tenancy agreement if you live in rented accommodation and want to offer your home to refugees.

You will need your landlord’s permission before you welcome guests under the Homes for Ukraine scheme.

Our environmental health officers will make a short visit to your house to perform a housing check. They will contact you beforehand to agree a convenient time – there is no need to call us.

Following the housing check, you may need to make some changes your home, especially if you haven’t lived with young children for some time.

For example:

• installing more smoke alarms
• storing medicines and chemicals safely
• ensuring outside spaces and sheds are secure

Further advice about making your home safe is available from:

• Rospa
• Bucks Fire

Energy advice is available from the National Energy Foundation. Their Better Homes Better Health scheme gives practical advice and information about access grants.

Your Liaison Officer will support you while the refugees settle into your home.

We know from other refugee programmes that they will be very grateful for a safe haven. However, refugees will arrive with various needs and may have been through a very traumatic experience.

We encourage you to take things slowly for the first 2 weeks so they can adjust to their new surroundings.

Mental health support will also be critical and key contacts/telephone numbers are included in the Welcome Pack.