Well what a week it’s been. I would say I have no words but that would rather scupper my blog writing.
We decided to take someone wishing to escape the horrors of Ukraine into our home. We started the process nearly 3 months ago.
We found a lady via Facebook, made contact and have made friends over the last 3 months.
It has been a long and arduous journey for them to get here, both physically, and mentally for her (the one we’re meant to be offering safe harbour to), the paperwork is beyond confusing.
I have dyslexia, and paperwork in general rather confuses me at the best of times. Thankfully Chris is a fantastic form filler.
(I take comfort in the fact that a friend of mine has 2 business Masters Degrees and she found the forms perplexing too).
Olya’s visa request had been granted but the email wasn’t clear in stating this fact. And we were unaware that it had been approved.
An email she received on 31st May said a decision has been made on her visa application, but made no mention of what the decision was.
It did however say, at the very bottom, of that same email, “your passports are ready for collection”. But as Olya doesn’t have a passport we didn’t think this was pertaining to her case. We assumed it was for people that had handed their passport over for the visa application process.
We contacted the Sheffield processing centre about 10 days after Olya received the email about a decision where no decision was mentioned, and were told very clearly that the visa application was still there and still being worked on.
Then the week before last Olya received an email saying her visa had been in Warsaw for the last 16 days and that if she didn’t come collect it it would be rescinded.
(It turns out. Where it said the passports are ready for collecting, it was referring to the visas the UK were granting were actually ready)
This came as a shock to all of us as we were told just the day before she received the second email saying it would be rescinded, on the telephone that her visa hadn’t been processed yet.
There was no one to call, no help desk for enquiries about this rather abrupt and potentially devastating email threatening to rescind the visa offer.
As a last resort I contacted my MP, James Cleverly, who has been very good. He contacted the Home Office for us and had a resolution sorted within 12 hours of contacting him.
He was thankfully able to confirm the visas would still be in Warsaw waiting for her on the soonest day she could get there.
Our greatest fear was that she would make the 5 hour train journey to Warsaw, but the visa would have already been cancelled.
Thankfully she picked up the visas last Tuesday, then once she them in her hand she tried to book flights, but the online booking form at Ryanair requires a passport number.
Panic ensued once again, as I mentioned, she hasn’t got a passport. Only the biometrics and visa the UK government had issued.
Anyway it turns out the FAV visa number is sufficient and should go where it asks for the passport number.
A lot of the stress of the process is due to poor communication, poor explanation too. Although the initial form filling was a mine field too. If it wasn’t for Chris I couldn’t have done it.
A little sticker on the visa letting people know to use the FAV visa numbers when booking international travel wouldn’t have gone amiss.
Also it would be helpful if the Sheffield visa office actually knew where abouts in the process the visas actually are, rather than giving out the wrong information.
The misinformation given caused further delays and distress.
Olya and Danil would have been here 16 days prior had there not been a poorly communicated email and then wrong information given when we queried it.
Olya has been very calm and generous throughout this process. I can’t say I have. Because on top of it being stressful, I’m embarrassed by our government, and their insistence on paying incompetent, third party companies to do the work. Once again someone is making bank with our money. It’s like Test and Trace all over again.
But all that is behind us now!…Or so we thought.
When we filled in the initial applications for Olya to come here 3 months ago, we ticked the box for collection of the hard copy of the biometric visa (Olya and Danil travelled on the temporary paper version), to take place in Colchester, a town 18 miles from our home.
The other options were Southend or Romford. But Colchester was by far the closest.
We then got an email stating that her biometric visa was available for collection…in Westminster, London!!
Some 50 miles from our home to the centre of the capital!!
Had Olya not had our help, how exactly was she meant to get to London? Bearing in mind you have to collect this part of the visa within 10 days of arrival in the UK.
The cost of the train ticket to get to Westminster would be nigh on £40. And as for finding the office you collect it from? Well, even I struggled!!
I couldn’t believe it when we got there too!! It was just an ordinary little post office! Nothing high tech, nothing fancy. Just the Westminster branch of the Post Office.
So amongst the people picking up their ASOS parcels and renewing their fishing licenses was us.
I thought oh well the high tech stuff must be deep inside. So in we went to collect the biometric visa;
Olya gave her name to the man behind the desk and he goes off to a back room, collects two envelopes that had been posted to them, inside which contained the visas.
That’s it. Nothing but collecting two envelopes that had been posted to there!! Surely this could have taken place at my local village post office?
Anyway we’re excited to have the full visas in hand now, it makes their stay here official. Even if the visa they have given Danil is a ‘work visa’…he’s 1!! They’ve issued a work visa for a year old baby. Literally shaking my head.
So as we were in London anyway, even though this was day two of them being in England we decided to do a bit of sightseeing.
After all, if the war ends tomorrow (please God), they’ll be on the first flight home.
It was a beautiful, typical English summer’s day. Bright sunshine and rain. :)
We had a lovely day though, Olya was blown away to be in London, let alone see the sights.
We ticked off the big stuff. The Tower of London, Buckingham Palace, The Westminster branch of the Post Office, The London Eye, Fortnum and Mason and Hamleys.
I bought Danil his first Hamleys bear. It’s a rite of passage in my opinion. And will be one day a lovely memento of their stay here.
Dress from M&S, Shoes from Chloe, Bag from Goyard
Danil has been here less than a week and already I can’t remember a time when he wasn’t here.
He is an absolute angel.
On Saturday I was torn, I didn’t want to overwhelm Olya, but at the same time I didn’t want Danil to miss out on a celebration of his first birthday.
It’s a huge milestone. It’s a big occasion.
So I laid a table in the she shed and invited Ben and Kaitlyn, and Kim and the twins. I thought it would be nice for Olya to meet a few people, and for Danil to play with some children.
My MP, who helped us with our confusion with the visas, sent a House of Commons bear for Danil and a hand written birthday card. How kind was that! Olya was very touched. He’ll have so many mementos to take home.
I think Olya has been delighted to be here, overjoyed, and overwhelmed (in a good way) to have so many people care about her and Danil’s well being. So many people have been kind and dropped off presents for him.
Not just the people that gathered for his party, but a friend of Kim’s sent over 2 huge boxes of toys that were spotless and in perfect condition, some had never been used, and 3 big bags of baby boy clothes in the same condition.
Danil is now fully stocked up for the foreseeable future.
A very kind lady in our village dropped off a present for Danil last night, and a lovely lady at Chris’s work sent a present over too.
Even though the reason they have had to relocate is pure evil, even during this time of fear and trauma, good is outshining evil every step of the way. It always does, it always will.
Fun was had, cake was eaten, and Danil’s first birthday was thoroughly marked.
It’s extremely sad that he isn’t at home with all his family. I find it unimaginably bleak and traumatic. But I hope we can make his stay as happy one as possible until it’s time to go home.
Sunday Chris and I headed for a car boot sale, he’s really good for coming with me isn’t he, I know what you’re thinking, but he treats himself to a dirty burger while he’s there. It’s not completely altruistic. :)
We bought him a V Tech baby walker (£10, almost new) and a slide for the garden (£6, not a colour I would have chosen but it’s in perfect condition).
What’s it like having a baby in the house again? Heaven, absolute heaven!
It’s lovely having a full house again. I’ve not really settled into an empty house after my boys flew the nest. So it’s lovely we get to help someone out, and they help fill a void in this very quiet house of ours.
I think I’ll keep looking for some more garden toys, the garden is so big it’s not like it’s going to overcrowd it.
I’d like to get him a Little Tikes Cosy Coupé, my boys loved theirs as babies. But I haven’t sourced one yet. But I will keep looking out for one.
If you are going through the Homes for Ukraine process I wish you well. It’s a terrible system but a necessary evil if we want to help people. Xx
Just a quick note to say I’m absolutely heartbroken to hear of the passing of Dame Deborah James. She shone a light so bright on bowel cancer awareness you could see it from the moon.
We’ll all be forever grateful.
Rest up lovely lady, you did us proud. You saved lives even though you knew they couldn’t save yours.
What a gift you gave us. Xx
A message from Deborah’s mum;
And a few final things from Deborah..."find a
life worth enjoying; take risks; love deeply;
have no regrets; and always, always have
rebellious hope. And finally, check your poo
- it could just save your life."
Xx