Gloucestershire opens homes to more than 700 Ukrainians

Nigerian-born refugee Excel was working in Ukraine when Russia invaded

More than 700 Ukrainians have been given a place to stay in Gloucestershire under the Homes for Ukraine scheme.

The government initiative allows UK residents to sponsor named Ukrainian nationals, with more than 1,000 applications received in the county.

Excel fled Ukraine when Russia invaded and said the Gloucestershire community has been "really helpful".

Across the county, 327 properties have Ukrainian families living in them.

Excel left Nigeria, where he was born, to study to become a doctor but after settling in the Ukraine was displaced within the country when Russia moved in to Luhansk in 2014.

At that time, he did not want to leave the country and moved to Kyiv but had to flee again the day after Russia invaded the whole country in February.

"This is the second time we have had to flee our home," he said.

Excel has been helped to settle into the area by the Stroud Ukrainian Community Network

He said he planned to just go to west Ukraine with his wife and mother-in-law, but they were forced to keep going until he hit the Polish border, a journey that would normally take six hours, but ended up taking four days.

Excel, who worked as a gynaecologist and cancer specialist in Kyiv, has so far been unable to find work in the UK, but said that since moving near to Stroud, "everyone has been really friendly".

"It gives you the impression you are really accepted here, like you don't feel like a stranger," he said.

Excel has been helped to settle into the area by the Stroud Ukrainian Community Network.

Tom Jarman is one of the coordinators and said that since setting up the network in March hundreds of local people have offered to host refugees.

"We've dealt with a lot of issues in terms of visa applications and [things like] how do you bring pets into the country if you're bringing pets in," he said.

Cheryl said she was very keen to help support Ukrainians

Cheryl is also one of the coordinators and said she was "very keen to help support" Ukrainian refugees after her husband was training forces in the Ukraine earlier this year.

She said: "I've not lived here very long but I am hugely proud of the people locally and how they have responded."

Stroud and Cheltenham have housed the most Ukrainians, with 156 and 155 respectively, with the Cotswolds and Forest of Dean not far behind, with 141 and 126.

Mr Jarman said: "Even for those returning to Ukraine in time, they will go with better ties to the UK, which is a very positive thing."