Bailiwick homes offered to Ukrainian refugees
Islanders are stepping up to offer their homes to refugees as part of the Ukrainian Refugee Sponsor Scheme.
The States announced last week that it was seeking expressions of interest from householders in Guernsey, Sark and Alderney, who believed they had the capacity to take in a single person or a family.
Advocate Quentin Bregg lives with his wife and son, and decided to register his interest on the day the States put out the announcement.
‘I simply couldn’t not – we believe Guernsey should help in anyway it can,' he said.
‘I acknowledge that not everyone has the means or the space, but we have two extra rooms on the top floor. There are all sorts of considerations, but we think if we can help then we should.'
He said on his form the family could take in a single person or a family of up to three people.
‘Language will probably be a barrier and there will be a lifestyle change, we will have to cook for five, and there’s a cost in that as well, but fortunately we have the means to do that.’
If Guernsey was to adopt the scheme, it would be separate to that which is already in place to support Ukrainian nationals with family links to the Bailiwick.
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Alderney resident John Donaldson lives with his wife and daughter and has two spare bedrooms in his home.
He registered an interest in taking in a child or a toddler due to he and his wife’s experience with raising their own children.
‘We just wanted to try and help if we could. My parents were evacuated from Alderney. We have a house and two of my daughters have moved out, so there is plenty of room,’ he said.
Although he does not have experience supporting refugees, he said watching the news during the start of Afghanistan conflict sparked his determination to help.
He said that the safety of Alderney would mean a Ukrainian person would feel secure.
‘We have three daughters which is why we said we would take in a toddler or a young child. We’re kitted out, we’ve had the kids in the house, I don’t think we will need to do too much, it seems quite straightforward.
‘It will have a knock-on effect to our way of life, but they have had it worse than us, so we can struggle for a little bit,’ said Mr Donaldson.
The number of people who have applied to take refugees and further details about how the scheme will work are expected to be released shortly.
Expressions of interest form
Guernsey’s government is still investigating how a refugee sponsor scheme could work. But islanders are able to fill in an online form to show their interest.
It asks people to state how many people or families they could accommodate, as well as contact details.
