Ukraine evacuee builds new life as Brighton bus driver

Volodymyr Syrotiuk drove HGVs near Kyiv before Russia invaded

A Ukrainian evacuee has been hired as a Brighton bus driver under a recruitment scheme backed by the government.

Volodymyr Syrotiuk, 61, worked in a warehouse and drove heavy goods vehicles near Kyiv before the invasion by Russia in February 2022.

Now living in Brighton, he said his job had made settling into the UK easier.

The UK has been short of bus drivers since Covid and the Confederation of Passenger Transport has estimated 7% of bus driver posts are vacant.

Mr Syrotiuk said: "I'd encourage my friends from Ukraine to come here and to seriously consider being a bus driver like me.

"I get to be in a position where I'm responsible for 80 people every journey and it's satisfying."

Volodymyr Syrotiuk's new job made settling into his new life in Brighton easier, he said

Mr Syrotiuk is the first Ukrainian to be employed as a bus driver through a new recruitment scheme.

He was employed by Brighton and Hove Buses after parent company Go-Ahead began taking steps to hire Ukrainians last November in a programme supported by the Department for Work and Pensions.

The government has eased the process for Ukrainians to exchange their driving licences for British versions.

Brighton and Hove Buses managing director Ed Wills said the company was "extremely happy" to welcome Mr Syrotiuk to the team.

He said the company could offer jobs to Ukrainians wanting to build "a more peaceful life", adding: "I hope this is the first of many to come, and that we continue to be able to help more refugees like Volodymyr find work and security in the UK."

Eloise Cornish, employer adviser lead at Brighton and Hove Jobcentre, who met Volodymyr at a jobs' fair, said his positive attitude had "shone through".

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