Council to buy more homes for refugees

A council is set to buy more homes to support Ukrainian and Afghan refugees.

Wokingham Borough Council has £70,000 left of a £3.1m grant from central government it must spend by March to avoid having to return it.

Council leaders have agreed to buy at least one more property, adding to the 17 it already has.

Leader of the council Stephen Conway said it was "immensely important" to support people from both areas of conflict.

He added the plans also had long-term benefits because the properties would be returned to Wokingham's general housing stock once the families no longer needed them.

Monday marked the third anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, whilst August will be four years since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan.

An executive report said there was an "immediate" housing need for an Afghan family with four children, currently living in "very costly temporary accommodation".

Since the launch of the Homes for Ukraine Scheme in March 2022, Wokingham has welcomed nearly 500 Ukrainian refugees, most of them women and children.

The initiative involved providing a £200 payment to each refugee arriving under the scheme, and assigning various support workers for the families.

It was the largest arrival of refugees the borough had ever seen.

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