Dear friends
We are writing this at the end of a remarkable week, during which we have grieved and reflected upon the passing of an utterly remarkable and much loved woman – Elizabeth, our Queen for as long as most of us can remember. It has been reassuring to be in Salisbury for much of that time and to meet with friends and colleagues as well as to continue with our daily lives, not least the running of the Hub.
Many of us met last Saturday both to thank Host families; but also to talk about next steps as many Ukrainian families begin to think about what they will do at the end of the official six month stay with Hosts. We had much very helpful and constructive advice from Sam at Connells Estate Agents; but we also had some very interesting and knowledgeable questions from the hosts who were in the room. It made us wonder whether it could be helpful to have a working group, applying itself to the question of accommodation and legal and financial issues around this. If anyone would be interested in assisting us, this would be very much appreciated. For almost everyone, it’s virgin territory and both the Government and Wiltshire Council are mulling about how best to support. Other cities and counties are doing different things, so there is plenty of wiggle room!!
Please can we remind you that on Tuesday evening (20th September) from 7pm, we will be running part II of this discussion. We have invited all Ukrainian families to join us at the Methodist Church to hear from: Wiltshire Council, Connells and the Job Centre. There will be presentations in English and Ukrainian followed by questions and discussion. If it wasn’t clear before, please note that we would be very pleased to see host families there too! If you plan to come, could you please let us know tomorrow, so that we can manage the seating.
We cannot livestream the evening but we are hoping to record it for anyone who is not able to get to the church on time.
We have quite a lot of paperwork and background information around this topic but we will marshall it after Tuesday evening and send it out.
As part of this theme – hosting, housing and rentals, can I send out another APPEAL PLEASE for HOSTS in SALISBURY!!! We really would appreciate people coming forward with one room or two (or more) for Ukrainians needing to relocate. This can be a short-term respite offer, if you do not wish to do it for 6 months.
If you know other people in your road or community who are thinking about this, please do encourage them to write to us.
We would be very happy to help with the visa applications and the registration with the Government.
I am attaching the update as usual, together with quite a few information sheets and flyers.
From next month, we plan to send out monthly updates, although we shall continue to put things on the Whatsapp group and send individual mailshots if there is something you need to see urgently.
Contents of the Newsletter:
- Update from Refugees at Home
- Support for Living Costs
- Orthodox Services at the Hub
- Transport (so sorry everyone)
- Dates for your Diaries
- Hosting request and linking up with Shaftesbury Hub
- Offers for younger members
- Offers for older members
- Offers for everyone – Language classes
Link to the Newsletter
With warmest wishes
All the team at the Hub