There are ‘no downsides’ to hosting Ukrainian refugees, this caller insists
26 February 2023, 13:49
This caller says hosting a Ukrainian family is 'exceptional'
This caller, who has been hosting a Ukrainian family since last year, says it’s been “exceptionally positive”.
In a conversation with David Lammy, Rebecca from Marlow shared her experience of opening her home to refugees and spoke glowingly of her town’s positive and welcoming response to them.
David reminded listeners that Marlow is a small town, so a population of 300 refugees is a “significant” number.
Rebecca said the town has seen “huge support” from employers in the area, such as the chef Tom Kerridge, who she says has “really helped” by giving Ukrainian refugees work in his kitchens.
Rebecca then said she’s experienced employers calling her to ask whether she knows of any Ukrainians looking for work, because “they’re such good workers [and] they’ve settled in so well".
She told David that the woman living with her used to work as a cashier in a bank and is now a waitress in a pizza restaurant, which was “a bit of a leap for her”.
“Everyone in the village is friendly to her, and she speaks a lot of English,” she added.
Rebecca praised her town for welcoming the Ukrainian refugees recalling that, in Marlow, there were a “number of events at the beginning to welcome the children”.
READ MORE: 'He told the same stories': Ukrainian refugees' stories ‘resonate’ with son of Holocaust survivors
Since then, she said one of the town’s comprehensive schools has employed Ukrainian teachers.
“I think we’re really proud of what we’ve achieved,” she said, reminding David that “it’s the first time we’ve been able to host refugee families with some help from the government”.
David then asked Rebecca to clarify what support has been available to those hosting Ukrainian refugees, to which she said she receives £500 a month.
“Buckinghamshire’s been good at helping Ukrainians move to independent housing,” she added, saying the county has helped cover some people’s rent for the first month of living in a new property.
“I know it’s not the same everywhere,” she said, “but I’m struggling to think of any downsides whatsoever”.
