our mission

Our Mission is to provide our cared-for Kids with the love, help and practical support needed to be safe, to learn, be healthy and flourish. 

Our Journey: Empowering Ukrainian Orphans Through Love

Dnipro Kids was set up by Hibernian FC fans when their Club played a UEFA tie against Dnipropetrovsk in 2005. Some fans took the time out to visit a state orphanage. Moved by what he saw, Steven Carr (MBE) set up the charity and is its Chairman. He has been going back at least twice a year ever since, visiting the kids, he and charity worker Natalie Radchenko organising holidays and excursions, and delivering gifts.

Our Story

  1. We couldn't do nothing.

    Sometimes, ordinary people do the most extraordinary things. Who would believe an alarm engineer would mastermind and run the evacuation of more than 50 people making up six orphanage families from the city of Dnipro, 2200 miles away, on the banks of the River Dnieper?

  2. 50 children evacuated by Scottish charity.

    The story that gathered headlines around the world in March 2022 was of a little charity run by a volunteer group of football fans. Through the Chairman Steven Carr (MBE) the charity achieved this feat at a time when the world was still struggling to come to terms with what was happening. Six extended groups – kids aged 2-20 in groups headed by “house parents” - arrived in the UK with offers of help pouring in.

    They were the first group from Ukraine to arrive in Scotland and they remain the only group of cared-for youngsters fleeing war in Ukraine who are here in the UK.

  3. Finding a path forward.

    That story continues to far less fanfare in Edinburgh today as Dnipro Kids continues to work in an inspirational partnership to care for a group which now comprises more than 60 wonderful, complex, interesting people.

    We’re now well into the next major phase of our care, getting our individual families back into more natural surroundings. Finding homes large enough to accommodate groups that are 6-14 strong has not been easy, but to date we have managed to find homes for four families – two in Edinburgh and two in Perth.

    And we still need your help and support...

Our Story

Since starting up in 2005, Dniprokids has changed the lives of countless Ukranian Orphans and Refugees, through visits, donations of clothing, and even assisting in evacuations.
Raising money for [Orphan Name’s] Hip Replacement

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Rehoming 50 orphans in Edinburgh, Scotland.

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Helping evacuate 48 refugees to Poland

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A Tribute to Ilya Polyashova

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What we’ve achieved since:

  • Schooling

    The partnership helped get every child into schools – with extraordinary welcomes from Castleview Primary and Castlebrae Community Campus. Since then, we have also had children join the school roll at Brunstane Primary and Portobello High.

  • Healthcare

    Initially Southfield Medical Practice took all the group into their care, and an array of dentists and the children’s dental service has ensured all of the group have now been seen. Medical needs as diverse as mental health and cancer are being treated. Literally hundreds of appointments have been organised and attended. Some of the group have now transferred to other GP practices.

  • Finances

    Bank accounts had to be opened for all of the adults, and this was achieved with the help of Royal Bank of Scotland and others, with the charity providing translators for all of the appointments that took place. We’ve assisted the group access entitled benefits and now, for many, work.

  • Communicating

    The charity initially organised a team of translators to help the group settle, with tasks as diverse as optician appointments to daily shopping runs. Funds donated helped us supplement the existing college-run English language courses by employing our own English teacher for almost a year. In this, we were considerably helped by a sizeable donation from Persimmon Homes.

  • Employment

    We have also funded a unique partnership with Edinburgh College, Castlebrae, and Barnardos along with others, to work with our older young people aged 16+ to ensure we find the most positive destinations possible for them – be it in further or higher education, or in good jobs. In addition, we’ve helped many of our house parents find part-time jobs to help make ends meet.

  • Transport

    To enable our primary school children to travel to and from school safely, and with the generous help of law firm Addleshaw Goddard, we purchased and have been running a minibus for the daily school run and for everyday excursions.

  • Fun

    We bought a built a play area outside the group’s accommodation; purchased UK phones and sim cards; toys, bicycles and scooters; clothes and school uniforms; and provided laptops and tablets.

    The Polyakov family have been generous and regular donors and have helped meet the costs of holidays and excursions for the group, including a recent trip to Blairvadach outdoor centre on the west coast.

    We’ve organised holidays in London and York, and a plethora of events and activities. Hibernian Community Foundation has provided a steady stream of free matchday tickets and coaching for the kids. The UK space industry has raised funds for us, to help support these activities. Other generous donors have included Baillie Gifford, Lindsays, the Orcome Trust, City Charitable Trust, Best Bars Charlotte, Enshored, and Anna Jones (Cahoots). And not to forget the ongoing support of Hibernian fans, whose generosity through the Hanlon Stevenson Foundation, Hibs.net and through our own bucket collection, has been outstanding. We are pleased to say other clubs fans have also stepped up, in particular Aberdeen FC.

    Every donation has helped us to provide everything to the group from day one, from breakfasts to clothes, from holidays to birthday and Christmas gifts.

  • Supporting Those Who Stayed Behind

    Not all the orphanage families we have supported all these years chose to come to Scotland, and some remained in Ukraine, while others are now in Spain or Germany. We continue to support all of our families from the donations you give us, providing not only gifts for birthdays and Christmas, but money for essential supplies and equipment. Please don’t forget, we continue to support those enduring the hardships of war.

What’s Next?

We are now in the next phase of our caring work – finding genuine family homes for our group. This is no easy task when the groups are, on average, around 10-11 strong. However, through hard work we have found homes for four of our six families in Scotland, with two in Edinburgh and two in Perth with the support of Perth and Kinross Council.

Each new home we find involves the charity in considerable expense – through furnishings, deposits and initial rental payments.

As the young people grow up in Scotland, we are being increasingly called upon to assist with their ongoing educational and developmental needs – remember these are care-experienced children who have been subjected to the trauma of war and of fleeing their homes and homeland.

We continue to need your help and support!

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Our Chairman

Steven Carr (MBE) is the Chairman of the Dnipro Kids charity. He was part of the group of supporters that helped organise the very first visit, to the Predniprovsk orphanage, in Dnipro back in 2005 when the football team Hibernian FC travelled there for a UEFA Cup match.

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Contact dniprokids

Drop us an email if you'd like to be involved in any capacity.

Email address

info@dniprokids.com