The provision of safe and secure housing is one of the main areas in which community sponsorship groups will support refugees when they are resettling in Ireland, as part of the Community Sponsorship Programme.
A new Accommodation Guide has now been launched to give community sponsorship groups and people who are resettling the information they need at each stage of the accommodation journey.
The guide was developed by The Open Community together with community sponsorship groups, and in partnership with A&L Goodbody, Nasc, Peter McVerry Trust, The Housing Agency and Threshold.
Karen Moynihan, Outreach and Development Officer with The Open Community, said:
“As there are many different steps to be taken when supporting families with their accommodation, we felt it important to create a guide that gives sponsors the information they need, to support the families from the start to the end of the sponsorship journey. This guide aims to be a roadmap for groups to find the information they need all in one place.”
There are 3 sections in the Guide: Pre-arrival, Post-arrival, and then the Transitional Stage, with links to resources needed in each section. The three sections cover sourcing accommodation before the family arrives; supporting the family in navigating accommodation services once they have arrived; and ensuring the family are aware of their rights and entitlements as the community sponsorship support period comes to an end.
Nola Leonard, who is a member of two community sponsorship groups and was involved in the Guide’s development, said she welcomes its publication.
“It is an essential resource for groups welcoming refugees into their communities. It provides clear, practical guidance through all the many steps that must be negotiated when setting up families in their new homes in Ireland and makes this task, which is one of the most difficult for community sponsorship groups, so much easier than previously,” she said.
The Accommodation Guide can be downloaded from The Open Community website here.
