What is the Council of Sanctuary process?
Becoming a Council of Sanctuary means a local authority is committed to being welcoming and fair to everyone in the community. The process involves the council making a formal promise, creating a practical plan, and working with local organisations to ensure services work well for all residents. This approach helps create a more cohesive community where everyone feels valued and can contribute positively. The certification recognises that our council follows sensible, compassionate policies that benefit the entire neighborhood while maintaining the community’s character and values.
The Council of Sanctuary process reviews and optimises existing systems and partnerships to create more welcoming communities for people seeking sanctuary. Rather than creating new bureaucratic structures, we work with what councils already have in place to improve efficiency and coordination.
The full award procedure and criteria can be found here
How does it work within a council?
Many councils already have staff supporting and delivering the multiple government funded programmes for refugees and people seeking asylum. Our framework helps them work more efficiently by identifying streamlining opportunities, strengthening coordination, sharing best practices, and supporting better outcomes while achieving cost efficiencies.
The administrative element is minimal – essentially documenting what councils are already doing well and identifying areas for improvement. This approach typically results in savings through improved system efficiency and better use of existing resources.
What is City of Sanctuary’s political stance?
We are a registered charity and therefore apolitical. Our primary focus is on the dignity and humanity of individuals seeking refuge, not the politics surrounding immigration policies. We work to de-politicise the discourse around forced migration.
Does the programme affect dispersal areas and housing decisions?
No. Our focus is on creating safe and welcoming communities for people seeking sanctuary once they are here. Any issues related to who enters the UK and their placement in communities is a matter for national government and we do not have any knowledge, insight or influence into these schemes.
How do councils decide who to support?
Local authorities are committed to supporting all people in need, without exception. They have legal responsibilities under the Care Act, the Children Act, the Equalities Act, and housing and homelessness legislation to ensure that everyone, regardless of background, is treated fairly and with dignity.
Local Authorities do not prioritise one group over another. Instead, they assess each individual’s needs and provide support accordingly. The idea that helping one person takes something away from another is a common misconception. In fact, the goal is to build a compassionate and inclusive community where no one is left behind.
Supporting those in need, whether they are long-term residents or recent arrivals, is not about choosing between groups. It’s about meeting our shared responsibilities as a society and ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to live safely and with dignity.
How do you measure success?
When councils and local partners co-produce a strategy and its delivery plan, they are encouraged to identify clear, locally relevant indicators of success. These can vary depending on local priorities but often include measures such as homelessness prevention rates, access to stable housing, employment and skills outcomes, improvements in physical and mental health, school attendance or educational progress, community cohesion, and reduced demand for crisis services.
These indicators go beyond numbers, they help assess whether our work is genuinely making people feel safer, more included, and more able to thrive. Progress is monitored throughout the life of the strategy, with room to adapt and improve through continued feedback mechanisms. The voices of communities, including people with lived experience, are central to shaping both the definition of success and how it’s achieved
How does the Council of Sanctuary approach benefit everyone?
The improvements councils make through this process—such as clearer information about services, more efficient processes, and stronger community connections—create better systems for all residents. When services work well for the most vulnerable, they work better for everyone.
How is this work funded?
Many councils already support and deliver the many government programmes for refugees and people seeking asylum. Funding for these programmes comes from central government and are often ring-fenced for this purpose. In many cases, central government uses part of the UK’s international aid budget to support people arriving from crisis situations.
By engaging in this work, councils often unlock additional resources and identify efficiencies that strengthen the wider system. For example, investing in coordinated support for new arrivals can reduce pressure and build capacity in services, improve public health outcomes, and help people move more quickly into work and housing—freeing up capacity across council services.
Being a Council of Sanctuary also encourages more effective planning and partnership working which enables efficient use of resources. This helps build systems that are more responsive and better prepared to meet the needs of all residents, not just newcomers.
In short, this isn’t about taking away from anyone. It’s about using dedicated funding smartly and to build communities that are safe, welcoming, and resilient, for everyone who calls it home.