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Destruction caused by aerial shelling in Eastern Ghouta. February 25, 2018.

Syria Crisis Appeal

Syria has endured seven long years of conflict. But for hundreds of thousands of children, the last few months have been the worst.

An escalation in fighting throughout the country in recent months has forced hundreds of thousands to flee their homes. Most are in desperate need of food, shelter and healthcare.

We continue to fight tirelessly for children. In northwest Syria, where many families have fled, our partners are making sure children have enough to eat and somewhere safe to shelter by distributing food, shelter materials and cash for fuel..

We’re also creating Child Friendly Spaces, where children, like seven-year-old Ibrahim, below, can be protected, receive psychosocial support and continue learning.

Ibrahim*, seven, from Deir Ezzour , holds a pencil and looks up to Save the Children’s facilitator at a Child Friendly Space providing activities for children in a displaced camp in northeast Syria

Ibrahim*, seven, with Save the Children’s facilitator at a Child Friendly Space, which provides activities for children in a displaced camp in northeast Syria

We’re fighting for a world where every child has a chance to fulfil their full potential and make their mark on the world.

For as long as there has been conflict, our staff and partners have been on the ground in Syria and its neighbouring countries, working around the clock – supporting children and families still in war zones and who've been able to escape to safety across borders.

We’re doing whatever it takes. When the situation in Syria changes, we adapt our response.

Read more about our three key areas below.

In northwest Syria, we’re operating from four primary healthcare facilities and one maternity hospital, providing maternal and reproductive healthcare.

On average, 20,000 people, mostly children and women, use these facilities every month.

Nadia, one, is screened for malnutrition by a Save the Children health officer in a tented refugee settlement near the Syrian border. She and the family all live in a small dark tent with very few basic necessities and we've supported them to help buy food, water and medicine. We also monitor the camp for signs of malnutrition and conduct regular health ‘outreach’ visits.

Nadia, one, is screened for malnutrition by a Save the Children health officer in a tented refugee settlement near the Syrian border. She and the family all live in a small dark tent with very few basic necessities and we've supported them to help buy food, water and medicine.

For some of the people who can’t access our clinics, we do household visits and run referral services in local communities.  We provide health and family planning support and run nutrition and hygiene awareness sessions.

We’re also working with partners to deliver a mass vaccination project aimed at restoring routine immunisation services to children under 5 to ensure they steer clear of preventable diseases.

Nutrition is a key part of our healthcare response and we have seven nutrition centres in Syria. At these centres, we identify and treat malnourished children, like Nadia above, and offer counselling and guidance for caregivers on the importance of breastfeeding.

Children are at more risk in war and conflict zones now than at any time in the last 20 years.

They face being killed, maimed and recruited to fight, as well as besiegement and denial of humanitarian access.

Child Protection is at the heart of our response to the Syria conflict.

Our "Child Friendly Spaces" not only provide children with a safe place to play, but also offer vital psychosocial support to help them cope with the trauma of war.

Syrian children play football in a "child friendly space" in one of the camps for displaced people in northwest Syria, close to the Turkish border.

Syrian children play football in a "child friendly space" by one a camp for displaced people in northwest Syria, close to the Turkish border.

Theses spaces are designed for children.

We provide lessons on music, drawing, sport and dance to encourage children to express themselves during their recovery and allow them to have fun and just be children again.

Beyond these stationary Child Friendly Spaces, we also have four mobile teams. This means we're able to bring this support to children in hard-to-reach areas.

We’re distributing core relief items to families who have been forced to flee their homes, and are in desperate need of essential items - such as blankets, sleeping materials, cooking utensils, sleeping materials and toiletries

Food is now scarce and prohibitively expensive, with many essential items now costing nearly 800 per cent more than in government-controlled areas just a few kilometres away.

Most families are trying to survive on just one meal a day.

We’re addressing food insecurity issues through the distribution of emergency food rations and fresh food vouchers.

Save the Children’s partners, Syria Relief, Shafak and Violet are providing shelter and food to children and their families.

Save the Children’s partners, Syria Relief, Shafak and Violet are providing shelter and food to children and their families.

We’ve provided livestock for vulnerable displaced families to help recover food production and agricultural activities.

We’re also delivering cash grants to families to offer them a chance of recovering their household income and address the longer-term needs of rebuilding lives.

However, the scale of need is far beyond current resources and funding is urgently needed to provide thousands more families with the food they need.

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