Child refugee finds same doll she left in Ukraine

Veronika and her mother spotted the doll in a warehouse as they picked up essential supplies

A child refugee has been given a doll exactly like the one she had to leave behind in Ukraine.

Toddler Veronika and her mother Tatyana spotted the doll in a warehouse run by the Surrey charity Stripey Stork as they picked up essential supplies.

The charity said in a tweet that mother and daughter got "very excited" when they saw the doll which was "just the same as one she'd had to leave behind".

Charity founder and chief executive Nicola Dawes said it made their day.

'Blew a kiss'

"It was particularly special to discover this doll was just the same as one that Veronika had not been able to bring from home," she said.

"A moment of joy and connection, and it made our day when Veronika blew us a kiss as she left."

Veronika and Tatyana arrived in the UK on Thursday to stay with a sponsor family in Epsom and Ewell as part of the Homes for Ukraine scheme.

After they arrived with one case and a pushchair, their host family contacted the baby bank charity to seek help sourcing practical items.

They travelled to the warehouse on Friday to pick up supplies prepared for them, including clothes, shoes, toys, a high chair, bed guard, potty training kit, nappies and toiletries.

Stripey Stork has been helping families across Surrey since it was formed in 2013.

It uses a model similar to a food bank to provide essentials to families with young children, and is now helping Ukrainian refugees arriving in the area.

The charity said on Twitter more than 700 families had been matched in Surrey so far.