On Wednesday, I visited the Ukrainian Community meetup group run in The Henley College and learned what it was like for the students to have the opportunity to unwind, chat in their native language, and how they have adapted to college, and England in general.  

Some of the students were happy to tell me about their backgrounds and how they found the group sessions themselves. 

Here are some of the students’ stories: 

‘I came to England two years ago, April 16th. In the first month, we were just going to stores, learning about the streets/cities like Wallingford, Henley, Didcot- such interesting places. For the first two months, I was going to English lessons, to learn it more, to better it. The first three to four months were hard because we didn’t know what we were going to do. We were going into the unknown future.’ 

‘I moved to England nearly two years ago. I think it [adapting to England] was okay. I moved to my host family, and they helped me a lot with adapting to England, also after a while with getting to school and with this experience, I found a lot of new friends. After that, I found other Ukrainian people around me, and I just went out with them. And after that, I got into college, so I think it was fine, it was good.’ 

‘[Moved to England] 5th of August 2022. First, at the start of the war, we went to Poland. We went to the place and there was a woman, which we rented the place out, and at some point, she messaged my mum and told her that she knew some people in England and that we could go to England. My mum decided we move in the summer of 2022.’ 

I also asked them what they appreciated most about the meetups and here is what they had to say: 

‘It’s a good place to reload our brains from English words and we just come here to talk about our problems- problems in Ukraine, problems at home, problems at work- problems somewhere. And we come here to share good news, like someone getting a new job, new relationships, someone going to another country and stuff. And we just help each other.’ 

‘I appreciate them [the meetups] because [I’m with] people with the same problems as me. They’ve been in the situation as me, they came to England, they need to adapt in a new country and stuff, so it’s why I really appreciate this group because we can talk about everything, and we understand each other better because it's a different mentality. So, it’s good that we have these meetings.’ 

Lastly, I was curious to find out about some differences they found between Ukrainian and British culture.  

‘So, most of the English guys are always smiling at you when you’re going past them, and we don’t know them. For the first time, it was a bit strange. Secondly, it’s prices. Prices are way more higher than in Ukraine. Meat, bread was, like, two, three, four pounds? In Ukraine they are one pound, the maximum price is two pounds.’  

‘It’s a complicated question. In reality, there are not a lot of differences but at the same time there are a lot of differences. Usually, Ukrainians don’t work until they have finished school or uni, like British people. So, I don’t really like being forced to work. People in the UK don’t really like it when you miss lessons for whatever reason. Even if you don’t feel very well, you stay at home to not get anyone else ill. For some reason they think that’s a very bad thing.’ 

‘British people may be more polite sometimes. With friendship, Ukrainian people are more open; they will hug you when they meet you, they will say hi and just start talking, but in England they will sometimes not say hi- but it depends on the person. It’s a bit different but not that much. You still can find friends in both cultures.’ 

Kateryna Kriachko, who runs the sessions, told me that the meetups were organised by Zoe Jelfs from the school’s Welfare Team and that they have been running for two school years. Describing the community as a family, here is what she had to say about the group: 

'It is really a blessing to have this Ukrainian meet up group. This room and these one and a half hours a week are the space for sharing all sorts of emotions, thoughts, challenges, and ideas. I can see how the group has helped the students and I am happy to be a part of this. 

In the very beginning, these young people told stories how the war broke into their lives, what happened with their families, how they could save and start a new life in the UK. Being heard, seen, understood and supported was very important then.  

However, we discuss not just the war, but relationships, learning challenges and plans for the future. Second-year students from the Engineering course and from Maths and Computing Science applied to universities and are now on the threshold of a new stage in their lives. Over the Christmas holidays, another student who studies Art at college, organized a trip for our group to the National Gallery in London. It was interesting and fun. Another student invited the guys from our group as actors to film a short movie as a project for her Media course. The result is breathtaking - I recommend watching it! 

Ukrainian students study different courses at college, and they are so different, but they go through challenges and help each other in an incredible way. I feel proud of all of them!'

It has been wonderful to gain an insight on perspectives and backgrounds so different from my own, as well as learning a little bit more about Ukraine and its culture! The biggest thing that I took away from the students’ and Kateryna’s answers, as well as my observations, was the tenacity of the community’s bond, highlighting the unwavering support they have for one another.