Here at CCB we know that village halls play a key role at the centre of their community providing a safe space to bring everyone together. Many have community resilience plans and
are familiar with offering a support centre and very temporary living accommodation for localised crises such as flooding. In addition, COVID-19 has demonstrated that halls have been valued as centres for vaccination and food distribution.

Our national body ACRE (Action with Communities in Rural England) believes that village halls are well placed to welcome and support Ukrainian refugees that are being hosted in the local community; the role fulfils the charitable purposes of hall charities.

Refugees can be invited to take part in social activities e.g., those already taking place, and some arranged specifically for them, be offered training where the hall provides appropriate courses, given access to digital facilities, and any other activities that will provide support and aid integration. The hall can provide space for refugee families to get together and feel less isolated from each other. We would not expect village halls to provide living accommodation.
When considering actively supporting activities for refugees the committee must:
• involve the whole community,
• make sure that appropriate vetting and safeguarding practices and
procedures are in place,
• engage with local district and borough councils with the aim of creating
a co-ordinated approach and avoiding duplication of services that are
being offered elsewhere,
• make themselves aware of local charities, organisations, and support
groups such as NACCOM so that the best possible support can be
provided for the refugees and the hall committee,
• refer to guidance from the Charity Commission .

Households wishing to provide living accommodation should register here: https://homesforukraine.campaign.gov.uk/

Concern voiced about the growing number of rural households struggling to make ends meet because of the fuel crisis

New data released shows that 6.3 million households in England will wake up in fuel poverty at the beginning of next month, up from 4.1 million in the same period last year.

Whilst urban areas in Wolverhampton, Leeds and Birmingham top the unwelcome table of households unable to afford to heat their homes to an adequate temperature, rural areas are also being hit hard.

Our national body Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE) has highlighted that parts of rural West Norfolk, North East Lincolnshire, Herefordshire and Shropshire about a third of households will experience fuel poverty, as well as in the Chancellor’s own back yard of Richmondshire, Yorkshire.

Responding to the latest revelations, Paul Dixon, Rural Evidence Manager at ACRE said, “Those on lower incomes in the countryside are some of the most vulnerable to the growing fuel crisis. Rural residents have some of the hardest to heat homes. We are particularly concerned for the one million households who depend on heating oil. Members of the ACRE Network that run community oil buying schemes report extreme volatility in the price of this commodity which is estimated to have risen threefold over the past 12 months. People are facing difficult choices between filling up their heating system with oil or putting fuel in their car to get to work. Government must recognise and address the particular vulnerabilities of people in this situation.”

Here at CCB we run our own small oil club in Berkshire, to help members come together to order oil resulting in lower pence per litre prices as well as working to reduce the number of oil tankers on the road. We were alarmed to see the huge increase that those heating their home via oil were forced to endure last month and though prices have gone down a little recently they remain at a record high with no sign of them significantly decreasing anytime soon.

Our Oil Club administrator from OFPS Marion said; “The price of crude oil has risen dramatically over the last month. In February it was $92 and by mid-March that had raised to $124. This has an immediate knock-on effect on what rural households have to pay for heating oil. These are difficult times and I will continue to do whatever I can for our Oil Club members.”

Elsewhere at CCB our Project Co-ordinator Helen is providing telephone support to low-income families from across the county, in both rural and urban settings. Helen has also been able to run as very well received training sessions to front-line workers that support and have relationships with these families. Through our Family Fuel & Water Poverty Project we can provide families in need of support with appropriate advice and guidance on reducing the bills and the funds and grants that are available to them.

Out national body ACRE is a member of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition which released the updated fuel poverty statistics. Simon Francis who co-ordinates the coalition said, “Many people across rural England will wake up on 1 April in fuel poverty for the first time. Rural properties have long been the forgotten victims of rising energy costs and poorly insulated properties. It has got to the stage now, that it is only by concerted effort by the Government that we will be able to see the immediate support for struggling households combined with support for energy efficiency improvements.”

As families continue to escape their homes in war torn Ukraine, we continue to see the generosity of our local residents coming forward to offer support. At last night’s Council meeting (17 March 2022), West Berkshire Councillors debated a motion to decide how we in West Berkshire can take part.

We passed a motion in support of Ukrainians who are looking for a safe haven in West Berkshire. We are united in the condemnation of the armed attack on Ukraine by the Russian Federation and urge Vladimir Putin to immediately and unconditionally cease this unjust and evil war.

Our response during this difficult time will be to partake in resettling Ukrainian nationals in West Berkshire, this work is underway and will evolve as we have more details of the various schemes. In the meantime we have a dedicated Ukraine Support Hub that will provide help for those coming in to the UK and to those who will host a family under the recently announced Homes for Ukraine Scheme.

Greenham Trust have set up an appeal on The Good Exchange to provide local funding to support those families arriving in West Berkshire. Greenham Trust and West Berkshire Council have committed to each contributing £25,000 in match funding, ensuring public, corporate and trust/foundation donations to this appeal are matched £1 for £1 for the first £50,000 raised. You can donate funds here: https://app.thegoodexchange.com/project/19509/greenham-trust/help-welcome-ukrainians-to-west-berkshire.

Residents can also offer financial assistance by donating to the Disasters Emergency Committee or the British Red Cross.

Cllr Lynne Doherty, Leader of West Berkshire Council, said: “We are proud of our history in West Berkshire of supporting people that find themselves fleeing from conflict. We know that the community will make sure visitors feel welcomed to our district and will want to support this scheme, having so generously helped nationals arriving here from Syria and Afghanistan in recent years.

“We play a key role in supporting West Berkshire’s response to the crisis that is unfolding in front of our eyes by standing with the people of Ukraine and express our unwavering commitment to democracy, multilevel governance and human rights.”

Garry Poulson, Director of the Newbury based Volunteer Centre West Berkshire, said: “Volunteer Centre West Berkshire are pleased to play our part in the Ukraine Support Hub to be established.

“We are confident that many voluntary and charitable organisations will want to play their part in supporting Ukraine nationals in their hour of need.” 

Greenham Trust quote: “We believe it is very important to help families arriving from Ukraine by providing matched funding alongside West Berkshire Council to raise a fund to ensure our local charitable and voluntary organisations can support their needs.

“Yet again, in a time of need, we will be working to the best of our abilities with the Council, the Volunteer Centre and other local organisations to assist those living in our community.”

The Support Hub is open five days a week – 8:30am to 5pm, Monday to Thursday and 8:30am to 4:30pm on Fridays. To get in touch, please call us on: 01635 503579 or email us on: ukraine@westberkshire.gov.uk.