I set off from the Wirral a few days after the war started in the Ukraine to collect my Ukrainian friend’s sister and her two daughters, who were looking to cross the Polish / Ukrainian border. We were reunited in Warsaw, Poland. Due to delays at the British Embassy, we were delayed in Warsaw for two weeks. My Ukrainian friend and I had driven over with my van filled with humanitarian aid. We dropped off the aid at the main bus station in Warsaw at the refugee tents. We talked with the volunteers there and were told that there were big gaps in the supplies they had - there was no new underwear or socks and many other basic supplies were often lacking - babymilk, nappies etc.... The Ukrainian refugees arriving at the bus depot have one small backpack, sometimes a small case and very often a cat or dog with them, their children and elderly relatives in tow. There is a tent where the refugees can get some hot soup and bread, some water, fruit and cake and very basic necessities - baby food, sanitary products, toothbrushes, nappies. There is a second tent - where the refugees can get clothing and there is an area inside the bus station with a set of tables with support volunteers trying to guide and assist the refugees on where they could go next on their journey. Since we dropped off our aid - We have raised over £13,500 as an addition to the funds on this Just Giving page and bought many thousands of pairs of new knickers and undies, socks, slippers, ladies and kids nightwear, baby food, sanitary products, dummies, baby bottles, hairbrushes, soap etc.... We ask the Polish and Ukrainian volunteers what they need and we drive out to the outskirts of Warsaw and buy trolleys of supplies and drop them off at the refugee tents and also at a drop in centre in Warsaw old town. In a matter of hours 60 shopping bags of new underwear were distributed to the refugees and in under 40 minutes they were gone. Two full bags of new hairbrushes were gone in 20 seconds. We have only been able to help a small proportion of people at the bus station due to the sheer volume of refugees arriving hour by hour in Warsaw. A new set of ladies pyjamas from the supermarket in Warsaw costs £5.40 and a pack of 3 socks for a child is £2.15. Your donations have gone a long way in making an immediate impact on a refugees well being and comfort. We have had a huge and immediate response from friends, family, colleagues and also parents from local schools who helped us to rapidly raise and then immediately spend £13,500 and then some more... My friend Andrew Evans flew over to Warsaw to help me shop and deliver our supplies to the refugee tents - mostly on underwear, pyjamas, slippers and basic supplies. Thank you so much to everyone for your donations. It was so overwhelming to see the bags we delivered immediately opened and a pair of new knickers in someone’s hands within a few seconds.

I arrived back in Liverpool on the evening of Sunday 20th March and have returned to Warsaw twice since this initial trip. On the most recent trips I have been asked by the volunteers to buy a fresh set of clothes for the refugee children (ages 4-16) to wear for their first day at school in Poland. The goal was that the Ukrainian children can start school feeling tidy and fresh and as confident as they can and to ensure the children we can help are not wearing their unwashed travelling clothes to meet their new Polish classmates. A t shirt, sweatshirt and tracksuit bottoms / leggings have been bought for many hundreds of Ukrainian school children with your donations. There are circa 100,000 Ukrainian refugee children in Warsaw currently and they are starting school within a few days of arriving in the city. 15,000 are enrolled and attending school currently.

I have a group of volunteers who have been trying to help with the fundraising - Kate McCarthy Booth, Jennagh Delaney, Andrew Evans and Ammer Malik. Thank you to the above for your support and for championing this cause alongside everyone who has donated or been fundraising or donating their time to help this cause - Maria Rodriguez Manzaneque Urquizu and Nicky Kewley who both helped me with managing the budget and spending allowance whilst in Warsaw. Thank you. Please keep sharing this link with your networks!! Thanks so much.