Hosts, councils and the Ukrainians they house will see immediate financial losses after ministers announced steep reductions to the Homes for Ukraine scheme, a change that threatens some placements. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government set out the details in a written statement on 15 September, saying the new rates take effect on 1 January 2027.
Under the revisions, the monthly "thank you" payment that hosts receive will be cut from £350 to £100. Councils’ per-arrival funding will fall from £5,900 to £3,300. The government says the scheme has provided £1.81bn to date and that Homes for Ukraine has supported 181,000 of the 234,000 Ukrainians who have arrived in the UK since Russia’s invasion in February 2022.
The announcement has prompted urgent concern from people in the programme. Tetiana, who is 73 and has been hosted for two years and four months, said she was devastated after hosts received the letter. “I feel that this financial change could impact on my host’s ability to host me. If the hosting comes to an end, I don’t know where I will go and how I can start again. I can’t work because of my age and because I have mobility problems. I fled from Kharkiv, which is close to the Russia frontline, so I can’t go back to Ukraine. I don’t know what I will do. I’m at a loss about what my options will be. This change has created a lot of uncertainty for me. I don’t know how I would be able to pay rent if hosting finishes for me.”
Hosts warn the cut will strain household budgets and prompt some to withdraw from sponsoring refugees. A host in Greenwich described the change as devastating after losing a job, adding that the payments had become "an absolute lifeline." Nataliya Rumyanetseva, who is hosting her mother, argued that newly arrived Ukrainians need time to recover and learn English, saying, “When refugees arrive here from Ukraine, they are shellshocked and need time to adapt and learn the language. If hosting changes to become a more commercial rental arrangement, I think that’s cruel.”
Ministers have suggested hosts could convert to landlord status and charge rent, an option several hosts say clashes with how the scheme was presented when they volunteered. A Cardiff host criticised the move as a betrayal, saying the government had "seen an easy way to claw money back" from people who opened their homes in good faith.
With the change not due until January 2027, councils, hosts and refugees now face months of uncertainty as they weigh whether to remain in the programme, move to tenancy agreements or look for alternative accommodation. The Home Office has been approached for comment.
