A Ukrainian family left their life behind to escape the war before making the gruelling journey to Cheshire.
Olesja Petriv’s niece and nephew started school in Runcorn today, a week after escaping war in Ukraine. Ten-year-old Sviatoslav and eight-year-old Sofia fled their home with their mother, Maria, but their journey has been hindered and confounded by bureaucracy, CheshireLive reports.
Olesja's family were among the first to flee the war, but it still took them 24 hours to cross the border into Romania. Olesja said: "It was such a quick decision. Get up, take the clothes, take whatever you can and just leave."
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Maria and her children made their way across Europe, they met Olesja in Lyon, France, before travelling up together to Calais. Despite looking like they would receive a six-month visa and continue the documentation in the UK, they were then told Maria is by law 'not a close family member' and so would not be allowed in.
The border officer asked if the family could stay in France, to which Olesja said: “Why should they go there if we have a house and a room where we can accommodate her? Why should she have to stay in a country where she doesn’t know anyone?” The family spent two nights in Calais, and on the third day, March 4, Maria could finally apply for a visa as the Home Office announced that extended family members would be eligible for the ‘Ukraine Scheme’.
The family stayed in Paris with volunteers who had offered a spare room to refugees and Maria was notified that her travel document was ready on March 8. The family arrived in the UK that night with a visa that has been issued for three months.
But, even now that the family is in the UK, Olesja said her sister is tangled in bureaucratic red tape as delays continue to hinder her progress. Olesja said the government is “really confusing people”, adding: “There is lots of explanation that needs to be done for the sponsors and the people applying, because it’s going to be a mess, it’s going to be a big mess.”
She told CheshireLive: “Sponsors need to understand that they need to help these people, not just with accommodation, but they will need to feed these people, they will need to organise all the schools, they will have to help with the documents. It’s a really big effort, we are spending hours and hours calling and sorting all this organisation, finding out about documents, schools - it takes time. It’s not so easy and straightforward. There are going to be around 500,000 people, mainly mums and kids.
“It’s good that there are helpful people who know the law and know what to do, but what if people just want to provide a room and they don’t want to spend time helping these people apply for things. It’s going to be a hard time. The Home Office thinks that these people are providing a room, they have treated the problem and they don’t need to give these people help."
In Ukraine, children can be left alone while their parents work full-time, but in the UK there is a law against leaving children alone. Olesja said this means a lot of mums with children will be unable to work and unable to afford nursery costs.
She added: "This visa doesn’t allow you to apply for a council house, but it does allow you to apply for other benefits; Job Seeker’s Allowance, Child Benefit, and Job Seeker’s Allowance is just for sixth months. After that it goes to Universal Credit, and that is calculated as your previous tax rate. These people have never paid taxes, so they are not going to get any money. They’ll only get Child Benefit. How are you going to live on £85 per month?
“There are so many ridiculous things that are not properly managed. Germany are taking lots of refugees but they are providing everything for them. People really feel sorry for Ukraine, they want to help, and it looks like all you have to do as a sponsor is provide a room. It says on the website that you don’t have to provide food.
"I’m sorry, if you have a single mum at home with a little baby, are you not going to feed her? You will. But for how long? To take on your shoulder another family, it costs money. They [the government] should be explaining how it’s going to be, and how it’s going to be after six months. Time is going so quick - it’s almost since the war started in Ukraine. For me it feels like one day."
A spokesperson for the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities said: "Ukrainian guests will have full and unrestricted access to benefits, healthcare, employment and other support in the UK. There are organisations who will be able to offer support on things like access to benefits, registering with a GP, school placements etc.
"We will provide guidance with links to such organisations so sponsors can help to sign-post them. Sponsors will receive a support pack with guidance. We are asking local councils to provide wrap-around support for guests, and are providing new funding for councils to do so." The Home Office was approached for comment.
