More visas approved for Ukrainian refugees in the Black Country and Stafford

The Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme, known as Homes for Ukraine, allows residents across the country to volunteer to house refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine.

And new data has shown there were 246 visas granted up to April 26 in the region, almost five times the figure of 51 from April 6, when local figures were first published.

Home Office figures show. that in Wolverhampton, 49 visas were issued – up from 14. In Walsall, this was 30 with fewer than five reported a month ago. In Sandwell and Dudley, it was 45 in each area – up from six. And in Stafford, it was 77 which was up from 20.

Sponsors agree to offer accommodation for at least six months through the scheme, with those receiving sponsorship allowed to live, work and study in the UK for up to three years.

Across the UK as a whole, 51,300 visas had been issued by April 27, equating to around 69 per cent of the 74,700 applications made to that date. The proportion of people waiting has dropped since April 7, when just 12,500 applications had been issued from 43,600 applications.

But the number of Ukrainians who have come to the UK through the scheme remains low, with the latest national figures showing just 11,100 had arrived by April 25.

The Government cautioned that the data is likely to contain some duplicate records, while around two per cent of sponsors could not be assigned to a local area.

Some warn that delays in processing are impacting the number of refugees able to arrive in the UK, with reports of families unable to travel due to individual members not having visas granted.

Stephen Kinnock, shadow minister for immigration, said it was “truly inspiring” to see so many British households open their doors to fleeing refugees.

But he also criticised the UK Government’s handling of the scheme, saying issues with processing visas had created a “bureaucratic nightmare”.

A spokesman for the UK Government said: "The changes the Home Office has made to streamline the visa system, including simplifying the forms and boosting staff numbers, are working and we are now processing visas as quickly as they come in, enabling thousands more Ukrainians to come through our uncapped routes."