Organisations have worked tirelessly to provide a home from home for refugees

A service set up by Barnardo’s Scotland to help displaced people from Ukraine has supported more than 2,000 children, young people and families since the start of the invasion by Russia.

To mark World Children’s Day today (20 November), the charity has published an impact report to highlight the work it has been doing to assist those displaced by the ongoing war.

Barnardo’s Scotland Welcome (Ukraine) Service, which has been running since summer 2022, has worked to ensure that Ukrainian families have felt safe, welcomed and included in life in Scotland.

The service works closely with local authority resettlement teams, third sector partners, education, training and employment resources, as well as health and support services to ensure that children, young people and parents feel less isolated and can begin to integrate into their communities.

Martin Crewe, director of Barnardo’s Scotland, said: “To offer targeted support, we continue to work closely with a host of other organisations to deliver a range of services with the aim of ensuring that children, young people and parents receive the support they need to feel less isolated and integrate into their communities.”

One parent who, along with her family, was supported by the service said: “I am so grateful to Barnardo’s Scotland for helping my family and other people from Ukraine. We are grateful to all at Barnardo’s for the fact that, over a period of six months, they found ways to solve our problems relating to injuries, relocation, changes in life circumstances, the language barrier, loss of our quality of life and fear of the future.

“My daughter is enjoying life, and my son sleeps peacefully every night and likes to communicate with his peers. I am happy again with the achievements of my children. And I have returned to something resembling a normal life – continuing to study and work – and we can make plans again for the future. Barnardo’s Scotland was the best for us. We thank you very much and we will never forget you.”

At the outbreak of war, the Scottish Government made an initial commitment to welcome 3,000 displaced people from Ukraine, but, to date, more than 25,000 people have arrived in Scotland – more than eight times the initial expectation.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) statistics show that 25,365 people displaced from Ukraine have arrived in Scotland, many of these are women and children.