Britain has embraced a very different direction on the refugee issue over the weekend.

Last week the Home Secretary, (interior minister), Priti Patel, faced widespread criticism as stories rolled in of British families struggling to get their Ukrainian relatives visas to enter the UK.

Now the Health Secretary, Sajid Javid, has confirmed that people in the UK will be able to nominate an individual or family to stay with them rent-free, or in another property, for at least six months.

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Local authorities will receive extra funding for support services, and once refugees arrive, they'll be allowed to stay in the UK for at least three years with access to the NHS, education, and other services.

Households that take people in will be eligible for 500 dollars a month in government support.

There will be "no cap" on numbers according to Mr Javid.

Although the opposition party approve of the new scheme it has criticised the government's timing.

Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the Home Office had intelligence of the Russian invasion months ahead.

"Why has it taken so long?" she asked in parliament.

Meanwhile the UK-based Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) has raised nearly $200 million to support charities working with refugees and neighboring countries.

The DEC's Madara Hettiarachchi praised the solidarity in the UK for showing "so much kindness" from children to corporations.

On Sunday the stars were out for Britain's biggest movie awards event, the BAFTAs. All the talk was of Ukraine and its struggling population.

Actor Benedict Cumberbatch confirmed his willingness to take part in refugee support.

"Although this is a gesture and people could say it's hollow," he said, "it's just something I could do."

The English actor and producer Riz Ahmed said he hoped this was a moment of people "opening their eyes and their hearts" to the reality of refugee crises around the world.

Europe is mobilising. The United Nations is predicting nearly 7 million people displaced inside Ukraine, with a probable 4 million more fleeing across its borders, counting on the generosity and kindness of strangers who feel their pain.