The West Bromwich Building Society is planning to offer up to 20 homes to support Ukrainian refugees with accommodation in the coming weeks and months.

Available through the Society’s property letting subsidiary, West Brom Homes, and premises above some of its branches, the properties will be offered free of charge for a minimum of 6 months to help house those fleeing the conflict. The Society will be working with the Government scheme, Homes for Ukraine, to be matched with families and individuals that are in urgent need of housing. The Society has already registered 11 properties with the scheme, and is reviewing its portfolio for any other properties that might be available in the coming weeks.

The Society is also committing to use the £350 ‘Thank You’ payment to further support those it will be housing. Initially, the funds will be used to provide essentials such as furniture, appliances and toiletries, with other needs such as food, clothing and fuel being considered in the future.

Jonathan Westhoff, the West Brom’s Chief Executive, said: “Like many people across the UK, we have been shocked by the devastation resulting from the conflict in Ukraine. We have been considering how best we can help, and offering homes to refugees is one way we will be able to support individuals and families in the coming weeks and months. Primarily by not re-letting vacant, or soon to be vacant, properties in our residential letting subsidiary, West Brom Homes, we can immediately offer 11 homes in the Midlands, South Wales and Bristol, and we’re exploring further homes that might become available over the coming weeks and months. The first 11 have been registered with the Government scheme, Homes for Ukraine, to get people into accommodation in the coming weeks. We cannot begin to imagine what those fleeing the conflict have experienced, but we can offer this gesture as a way to provide security and safety.”

As well as this, the Society will also look to support refugees with employment opportunities once they are settled. Those seeking employment will not need to be housed within the West Brom’s accommodation, and a variety of roles will be available for English-speaking applicants, from Administration and Customer Services to IT and Operations. Full training will be provided, as well as career guidance, interview techniques and CV preparation skills for anyone that needs support preparing for a new role with the West Brom or the wider job market.

Jonathan Westhoff continued: “We know that this crisis will be ongoing, and whilst we can help with accommodation now, we also want to look at how we can help in the future. We know the next step for refugees will be to find employment once they are ready, and we will be able to offer a variety of roles to English-speaking applicants across a variety of departments as another way to help them settle and provide security for the future.”