Employing Ukrainian Nationals in your Day Nursery, Pre-school or Club

We are all seeing on the news at the moment of the war in Ukraine and we all want to help in some way.

Here at Redwing, we have been getting questions from Day Nursery Owners about recruiting Ukrainian nationals that are currently in the UK. The simple answer is yes, you can recruit Ukrainian nationals but there is a process that needs to be followed. Safer recruitment must always be at the forefront of your process.

There are currently 2 schemes that are available to Ukrainian nationals and their families, these are:

• The Family Scheme, this is for Ukrainian nationals to join their family members that have already settled in the UK.
• The Homes for Ukraine Scheme, this is open to Ukrainian nationals who have been linked with an individual who currently resides in the UK to sponsor them. Organisations and businesses can register their interest to join the scheme.

Under both schemes, successful applicants will be granted a visa for up to 3 years under the terms of which they can live, look for, and start employment in the UK. This is important.

If they are successful in their application, they will be issued with a permission letter that comes from the Home Office and they are given an entry stamp of 6 months on their passport and this entry stamp can be used as a right to work check.

Right to work checks are now available online using the code number the applicant has given you.

Don’t forget that regardless of the applicant’s nationality you should always be doing a Right to Work check. If you don’t you could find yourself liable for a fine of £20,000 per illegal worker.

If you want to make an offer of work you will need to fill in this form and email it back to offerwork@homeoffice.gov.uk.

You will then be contacted by someone at either the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) or the Refugee Employment Network (REN) and they will ask you about your offer in more detail and explain what the next steps are.

Here’s more information about Right to Work checks Guidance on right to work checks.

One difficulty could be obtaining the overseas police check for an individual for whom a DBS isn’t relevant but you need to establish whether the candidate is suitable to work in childcare.

If you have any questions about what you need to understand about employing overseas workers, please do not hesitate to give us a call on 01527 909436.