Hampshire opens its heart to traumatised Ukrainian children with hundreds of youngsters joining schools across the county

Figures from the Department for Education show at least 276 Ukrainian pupils have been offered school places in Hampshire as of May 27 – the latest available data.

A further 71 pupils were still waiting for an outcome to their application but may since have been granted a place.

The figures also show that 121 offers have been given to pupils settled from Afghanistan and 50 to children from Hong Kong.

The Association of School and College Leaders, which represents school heads, said that while refugee pupils have been warmly welcomed by schools, there is more work to be done to support them.

Geoff Barton, the organisation's general secretary said: ‘The main challenges are the language barrier and supporting the children with the trauma they have experienced.

‘We are concerned about the availability of wider specialist support for their mental health and wellbeing which schools can draw upon.

‘Our impression is that this is patchy and that schools are largely doing this on their own without any additional resources.’

Save the Children, a children's charity, agreed that more help is needed for Ukrainian pupils.

Dan Paskins, director of UK impact, said: ‘We are calling for more skilled caseworkers to speed up applications to come to the UK and to help if placements break down, and for more specialist mental health support for children and families.’

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