Dear Matthew Norman

Thank you for your Freedom of Information request, which was received by South Oxfordshire District Council on 6 April 2023.

Please accept this email as confirmation that your request has been received and is being considered by the relevant department and that a response will be sent to you within 20 working days, subject to the information not being exempt and subject to any need for clarification.

The deadline for this will be 10 May 2023

The reference number for this request is South 23/17

I trust that this email is sufficient to assure you that your request is being dealt with. However, should you have any queries in the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact the FOI team at [South Oxfordshire District Council request email]

Kind regards

Information Governance Team

Legal & Democratic Services
South Oxfordshire District Council
www.southoxon.gov.uk

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South Oxfordshire District Council

show quoted sections

Dear Mr Norman

Thank you for your Freedom of Information Request.

You have submitted the request to South Oxfordshire District Council but
are requesting information regarding the Vale of White Horse District. I
see that you have already submitted a separate request to the Vale for
this information.

Could you please confirm whether this request should be for the numbers in
South Oxfordshire?

Kind regards

Thom

Please can you tell me the following:

1. How many Ukrainian people have come to live in households in the Vale
of White Horse district under the Homes for Ukraine scheme since 14 March
2022?

2. How many of those Ukrainian people who have come to live in the Vale of
White Horse district since 14 March 2022 under the Homes for Ukraine
scheme are now registered as statutory homeless?

3. How many of those Ukrainian people who have come to live in the Vale of
White Horse district since 14 March 2022 under the Homes for Ukraine
scheme are now registered as homeless?

4. What is being done by Vale of White Horse District Council to help
those Ukrainians who came to live in the Vale of White Horse district
under the Homes for Ukraine scheme but are now registered as homeless or
statutory homeless?

Thomas Gaunt

Housing Needs Team Leader – Housing Advice

Housing and Environment

South Oxfordshire and Vale of

White Horse District Councils

01235 422 442

[1]www.southoxon.gov.uk

[2]www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk

References

Visible links
1. http://www.southoxon.gov.uk/
2. http://www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/

Thank you for your email. The council offices are closed for the Easter
break until Tuesday 11 April. I will respond to your email on or after
this date.

Dear Mr Norman

Thank you for your Freedom of Information request which was received by
the South Oxfordshire District Council and logged under 23/17 (SOUTH).

Under Section 1 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the 2000 Act) you
are entitled to be informed in writing whether the council holds the
information specified in your request and, if that is the case, to have
that information communicated to you unless any of the statutory
exemptions apply. I have considered your request and can confirm we do
hold some of the information asked and I do not believe any of the
statutory exemptions apply to your request. Please find below the
information you requested:

1. How many Ukrainian people have come to live in households in the South
Oxfordshire district under the Homes for Ukraine scheme since 14 March
2022? 365 family groups comprising 600 people in total

2. How many of those Ukrainian people who have come to live in the South
Oxfordshire district since 14 March 2022 under the Homes for Ukraine
scheme are now registered as statutory homeless? One

3. How many of those Ukrainian people who have come to live in the South
Oxfordshire since 14 March 2022 under the Homes for Ukraine scheme are now
registered as homeless? Two (one family)

4. What is being done by South Oxfordshire District Council to help those
Ukrainians who came to live in the South Oxfordshire district under the
Homes for Ukraine scheme but are now registered as homeless or statutory
homeless?

The council works with clients in line with the Homeless Reduction Act to
provide advice and assistance. A dedicated Housing Officer is assigned to
work with clients who are facing homelessness, with a view to securing
permanent accommodation. In some instances the council can provide
mediation to enable the client to remain in their current accommodation,
and for clients who wish to remain in a hosting arrangement, rematch
options are explored.

Social / affordable housing is also considered - depending on the client’s
eligibility to join the council’s housing register - as is accommodation
in the private sector. Using central government funding for the Homes for
Ukraine scheme the council can provide financial assistance such as rent
in advance and deposit payments to secure private tenancies where
necessary and a discretionary grant of up to £500 per individual is
available to support the setup of new accommodation.

Finally, there is an agreement in place with other councils in Oxfordshire
to share vacant properties as we seek to make best use of the private
sector.

Please note that the request was amended, as per your email confirmation.

Please treat this as the council’s formal response under the 2000 Act.  If
you are not satisfied with the decision I have made in response to your
request, you can make a request for an internal review by emailing
[1][South Oxfordshire District Council request email] and [2][email address]  within 40 working
days from the date we issued our response. If you remain dissatisfied
after following that procedure, you have the right under Section 50 of the
2000 Act to complain to the Information Commissioner if you feel the
council has not dealt with your request properly. You can contact the
Commissioner at Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF
(telephone number: 01625 545745). You can also find further information at
[3]www.ico.org.uk.

Kind regards

Thom

Thomas Gaunt

Housing Advice Team Leader

Housing and Environment

South Oxfordshire and Vale of

White Horse District Councils

01235 422 442

[4]www.southoxon.gov.uk

[5]www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[South Oxfordshire District Council request email]
2. mailto:[email address]
3. http://www.ico.org.uk/
4. http://www.southoxon.gov.uk/
5. http://www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/