TWO IN five Ukrainian refugees accepted to stay with hosts in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole have not yet reached the UK, new figures show.

The Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme, also known as Homes for Ukraine, allows citizens to volunteer to house refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine.

Sponsors offer accommodation for at least six months, with those receiving sponsorship allowed to live, work and study in the UK for up to three years.

Home Office data from Tuesday, May 16, shows 373 visas have been granted to stay with hosts in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, from 427 applications, but as of Monday, May 23, just 224 of these refugees had arrived in the UK.

The Refugee Council said it had received reports of delays at every stage of the application process, and of necessary documents not reaching refugees quick enough for them to travel.

Head of advocacy at the charity, Andy Hewett, called the scheme "unfit for purpose".

He said: “Responding to a serious humanitarian crisis by offering complex visa routes, putting paperwork and bureaucracy before people was always going to have tragic consequences."

Some families are also not having their applications processed together, creating difficulties when not all visas are granted at the same time.

Others have flagged the potential for safeguarding issues from a lack of thorough checks on prospective sponsors, and there have been national reports of refugees becoming homeless after being turfed out by their hosts.

Refugees have also been arriving through the Ukraine Family Scheme, which allows Ukrainian nationals to join family members in the UK.

The number of successful applications has increased compared to last month.

As of April 19, 71,800 applications had been granted through both schemes, including 217 in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole.