NAMED COMMUNITY

Communities across the UK have a proud history of providing sanctuary to those feeling conflict and persecution in other countries. Community sponsorship schemes empower local people to help refugee families find safe homes and rebuild their lives in communities across the UK.

“I think the community definitely feels richer because of the families being here - they add something with their different cultures.” - Community Sponsor

In November 2025, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced the creation of new, safe and legal routes for refugees to resettle in the UK. These routes will make named community sponsorship the primary means by which refugees are resettled in the UK, with voluntary and community organisations given greater involvement in welcoming and supporting them.

Communities will be able to identify refugees from abroad that they would like to sponsor to come to the UK. Communities will take on responsibility for things like securing housing, access to local services, and local English-language tuition, while the Government maintains oversight and responsibility for vetting refugees before they arrive.

“…we must now build an asylum system for the world as it is—one that restores order and control, that opens safe and legal routes to those fleeing danger across the world, and that sustains our commitment to providing refuge for this generation,and those to come.” - Shabana Mahmood, Home Secretary, 17th November 2025

Named community sponsorship hands control to local communities over the resettlement of refugees in their area. It is a proven mechanism that operates at a large scale in other countries strengthening communities and supporting refugees’ integration. Research from the University of Birmingham found that Community Sponsorship contributes to more outward-looking, open and inclusive communities, and more positive attitudes towards refugees.

Communities have the power to create a more welcoming society

Since 2016, over 350 communities across the UK have welcomed more than 600 refugees through the Community Sponsorship scheme, as well as many thousands more under the Homes for Ukraine scheme that was established following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Named sponsorship builds on proven models. In Canada, over 368,000 refugees have successfully integrated through private sponsorship since 1979, and the United States received 3 million applications to sponsor vulnerable migrants between 2022-24.

What needs to happen now?

Communities across the UK stand ready to play their part in upholding the UK’s proud tradition of providing sanctuary to those in need. The Government should establish and implement a fully operational Named Community Sponsorship route by the end of 2026, giving local communities, civil society, employers and universities the power to choose who to welcome to the UK.

This approach would deliver exactly what the Home Secretary has called for: a controlled, capped and community-led route that restores confidence in the asylum system while enabling people fleeing danger to reach safety through safe and legal pathways.

Communities up and down the country are ready and eager to help welcome refugees and support their integration. Named community sponsorship would give them the ability to identify and support individuals in need of protection, while the Government maintains responsibility for security checks and oversight.
To make this a reality, the Government must now set out the details of how these routes will work in practice — including how many people communities will be able to sponsor, who will be eligible, how the organisations involved will be resourced, and when the new routes will become operational.

Without this clarity, safe and legal routes risk remaining an aspiration rather than a functioning part of the UK’s asylum system. If the Government is serious about reform, community sponsorship must be placed at the heart of a credible, compassionate and workable approach.

The Pickwell Foundation are building a list of organisations and individuals who want to stay informed as Named Community Sponsorship develops in the UK. By completing this form, you're agreeing to receive updates on the scheme, including how to get involved, as this work progresses.