Families in Norfolk have agreed to open their homes up to hundreds of refugees fleeing war-torn Ukraine, new figures have shown.

To date, more than 1,000 visas have been granted to people looking to escape the conflict in the Eastern European country and settle with sponsors in Norfolk.

But of the 1,017 people who have been granted permission to enter the county, fewer than 600 have arrived so far.

The figures, published this week, relate solely to those given permission through the Homes for Ukraine Sponsorship scheme - not the Ukraine Families Scheme.

The Homes for Ukraine Sponsorship scheme sees Ukrainians given the go-ahead to settle in the region if a Norfolk family has agreed to house them and sponsored them by name.

It is one of two main methods by which refugees can flee the warzone to the United Kingdom, with the other allowing existing Ukrainian ex-pats to bring over members of their own families.

According to the statistics, 579 Ukrainian refugees have arrived in the county through the sponsorship scheme, as of May 30.

Of these, almost a third have been in the South Norfolk local authority area, with 165 refugees having arrived in that part of the county.

South Norfolk is also the area expecting the most, with 233 visas issued in South Norfolk, almost a quarter of the total granted.

The figures place South Norfolk as the county's highest-ranked local authority area nationally, with the statistic making it the area with the 44th greatest number of arrivals in the country.

The local authority area that has seen the fewest number of visas granted and fewest arrivals is Great Yarmouth, with 83 visas and 34 arrivals.

In Norwich, 132 visas have been granted, resulting in the arrival of 81 people to settle in the city.

Elsewhere, 124 visas have been issued for people to settle in Breckland, 105 in Broadland, 171 in West Norfolk and 169 in North Norfolk.

So far, these have resulted in 92 arrivals in Breckland, 63 in Broadland, 99 in West Norfolk and 105 in North Norfolk.

Speaking previously, Andrew Proctor, Norfolk County Council leader, said: "We are rightly proud of the generosity our county has shown with people opening their homes, preparing to welcome our newest residents, raising money and getting supplies directly to the refugees from Ukraine

"It’s our collective job to keep everyone as safe as possible."