Cabinet on 12 July 2023(Item 23 - Future Resettlement Commitments for New Refugee Families) resolved to:

1.      Approve the resettlement of a minimum of 8 refugee families per year from any of the resettlement schemes highlighted in the report for a period of 5 years from 2023 to 2028, on the condition that the requirements in paragraph 21 of the report are consistently met to ensure scheme viability;

2.      Delegate authority to the Executive Director (Communities and People), in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing, to agree the resettlement of additional refugees above this allocation (which will incur additional expenditure from Home Office grant funding for support provision) subject to sufficient grant funding;

3.      Approve the use of Home Office grant funding of up to £1,313,840 (see Appendix 2) to procure the provision of 2 years of person centred support for each refugee family arriving in Oxford during the 5 year period between 2023 -2028;

4.      Delegate authority to the Head of Housing in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing to approve the use of the Home Office grant funding to procure additional person centred support as required; and

5.      Delegate authority to the Head of Housing in consultation with the Head of Financial Services/S151 Officer, the Head of Law and Governance and the Cabinet Member for Housing to allocate the approved budget and enter into contract(s) with a provider(s) for the provision of person-centred support.

To enter into contract with Asylum Welcome to provide person-centred support for refugees who arrive at Oxford via government grant funded resettlement schemes.  The contract will be funded by Home Office grant funding only, and will be initially setup for a 2 year duration with a review each year to check viability of the project. No financial burden will be placed on the Council.  

The potential total grant funding available to provide person-centred support only, assuming up to 40 properties can be secured over a 5-year period to accommodate 40 families (equates to an average of 29 individuals per year), will be up to £1,313,840.

The average support cost for 16 families over 2 years has been quoted at £187,064.00. However, this may fluctuate depending upon the size of the property available and the number of individuals who are welcomed.  Should the numbers of individuals increase, then grant funding will increase respectively.

Commitment to this new contract will allow the Council to procure a dedicated support service which will fulfil the Council’s obligations of resettling more refugee families and enable the continued delivery of person-centred support for an extremely vulnerable client group as we welcome them to our city.

Not to enter into this contract.  This option was rejected as it would mean that the Council would not be able to fulfil its commitment of resettling more vulnerable families, therefore also failing our commitment with regards to being a City of Sanctuary.

Decision taken by Nerys Parry, Head of Housing Services in consultation with Nigel Kennedy, Head of Financial Services; Emma Jackman, Head of Law and Governance and Councillor Linda Smith, Cabinet Member for Housing.