Ukraine assistance centres

If you have arrived in Northern Ireland from Ukraine, under either the Family Scheme or Homes for Ukraine Scheme, you should go to an assistance centre. These centres are in Ballymena, Belfast, Craigavon and Newry.

Help available

Ukraine assistance centres have been set up to give advice on key services, including:

health assessments
education
jobs
benefits
housing
immigration

Representatives from various organisations will be available in the centres to assist you with enquiries and to help with any applications for support.

Where possible, interpretation services will also be on hand for those with limited English.

What you need to bring

If you are going to an assistance centre, you will need to bring ID and proof of the scheme under which you are registered.

Centre locations and opening times

The four centres are open on the following week days between 9.30 am and 4.00 pm.

Belfast: Monday and Friday

Belfast City Council
Cecil Ward Building
4-10 Linenhall Street
Belfast
BT2 8BP

Find directions at: The Cecil Ward Building

Newry: Tuesday

Newry, Mourne and Down District Council
Newry Leisure Centre
60 Cecil Street
Newry
BT35 6AU

Find directions at: Newry Leisure Centre

Craigavon: Wednesday

Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council
Brownlow Community Hub
7 Brownlow Road
Craigavon
BT65 5DL

Find directions at: Brownlow Community Hub

Ballymena: Thursday

Mid and East Antrim Council
The Braid, 1-29 Bridge Street
Ballymena
BT43 5EJ

Find directions at: Mid and East Antrim Borough Council

What to expect

A diagram to explain what to expect when visiting a Ukrainian Assistance Centre can be found here: Ukrainians arriving in Northern Ireland

Help improve this page - send your feedback

What do you want to do?

report a problem

leave feedback

ask a question

Report a problem

Which problem did you find on this page? (Tick all that apply)

A link, button or video is not working

There is a spelling mistake

Information is missing, outdated or wrong

I can't find what I'm looking for

Another issue

You will not receive a reply. We will consider your feedback to help improve the site.

Don't include any personal or financial information, for example National Insurance, credit card numbers, or phone numbers.

Tell us more about the problem you're having with the nidirect website.

Enter your feedback

What is your question about?

Choose a topic for your question:

What to do next

Comments or queries about angling can be emailed to anglingcorrespondence@daera-ni.gov.uk

If you have a comment or query about benefits, you will need to contact the government department or agency which handles that benefit. Contacts for common benefits are listed below.

Employment and Support Allowance

Call 0800 587 1377

Jobseeker’s Allowance

Contact your local Jobs & Benefits office

Personal Independence Payment

Call 0800 587 0932

If your query is about another benefit, select ‘Other’ from the drop-down menu above.

Comments or queries about the Blue Badge scheme can be emailed to bluebadges@infrastructure-ni.gov.uk or you can also call 0300 200 7818.

For queries or advice about careers, contact the Careers Service.

For queries or advice about Child Maintenance, contact the Child Maintenance Service.

For queries or advice about claiming compensation due to a road problem, contact DFI Roads claim unit.

If you can’t find the information you’re looking for in the Coronavirus (COVID-19) section, then for queries about:

Restrictions or regulations — contact the Department of Health
Travel advice (including self-isolation) — contact the Department of Health
Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccinations — contact the Department of Health or Public Health Agency

If your query is about another topic, select ‘Other’ from the drop-down menu above.

For queries about your identity check, email nida@nidirect.gov.uk and for queries about your certificate, email covidcertni@hscni.net.

For queries or advice about criminal record checks, email ani@accessni.gov.uk

Application and payment queries can be emailed to ema_ni@slc.co.uk

For queries or advice about employment rights, contact the Labour Relations Agency.

For queries or advice about birth, death, marriage and civil partnership certificates and research, contact the General Register Office Northern Ireland (GRONI) by email gro_nisra@finance-ni.gov.uk

For queries about the High Street Spend Local Scheme, email HSSS.mail@economy-ni.gov.uk.

For queries about:

Car tax, vehicle registration and SORN
contact the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), Swansea
Driver licensing and tests, MOT and vehicle testing
contact the Driver & Vehicle Agency (DVA), Northern Ireland

If your query is about another topic, select ‘Other’ from the drop-down menu above.

For queries about your identity check, email nida@nidirect.gov.uk.

For queries or advice about passports, contact HM Passport Office.

For queries or advice about Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs), including parking tickets and bus lane PCNs, email dcu@infrastructure-ni.gov.uk

For queries or advice about pensions, contact the Northern Ireland Pension Centre.

If you wish to report a problem with a road or street you can do so online in this section.

If you wish to check on a problem or fault you have already reported, contact DfI Roads.

For queries or advice about historical, social or cultural records relating to Northern Ireland, use the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) enquiry service.

For queries or advice about rates, email LPSCustomerTeam@lpsni.gov.uk

For queries or advice about 60+ and Senior Citizen SmartPasses (which can be used to get concessionary travel on public transport), contact Smartpass - Translink.

If you have a question about a government service or policy, you should contact the relevant government organisation directly. We don't have access to information about you.

Extra comments (optional)