Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme in Scotland: statistics - May 2023

Key points

• according to published data from the Department for Levelling up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), Scotland has received 45,575 visa applications through the UK ‘Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme’, which includes those sponsored by the Scottish Government (Super Sponsor Scheme) and by Individual Sponsors as at 16 May 2023, with 38,496 visas issued. As of 16 May, a total of 24,532 displaced people from Ukraine have arrived in the UK on a visa sponsored either by an individual Scottish sponsor or sponsored by the Scottish Government.
• the estimated number of displaced people from Ukraine in welcome accommodation, as well as the number of welcome accommodation rooms and ship cabins occupied, are on an overall decreasing trend since January.
• as reported by welcome accommodation teams across Scotland on 9 May, there were around 1,790 welcome accommodation rooms and 625 cabins occupied on the M/S Victoria by displaced people from Ukraine in welcome accommodation in Scotland.
• by 9 May around 990 guests had disembarked the M/S Victoria since the ship became operational on 26 July 2022.
• a total of 575 prospective hosts submitted offers to host from 28 November 2022 to 30 April 2023.
• across the three main matching pathways (national matching, local matching, informal matching), since the scheme began, around 6,000 individuals sponsored by the Scottish Government had been matched into and arrived at their matched accommodation in Scotland, as reported between 25 January and 9 May 2023.
• local authorities report that, since the beginning of the scheme, at least 4,145 people (around 1,935 cases) sponsored by a known individual host (arriving on the Individual Sponsor Scheme) have arrived at their matched accommodation in Scotland, as reported between 25 January and 4 May 2023.
• local authority teams reported that out of all the people that have been matched (arriving on any visa type: sponsored by the Scottish Government, Individuals or on Family Visa), since the beginning of the scheme, around 3,075 people (around 1,450 cases) had been placed directly into social or council housing across Scotland, as reported between 25 January and 4 May 2023.
• following a Scottish Government survey of local authorities, data indicates that as at 28 April 2023, 3,103 Ukrainian children are enrolled in primary and secondary schools across Scotland. Since first reported in September 2022, the number of Ukrainian children enrolled in schools (both primary and secondary combined) were on an increasing trend until January, followed by decreases in February, March and April.
• please see methodology and types of matches section for additional notes.