Newham is providing a safe haven for refugees from the war in Ukraine and it is also part of an East London solidarity campaign that has seen a regular flow of lorries taking urgent supplies from East London to Ukrainian refugees in Poland.

On 25 March, Tanya Oleksenko, who has lived in Newham for ten years, cried with relief when she welcomed to Canning Town her brother Sergey, his wife Ina, and their children Mykyta, aged 18, and Nina, aged 3, following their escape from war-torn Kharkiv.

The family are now safe in Canning Town after a month-long journey to safety, which involved sleeping in basements under the threat of Russian rocket attacks and a desperate 800-mile car journey from Ukraine, through Russia to Latvia.

The family realised they had to escape when their neighbourhood came under attack. After calls from people trying to contact one of their neighbours, they went to investigate and found the parents dead and three children alone in the house.

The family abandoned their home and small business as a glazing and window manufacturer and fled.

When they crossed to Russia, they were sent back to the war zone to get exit stamps on their passports. When they finally arrived in Riga, the capital of Latvia, they ran into more delays as their application for visas to the UK could only be processed in Berlin.

“It was such a relief when they finally arrived at Stansted airport,” Tanya told Newham Voices.

Tanya works with Tetiana Pasichnyk, who manages a Ukraine accountancy company based in West Ham Lane, which has recently obtained a licence to process visa applications.

“Many of our clients have been asking for help for their families in Ukraine,” she said, “but my parents have decided to stay at present. They are in their 70s and the nearest route to safety in Poland is a 20-hours journey.”

Tetiana has lived in the UK for 21 years. Most of the company’s clients are from Ukraine or have strong links with the country. She also has Russian friends.

“Some of them want to give up their Russian citizenship,” she said. “It’s not possible to be neutral in this conflict. People need to speak out, if they don’t they support the war by their silence.”

Meanwhile, next door to her business is the popular cafė Sawmill, whose proprietor Lana Zoubata is helping to organise solidarity assistance, raising funds for the Red Cross and collecting urgently-need materials as part of a huge relief effort.

Newham is already home to more than 2,000 Ukrainians and there are plans to provide refuge to more families fleeing the war.

On 21 March, Newham Council together with the migrants and refugee charity Praxis, the Renewal Programme, RAMFEL, and the NHS, organised a Ukrainian community event at Stratford Library.

More than 50 people attended. The event discussed the Ukraine Family Scheme to allow Ukrainians to bring families over for up to three years.

Newham residents will be able to sponsor family members to flee to the UK. Proof of the UK residence of the UK sponsor, proof of family relationship and proof of their residence in Ukraine will be needed. Refugees will have free access to the NHS, benefits and the right to work.

Households that will offer the refugee a spare room will receive £350 a month for the first six months.

Some Ukrainians raised the need for temporary housing and pushed for reducing skyrocketing hotel prices across the borough.

The Council says it is ready to help and Iryna Pereginyak, from the Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain (AUGB), said:

“This event shows that Newham Council is ready to assist Ukrainian refugees in all their needs. It would be useful to inform all potential British sponsors (via official websites) that the Council can be the point of reference for any enquiries that might arise.”

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