Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle barriers to (a) accommodation, (b) employment and (c) education for people on Ukraine scheme visas unable to (i) enter into contracts and (ii) start courses beyond their existing visa.

Ukrainians in the UK under the Ukraine schemes will be able to apply for permission to remain in the UK through the Ukraine Permission Extension (UPE) scheme due to open in early 2025. UPE will provide an additional 18 months’ permission, and will provide the same rights and entitlements to access work, benefits, healthcare and education as the existing schemes.

The STEP-Ukraine programme continues to provide access to English language courses and employment support for up to 12,500 Ukrainians. Ukrainians can access the Adult Education Offer through their Local Authorities (LAs) which provide ESOL classes. People on Ukraine scheme visas seeking to start educational courses which extend beyond their visas will likely be eligible for a further extension under UPE to complete the course.

Local authorities continue to receive a tariff of £5,900 per Ukrainian arrival. This is un-ringfenced, which allows councils to use the funding to support households as best suits the local area, including measures to support access to accommodation and education.