The Situation This Winter
Missile and drone attacks, compounded by one of the coldest winters in decades, have created an emergency for Ukraine's energy sector.
Families are resorting to desperate measures to survive. Power cuts are forcing people across the country to heat bricks for warmth, cook on camp stoves, and sleep in tents indoors to trap what little heat they can.
With freezing temperatures forecast for weeks and further strikes expected, conditions are unlikely to improve soon.
What This Means for Children
Despite showing remarkable resilience, Ukrainian children are bearing an impossible burden this winter.
Schools and universities have extended winter holidays, keeping children out of the classroom when they need stability most. Schools in Kyiv have closed until February, affecting 300,000 children.
Sleep has become another casualty of war. Air raid sirens jolt children awake night after night, leaving them exhausted and anxious. The toll on their mental health is immense - yet these children continue to show extraordinary courage.
Our Response
We've worked in Ukraine since 2014 and rapidly scaled up our operations when the war escalated in February 2022. Today, our network of more than 200 staff and 20 local partners delivers assistance in frontline regions across the country.
This winter, we're providing:
Emergency shelter repairs to protect families from the cold
Winter kits including blankets, warm clothing, and essential supplies
Heating fuel to keep children warm through power cuts
Cash assistance so families can meet their urgent needs
Hygiene items to maintain health and dignity
How You Can Help Children in Ukraine This Winter
Ukraine's energy infrastructure has suffered severe damage, and full recovery will take years. Even as winter eventually gives way to spring, children will continue to need support—for education, mental health services, and rebuilding their lives.
But there is hope. With sustained support from people like you, we can help Ukrainian children not just survive this winter, but begin to recover and rebuild.
Your support could provide warmth, safety, and hope to children facing unimaginable hardship. Together, we can make a difference.
Become a monthly donor
By giving monthly you can be ready to reach children before disaster strikes.
Your generous donation could provide children and families affected by the war in Ukraine, as well as other disasters across the world. It can also help create lasting change through longer term programmes to alleviate poverty and the chronic impact of climate change.
How your donations are helping children
As of February 2025, together with local partners, we've helped more than 4.6 million people - including more than 1.8 million children - in Ukraine and the region over the last three years.
This is only possible because of people like you: since 24th February 2022, you raised an astonishing £445 million through the DEC Ukraine Appeal.
Here's what we've done with some of that money so far...
In Ukraine
As of February 2025, our team in Ukraine has reached over 3.8 million children. Through your incredible support and our 25 partners we’ve been able to:
- support over 300,000 children with education support
- provide over 470,000 people with cash assistance
- provided 2.6 million people with water, sanitation, and hygiene support (WASH)
- distribute temporary shelter and essential items to 415,000 people
- provide mental health and child protection support to over 349,000 people
For more information on our impact in Ukraine, read our latest report.
Meet our child psychologists
Become a monthly donor
By giving monthly you can be ready to reach children before disaster strikes.
Our work with refugees from Ukraine
In poland
Around 985,000 refugees from Ukraine have fled to Poland.
In Poland, we have been supporting children and families who were forced to flee their homes in Ukraine.
How your donations are helping children
As of February 2025, we have reached over 420,000 people, including over 125,000 children by:
- providing education activities, including Polish language classes and summer schools to help Ukrainian children integrate and catch-up on missed learning
- Setting up child protection and mental health programmes such as art therapy and individual support for vulnerable children
- Giving cash to families so they can afford rent and other essentials
See the camps in full swing
In romania
Romania has been a key transit country for families fleeing conflict in Ukraine. By the end of December 2024, more than 6.8 million people had crossed into Romania since February 2022, with more than 175,400 people remaining in the country today.
How your donations are helping children
As of February 2025, we have reached over 367,000 people, including over 184,600 children by:
- Running eight Counselling Hubs where families can access local services, childcare and support for their children from trained professionals
- Supporting education programmes through Romanian language classes and summer camps
- Providing cash assistance to families so they can afford the essentials
Inside our child friendly spaces
The situation now
It’s been more than three years of full-scale war in Ukraine. Three years since millions of children’s lives have been torn apart and changed forever.
Children have seen their homes, playgrounds and schools bombed. They’ve lost loved ones to the violence or been separated from family members while being forced to flee.
Today, 1.9 million children in Ukraine need support to overcome the horrifying impacts of this war. Many carry emotional scars that run deep. For many children in the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, who have already lived through ten years of conflict, they have known nothing but war.
Thousands of children and families are still being forced underground to bunkers, as violence and shelling continues.
And - as in any crisis - children without caregivers or guardians in Ukraine are at increased risk of abuse, exploitation, trafficking and neglect.
Become a monthly donor
By becoming a monthly donor, you can ensure that our teams reach children all over the world, all year round.
Guaranteed income means we can plan long term solutions for children - like providing ongoing mental health support, or supporting them through our education work.
It also means you will remain close to the work we do and your unique impact through regular updates from us!
Becoming a monthly donor is the best gift you can give a child.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it safe for Save the Children to operate in Ukraine?
We've worked in Ukraine since 2014 and have extensive experience delivering aid in conflict zones. Our team of more than 200 staff work with 20 local partners across the country, including frontline regions. We continuously monitor the security situation and adapt our operations to keep staff and the families we serve safe.
How does the conflict affect children's education?
576 education facilities in Ukraine – including schools, kindergartens and universities – were damaged or destroyed in 2024 compared to 256 education facilities in 2023. This winter, power cuts and infrastructure attacks have forced extended school closures - with 300,000 children in Kyiv alone kept out of the classroom until February. Beyond physical access, many children struggle to concentrate due to interrupted sleep from air raid sirens and the ongoing trauma of war.
What are the biggest challenges facing families this winter?
Families are facing multiple, overlapping crises: freezing temperatures, power cuts disrupting heating and water supplies, damaged or destroyed homes, and the constant threat of further attacks. Many are resorting to desperate measures - heating bricks for warmth, cooking on camp stoves, and sleeping in tents indoors. Children are losing sleep due to air raid sirens and missing crucial education time.
