Singer and actor Paloma Faith has been visiting projects supporting Ukrainian refugees in Poland funded by donations from the British public through the Disasters Emergency Committee’s (DEC) Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal.
Faith visited refugee centres and a dedicated school for refugee children being run by local partners of DEC charities that are receiving funds from the appeal. She said that the strength and resilience of the women would stay with her forever and described a “human chain of kindness” stretching from the UK to Poland and Ukraine.
Paloma Faith:
“It was so moving speaking to young mothers who have fled Ukraine. They had all made the difficult journey to Poland alone with their children, some of them crossing the border while they were pregnant. I met one woman, Emma, with a tiny baby and two other children and I could remember that feeling of trying to cope, trying to juggle everything.
“As a mother, all you want is for your children to be OK, to be happy and safe above all else – and you feel the pressure to make the best choices for them. Those women have had to make choices that no-one should ever have to.“
An incredible outpouring of support from the UK public over the year since the conflict began has seen donations to the appeal reach £400 million, including £25 million matched by the UK Government. This has made the DEC the largest charity donor to the regional refugee response, as well as the response inside Ukraine, according to UN OCHA’s Financial Tracking Service.
As part of the fundraising campaign, Faith took part in ITV’s Concert for Ukraine in March 2022, which raised over £13 million for the appeal. To mark one year on from when the conflict in Ukraine erupted, Faith traveled to Warsaw in Poland to see how the funds raised by the UK public are supporting refugees from Ukraine with shelter, food, education, psychological support and direct cash payments.
There are around 1.5 million refugees from Ukraine registered in Poland, the highest of any EU country. DEC charities have been working there directly and through local partners to help provide them with support. They have also been supporting refugees in Romania, Moldova and Hungary, while the majority of funds from the appeal have been spent inside Ukraine itself.
During her three-day trip, Faith visited a range of different DEC-funded projects that help to support Ukrainian refugees, meeting people benefitting from the projects and hearing their stories. As part of her visits to refugee centres, she met mothers who had been forced to flee Ukraine suddenly with their children, some pregnant, some not long after giving birth, and saw activities put on by the centres including Polish classes and a dance class.
Paloma Faith:
“The women I met are trying to deal with everything single mothers juggle daily, but with the added trauma of fleeing conflict, living in a country where they don’t speak the language, and for many, suffering the double discrimination of being Roma too. Their strength and resilience will stay with me forever. As one young mum said to me: ‘We’re women so we can do it, we can stay strong. We can cope with it all. No man could do it, could cope with what we have.’ They’re super-mums!”
Faith also visited a Ukrainian school set up for refugee children, where they are taught in their native language by Ukrainian teachers, helping maintain children’s education and national identity while integrating them into life in Poland.
Paloma Faith:
“Many families came to Poland expecting to be here only for a short period, but one year on from the start of the conflict, people are struggling with the reality of living in limbo for such a long time.
“Thanks to the generosity of the British public, there are so many different kinds of support that DEC charities are funding through local partners – from ensuring immediate needs such as food and shelter are met to tackling longer term needs like psychological support, education, language classes and even cultural activities like dance and music – which bring joy and a sense of belonging to people who are desperately waiting for their country to be safe again.”
Reflecting on the trip as a whole, Faith was struck by how much the staff and volunteers – many of whom are refugees from Ukraine themselves – wanted to support others, no matter where they were from.
Paloma Faith:
“Visiting these projects, I was really touched by how such a heartbreaking humanitarian situation has activated a human chain of kindness across borders. From the British public donating to the appeal, to local people in Poland using those funds to support refugees, to Ukrainian refugees volunteering to help fellow refugees, to children helping their mothers cope in the absence of fathers and extended families.
“I only hope this level of kindness will continue and be extended to other refugees facing the same issues across the globe, be it conflict or environmental disasters. After all, we are all connected.”
