Ukraine-Russia: One in 20 Ukrainian refugees who fled war to UK living in Scotland

One in 20 refugees who have come to the UK after fleeing the war in Ukraine or living in Scotland, new figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) have found.

The ONS said the vast majority of refugees who had arrived in Britain before the survey was conducted at the end of April were female, while 44 per cent were 30 to 49 years old.

The report found 5 per cent of those recently arrived were now living in Scotland, with the vast majority in England and almost a third having settled in London.

A third of respondents said they could speak a fair amount of or fluent English. However, nearly two thirds of respondents said their preferred language is Ukrainian when accessing information in the UK. The UK Government has been criticised for forms used for visa applications under the home for Ukraine scheme being available only in English.

Around one in 20 Ukrainian refugees who fled the war to the UK are living in Scotland.

Nearly 70 per cent of Ukrainians in the UK aged 65 years or younger reported being very likely or likely to look for work in the next month. Nearly three-quarters of respondents are educated to degree level or above.

A quarter reported they had enough money to support themselves and their dependants for the next three months.

Respondents were asked about their living arrangements. A third of respondents reported being the only person in their household who has arrived from Ukraine since March 1, 2022. Over a third live with one other person who also arrived from Ukraine, while around three in ten respondents live with two or more other arrivals. Other than the people they live with, half of respondents said they had family, friends or contacts in the UK.

Nearly half of respondents reported living with at least one dependent child, with 17 per cent living with one or more dependent adults. Of those with at least one dependent child, 48 per cent have at least one child requiring a primary school education service, while 38 per cent have at least one child requiring a secondary school education.

Around three in ten refugees said they expect other family members or friends to come to the UK in the future, while 37 per cent said they did not expect any others to join them in the UK.

“Carrying out a survey among such a specific group of people recently arrived in the UK is a first for us,” said Tim Gibbs from the ONS. “Although the results are still experimental, they can help charities, local authorities and other service providers to understand and meet immediate needs.”

When asked about their health, the majority of respondents said their overall physical health and overall mental health was good or very good – 77 per cent and 76 per cent respectively. This is comparable with the UK average overall health status.

However, nearly one in five respondents reported having a long lasting physical or mental health condition or illness. Around a third said that before leaving Ukraine, they were receiving regular healthcare treatment. Of those, a quarter said this treatment had continued since arriving in the UK.