The UK must stand with Ukrainian children and introduce a Ukrainian GCSE
There are 34,000 Ukrainian children currently in the UK interested in pursuing a GCSE (Alamy)
4 min read
When war breaks out, it is children who pay the highest price.
Ukraine’s Ministry of Education has claimed that there are 34,000 potential students of Ukrainian descent interested in pursuing a Ukrainian GCSE: "about 27,000 displaced Ukrainian children and around 7,000 diaspora children.”
They carry memories of air raids and separation, but also the hope of stability, belonging, and the chance to learn.
Many still dream of returning to rebuild their country. But with Putin intent on prolonging this brutal war, we must strengthen the support they receive here and now.
In London, Holland Park has long been the heart of Britain’s Ukrainian community, from cultural events at the Institute to the legendary dumplings at the Social Club. Since the full-scale invasion, it has also become a hub for supporting these displaced children, helping them find stability.
At the start of September, I chaired a parliamentary roundtable on The Future of Ukraine’s Children, co-hosted by St Mary’s Ukrainian School, the Coalition for Global Prosperity, and the St James’s Foreign Policy Group. We were joined by parliamentarians, education leaders, and Ukrainian MP Lesia Vasylenko, who spoke movingly about the danger of children losing their culture and language in exile.
The discussion highlighted the extraordinary role St Mary’s Ukrainian School has played since 2022. Now operating across fifteen locations and teaching 2,500 children, St Mary’s offers far more than lessons. It provides psychological support, family assistance, and even medical care.
With 86 per cent of its staff themselves displaced by the war, the school has pioneered trauma-informed teaching. Uprooted children face higher risks of post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and disrupted learning. St Mary’s shows how schools can adapt, and Britain should embed trauma-informed practices more widely, for the benefit of all children facing adversity.
Another pressing issue is the lack of a Ukrainian GCSE. France, Germany, and Ireland have already expanded their language offer, yet here the qualification was discontinued in 1995. Today, over twenty languages are offered at GCSE, including Russian but not Ukrainian.
That cannot be right.
It should not be the case that Ukrainian children are offered Russian while the Russian state continues its brutal war of aggression, but not the chance to gain qualifications in their own language.
Exam boards and the Department for Education have already signalled support, and many refugee teachers here are willing to help write the curriculum. This is an opportunity to make a lasting impact and leave a legacy for generations to come.
Finally, the dream of a permanent bilingual Ukrainian school is beginning to take shape. Many Ukrainian schools currently struggle to secure premises, despite the generosity of their hosts. Yet London already has thriving French, Spanish, and German schools, several of which are located in my own constituency of Kensington & Chelsea.
There is a clear demand for a permanent Ukrainian school that can provide stability, specialist support, and cultural continuity. Crucially, a venue has already been secured and local authority backing is in place. The UK–Ukraine 100-year partnership agreement also identifies education as a priority, including support for bilingual schools. Delivering a permanent Ukrainian school would be a historic legacy for both our nations.
Every classroom, every safe space, every lesson is more than education. It is an investment in Ukraine’s future leaders, thinkers, and builders, young people who will one day return to rebuild their country with courage and vision. Supporting them today means giving them the knowledge, resilience, and stability they need to thrive, both here and when they return home.
I am proud of the support Britain has given Ukraine, from defence and humanitarian aid to sanctions and refugee programmes.
But standing with Ukraine also means standing with its children. Three and a half years into this war, one truth is clear: resilience creates hope, and hope drives action. The decisions we make in Westminster today will echo in Kyiv tomorrow.
Britain has a chance to lead by ensuring these children are given the best possible start in life. We must seize it.
