Mayo families urged to consider taking in Ukrainians without accommodation

ROUGHLY Ukrainian refugees are being accommodated in Mayo households in receipt of the Accommodation Recognition Payment.

With state accommodation now limited to 90 days for new arrivals, groups like Westport Welcomes Ukraine are advocating for more households to consider hosting Ukrainian refugees.

With more hotels like Hotel Westport ending their contracts to host Ukrainian refugees, many Ukrainians must secure scarce private accommodation, return home to Ukraine or stay with a host family.

The Tunney household were one of the first Mayo households to host Ukrainian refugees after hundreds of mainly women and children fled to the county for safety in the spring of 2022.

Svietlana Huliaieva didn’t speak a word of English when she first came to Mayo with her then-19-year-old daughter Polina.

By the time she moved to her own accommodation on Westport Quay a number of months ago, she had full conversational English.

Speaking to The Mayo News in her West Mayo home in Cushin, Dooncastle, near Knockrooskey, Susan Tunney said she fell on her feet with Svietlana and Polina.

Though they no longer live under the same roof, but Susan still refers to her as her ‘Ukrainian sister’.

“If everyone got a Svitlana they wouldn’t want to get rid of them. Svitlana is super. I fell on my feet. There is people that haven’t fell on their feet, so I can understand people shying away,” the mother-of-four said.

“If I had listened to the stories, I’d never have taken you,” she added, looking at Svietlana.

Ukrainian sister

“Everyone has to do what they want and it was the best thing we ever did as a family. She’s super. My Ukrainian sister. We’re blessed.

“It’s not something ever in a million years I’d have thought of doing. I don’t know why we decided,” Susan admitted.

“We were lying in bed one night and they were on about the war and I said to Damien, ‘Will we take someone?’ He was like ‘If you want’. I was like ‘Take a mother and kids maybe’. It fell perfect for us, we got two adults.”

Svietlana, as Susan explains, ‘never wanted to live in a hotel’.

After arriving to Susan’s door with no more than a ‘hello’ Svietlana quickly took up English classes hosted at Leitir NS.

Through her own determination, she eventually had enough English to take up a beauty course in Mayo College of Education.

Living independently

Today, she lives independently in Westport Quay and works in a beautician in Castlebar.

She also volunteers with Ukrainian refugees at Hotel Westport, many of whom have begun leaving the hotel before it ends its contract with the International Protection Accommodation Service.

“It’s just a shock for children,” said Svietlana, who has background in science, which she studied in university.

“For some people would like to live here and just find another place, like rooms like a house but some people just don’t care about the place. They don’t mind where they live. It’s just important to find something, maybe another county.”

Subject to various terms and conditions, those in receipt of the Accommodation Recognition Payment receive a monthly payment of €800 for hosting Ukrainian refugees in their property.

Both the Tunneys and the Huliaievas have found their experience as hosts and guests a positive one and hope other families will have a similar experience.

“I find Susan and all the family really amazing people,” said Sivetlana.

“It could happen another way, I’m happy that it’s nice way and we meet Susan and her family because it’s much energy between us.”

Anyone interested in offering a room to Ukrainian refugees can contact Westport Welcomes Ukraine while those interested in offering a property can visit offerahome.ie.