View information on support for Ukraine on the Lancashire County Council website
Homes for Ukraine - Sponsor Portal
The government has provided funding to assist sponsors within the Homes for Ukraine Scheme. The amount to be paid is £350 per month per property (not per guest) in arrears for up to a year from the guests' arrival, so long as the sponsor continues to host under the terms of the Scheme.
Information about the funding
- the payment is optional, and sponsors must apply to receive payment by completing the application form
- under the Homes for Ukraine Scheme, sponsors are not allowed to charge their guests rent or other charges in connection with living at the property
- the payments are not subject to income tax and will not impact on council tax or benefit payments.
Application and eligibility
- this application form is designed to allow sponsors in the Homes for Ukraine Scheme to claim a £350 per month "thank you" payment for hosting guests at a property
- the form is required only to be submitted at the start of the arrangement, not each month. If one sponsorship ends and a new one commences then a new claim is required
- sponsors do not have to live in South Ribble to make a claim to South Ribble Borough Council but the property where the guests from Ukraine reside must be within South Ribble. If the property is not within South Ribble you should apply to the Council in the area in which the property is located
- those who are helping family members under the Ukraine Family Scheme are not eligible for this payment
- the form should be completed as fully as possible and submitted as soon as possible.
What happens after the form in submitted
- once the form is completed, we will undertake a number of checks to validate the claim
- if necessary, we will contact the sponsor to provide additional information
- payment will only be made after the Council has undertaken the necessary steps to validate the claim, a satisfactory visit by a local council housing officer has taken place and Lancashire County Council has confirmed the eligibility of the sponsor and guests under the Homes for Ukraine Scheme
- in some circumstances, the sponsorship scheme may be deemed to be inappropriate and, in these cases, funding will end immediately.
Payments
- once the claim is approved, payments will be made each month in arrears on or around the anniversary of the guest arriving at the property
- payments will only be made to a valid UK Bank Account via BACS transfer
- South Ribble Borough Council and Lancashire County Council will be contacting sponsors and guests at regular intervals
- if contact or lack of contact indicates that the sponsorship is not working as intended, payments will be suspended until the matter is resolved
- the council reserves the right to recover any sums paid in error for whatever reason under the scheme
- any cases of fraud identified will be treated under the Council's Fraud policy and may lead to a criminal conviction.
Notifying us of a change in circumstance
- there are requirements under the "Thank You" Payment requiring the sponsor to notify the Council of any changes in relation to the claim, such as if some or all the guests leaving the property
- you must also let us know you move address or if your bank details change
- updates should be sent via email to communities@southribble.gov.uk
- failure to provide the updates in a timely manner may lead to the recovery of any sums paid
If you have any complaints over the operation of the scheme these can be raised with the council via our complaints procedure.