Church and Society Commission09 Dec 22

Offer A Home, Offer Hope

Support for new appeal to shelter and welcome people fleeing war in Ukraine

Archbishop Michael Jackson has endorsed the Irish Government’s new appeal for offers of unoccupied properties to provide temporary homes for people from Ukraine who are seeking shelter and a welcome in Ireland.

Archbishop Jackson, who chairs the Church of Ireland’s Church and Society Commission, said: “As winter grows deeper, darker and longer, we in Ireland find that the exodus of people from war–torn Ukraine continues unabated.  Like ourselves, they need shelter, welcome and a home in the most practical of ways possible.  I commend the scheme now being rolled out as an expression of practical generosity in a deeply distressing human situation of need, which calls for a generous response.  I encourage all who can participate in it to do so and to respond as speedily as possible.”

More than 60,000 people have arrived in Ireland from Ukraine, and most are in need of safe and secure accommodation.  This new call aims to make use of unoccupied houses, apartments or holiday homes to provide accommodation on a temporary basis.

About the call for offers

A tax–free recognition payment of €800 per month (equivalent to £690) is available for properties offered, conditional on a commitment to provide the accommodation for a period of six months.  Property owners can offer homes at www.gov.ie/offerahome or by contacting the local authority in which the property is located, which will be the point of contact for owners throughout the offer and assessment process; contact details for each local authority are provided on the website.  Local authorities will match suitable properties to Ukrainian beneficiaries and can provide support, information and advice for agreeing the arrangements needed to make a property available in this way.