- Project focus: Refugee hosting
- Who it supports: Refugees at risk of homelessness
- Housing created: Expansion of their hosting placements
Founded in 2014, Refugee Welcome Homes is a Bristol-based charity that reduces homelessness for refugees by connecting people with a spare room to refugees in need of housing, where they can rent an affordable room for 12-18 months. They provide ongoing support to both hosts and lodgers, with regular meetings designed to help people understand their rights, responsibilities and support their wellbeing. The scheme also fosters supportive relationships, allowing refugees to integrate to the UK and move towards independent living.
Refugees face many barriers to accommodation after they gain refugee status, including a lack of affordable housing, discrimination from landlords, lack of knowledge of the UK rental market and limited access to social housing. Refugee Welcome Homes aims to address these barriers through their innovative Lodging Scheme.
This funding will expand this scheme, increasing the number of hosts and placements they offer while also strengthening the support available throughout each placement. It will also support the development of a practical framework to help other charities set up similar schemes, sharing comprehensive learnings. By developing a clear, evidence-based model, it offers strong potential for replication in other parts of the UK.
