NEWS

Our team members were awarded an award from the Red Cross, UHUG was nominated for the Mayor’s Award in the Community Service and Social Inclusion Award, and we have an AMDAF Foundation award in the Community Development area. All this is thanks to the hard work of our team, volunteers, and community members.

 We understand that the Ukrainian community consists of those who are waiting for the end of the war to return to Ukraine, and those who are already building a new life here in Ireland. We care for all members of the community equally, therefore, in addition to supporting inclusion and social activity for those who have found a safe haven during the war, we contribute to social development for those who have found their second home. 

Our current focus is on developing a strategy to include Ukrainians in the overall system of society development in Ireland, as the Ukrainian issue is not currently included in any local or national long-term plans. This is an important hindrance to the long-term planning of life, stability, and effective integration of Ukrainian people.

Despite the uncertain political circumstances, many families in our community do not have property in Ukraine due to destruction, occupation and other circumstances, so they are interested in working and settling in Ireland. However, dependence on the system and constant changes in the rules of accommodation, which Europe points out, make assimilation pause and wait for changes. Temporary status, frequent relocation to social housing in different regions, lack of housing for rent and other circumstances prevent employment when employers refuse due to status, lack of recommendations or range of residence.

Our team launched a large-scale project to collect statistical data among Ukrainians living in Galway City and County in order to qualitatively represent the interests of Ukrainians in Galway City and County Council and for better understand the real situation regarding the number of Ukrainians living in Galway.  This survey consists of several questions about people’s working experience, study, do they have children or not, general information about their families, in which area they live, whether they pay rent or using program for Ukrainians, about their housing state in Ukraine and in which part it is situated, whether they have relatives in Ukraine, whether they plan to return to Ukraine or to stay in Ireland, and some other questions that will help us form statistics for a holistic picture. The questionnaire goes into work only after the approval of each respondent to process its information for the purposes of this survey. Our organization has an accepted Date Protection Policy, according to which it collects, processes and stores data. The survey runs until 30 April 2025.

Over 45% of Ukrainians living in Galway City and County have higher education and are qualified specialists. They work in various jobs, such as cleaning, private entrepreneurs, and social institutions. By participating in Galway's economic, social, and cultural life, each of them is a responsible worker who benefits the community. Our objective is to keep them in this city and create favorable conditions for them to live and develop, along with other structures and organizations working on this issue.

So that the Ukrainian issue is not a problem or a reason for speculation, but on the contrary, contributes to the harmonious development of the Galway international community.

Our Main Goals