For many refugees, Poland is the first safe destination that offers protection from war. Unfortunately, our placement options are limited, and many refugees want to flee further, but are not sure whether this is possible or how. Thanks to cooperation with foreign foundations and private hosts willing to accept refugees from Ukraine, our volunteers help those fleeing war to reach other countries.
We help refugees at every stage of the relocation process. As soon as they arrive at our centre, they can count on a consultation with our volunteer. Each person is registered, so we have constant access to contact details and can control the situation until it’s resolved.
If a refugee does not know which country he or she wants to go to or where to stay once there, we provide up-to-date options and information on government support provided by each country. We provide advice, and if the person decides to leave, we contact friendly foundations and connect the person or family with a host that is able to accommodate them. We help with all the paperwork, provide air and bus transportation and, if necessary, provide accommodation so that refugees can rest comfortably and await their journey. With the help of foreign foundations, as well as private donors, we are able to organise free transportation, both by air and by bus. In order to help effectively, we try to organise transport in such a way as to use every seat on the bus or car, so as to maximise the effect of the funds spent.
People who already have family or friends in other countries, for example, also come to us. Then we also help with transport, formalities, and providing shelter or food while waiting for the journey. We also receive applications from citizens of other countries who would like to help and take someone in, but do not quite know how to do this. We managed to bring together, for example, the three grandsons of an elderly woman who lived in Madrid but did not know whether it was at all feasible to take the boys out of Ukraine. So, we organised transport to bring the boys from Kyiv to Poland, arranged transport and accommodation for the grandmother in Poland, and after a meeting in Warsaw, the family travelled safely together to Madrid. The happiness and relief we saw on the faces of the grandchildren and the grandmother was the best thanks for the long-term work.
We are in constant contact with both the people we are helping to cross into another country and their hosts. Our role in the process only ends when we receive confirmation that the refugee is already safe at their destination, has settled in and no difficulties or doubts have arisen. Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, we have managed to organise trips for over 1000 people – they went to Spain, Germany, France, Switzerland, Sweden or the Netherlands, Portugal, Denmark, Norway, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Ireland, Finland or Georgia.
Every day, up to 800 refugees arrive at the reception centre at Warszawa Wschodnia railway station. Out of these, about 100 people ask us for relocation assistance. The organisation of the whole process of departure is quite complicated logistics requiring many interviews and travel arrangements. We still lack volunteers, especially those communicating in Ukrainian or Russian. We do not want refugees to have to wait for a long time in uncertainty about the next steps. We encourage you to support the information centre – application for volunteers: [email protected]
If you need support in relocating, call our helpline: +48 577 121 101.
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