Responding to international humanitarian crises: Lessons from the UK higher education sector response to the invasion of Ukraine

The broad spectrum of responses – which has drawn together funders, regulators, government agencies, universities, and both private sector and charitable organisations – has meant the UK’s response to supporting the higher education community in Ukraine has been significant. However, the scale and impact of this response has posed questions over how the UK sector can respond to, and support, other higher education systems experiencing humanitarian and other forms of crises.  

This report aims to reflect on the work undertaken in the sector to support universities in Ukraine, through the twinning initiative and beyond, and draw lessons for the future. 

Drawing on the experiences of those closely involved, the report highlights how the UK sector was mobilised to support universities in Ukraine and sets out ways in which we might better respond to future crises, while recognising that there is no ‘one size fits all’ model. It reflects on the policy, funding and political levers which have enabled a broad-based response and how these need to be considered when formulating a response to emerging crises at individual, institutional and sector levels. The report sets out a framework that institutions might employ to help develop and tailor such responses, providing a practical tool that can help maximise the effectiveness and impact of university action. 

This report was funded as part of a £5m grant from Research England. More information on this grant and other grant outputs can be found on our website. 

Full length case studies can be found in the full report. 

Case Study 1: Ukrainian Catholic University, success in twinning and partnerships

The Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU) was the first Catholic university to be established in Ukraine and is a modern, innovative institution educating future professionals for Ukraine and the world. For UCU, fostering global solidarity with academic partners was a priority when the country was invaded, and it has since established fruitful partnerships with UK HEIs including the University of Nottingham (UoN) and the University of Warwick.

Work with partners included the decolonisation of Russian studies and a new prominence for Ukrainian humanities, the United in Solidarity: UoN – UCU Faculty Collaboration Research Programme, and the allocation of 20 scholarships for Warwick’s summer school.

The research programme is currently supporting projects in post-conflict memory, reconciliation, and culture wars.

Case Study 2: Vasyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University (PNU), research collaboration and knowledge exchange

Vasyl Stefanyk PNU ranked 11th in the Top 200 universities in Ukraine in 2023. It was twinned with the University of East Anglia (UEA) in the early months of the invasion and was awarded a £131,000 grant for a collaborative research project, 'Preparing the Ground for Reconstruction'. This funding will be used to purchase a spectrophotometer, a DSLR camera, and to provide seed funding for startups.

Both universities continue to collaborate on researching soil and water restoration, Ukrainian eco-startups, and the global impact of war via journalism. Differing administrative systems and legal frameworks between Ukraine and the UK have been a challenge but extensive planning and adaptation has mitigated this.

A “Hackathon” for staff and students of both universities is being planned for September

Case Study 3: The Open University, replicability of the remote learning model

The Open University’s unique remote and digital model led to innovative responses to the invasion, including digital connectivity, financial packages, and bespoke online courses. Courses included 'English in the World Today', 'Understanding Your Sector' and 'Making Sense of Mental Health Problems', all hosted for Ukrainian refugees via the OpenLearn platform.

The launch of the Open Futures Sanctuary Scholarships scheme will see 12 scholarships funded every year for the next 3 years and will include a £20,000 fee waiver. 8 refugees from Ukraine were in receipt of these in its debut year.

The ongoing nature of the crisis has presented resourcing challenges, but the OU’s impact has been clear. A webinar on delivering online learning was attended by over 800 colleagues from Ukrainian HEIs and 2 Ukrainian academics are also being hosted via Cara fellowships.

Case Study 4: Bath Spa University, continuation of existing partnership activities  

Bath Spa has been building partnerships with Ukrainian universities for over a decade, mostly enabled by EU funding. Its largest projects have included Academic Quality Assurance, governance, and the teaching of journalism within higher education.

When the invasion took place, the university was leading three separate projects with Ukrainian HEIs and provided support and guidance to colleagues in the early months of the crisis.

Bath Spa formally twinned with the International University of Economics and Humanities, one of its existing partners, in May 2022 and in the following month established the new Bath Spa Sanctuary Scholarship.

The DESTIN project, which began in 2018 with 13 Ukrainian partners, completed in November 2022 with a final project meeting hosted in Poland, rather than Lyiv. Representatives from the majority of partner universities were able to attend.

Case Study 5: Newcastle University, English language training and pedagogical innovation

Newcastle’s Language Resource Centre developed an English language facilitation programme which sought to support over 70 Ukrainian students over two six-week periods. Bringing together both Newcastle students and those from the National University of Water and Environmental Engineering, the programme provided direct English language support and allowed Newcastle students to give practical and purposeful assistance to their peers.

Using the PPP formula of Presentation, Practice and Production, participants undertook task-based learning exercises with Microsoft Teams channels set up for discussion and collaboration.

Power cuts and intermittent WiFi did mean students could not always be in attendance, but the programme was still able to deliver 1.5 hour sessions each week for 6 groups of students. Friendships were also made throughout.

Case Study 6: University of Leicester, academic audit and areas of collaboration 

The University of Leicester was founded by public donation as a memorial of those who served in the First World War and it continues its heritage of kindness today as a University of Sanctuary. It has formally twinned with two Ukrainian universities and has worked to develop knowledge and understanding of the Ukrainian education sector.

An audit of academic links identified many opportunities for collaboration and the university was awarded £220,000 of UKRI funding for two projects – in food supply chain management and the use of drone technology in agriculture.

The university faced initial challenge in shipping resources and materials to the universities affected due to a lack of systems and networks that may be more readily available within humanitarian organisations. However, its impacts have been great, providing full scholarships, online English language classes, and sending winter clothing to Ukrainian peers, to name a few.

Case Study 7: King’s College London, showcasing the 'University Sponsorship Model' 

The University Sponsorship Model provides a safe route to the UK, access to universities, and related support to students and academics who have been forcibly displaced. It is hoped that this can be developed into a wider model to support forced migrants across the world.

The invasion of Ukraine created urgency in expanding the sponsorship model and a consortium was created with the Open University, Newcastle, and Leicester by April 2022. The University Gateway, an online matching portal, was also created to partner Ukrainian guests with community hosts.

Though language barriers, recruiting hosts and the limitation of safe and legal pathways to the UK posed some barriers, over 60 individuals impacted by the invasion have been supported so far and there is a strong ambition to scale and replicate the model beyond its current capacity.

Case Study 8: Student Action for Refugees (STAR), championing refugees in universities and beyond

The STAR network was mobilised to support Ukrainian refugees from the beginning of the invasion and called for refugees to be a priority in the UK government’s response. Guidance and resources for individuals looking to access higher education were adapted from those already developed in the response to the crisis in Afghanistan.

STAR was able to connect with university leaders via regular meetings chaired by UUKi and advocated for access to student finance and domestic tuition fees for those displaced. Working with partners at Refugee Education UK and Universities of Sanctuary, the Displaced Student Opportunities UK portal was also created – providing a database of higher education opportunities open to people from refugee backgrounds.

STAR continues to build the platform, which they aim to be a comprehensive source of information for applicants and providers.

Notes: 

1. The report can be found on the UUKi website.  

1. The authors will present their findings at a UUKi webinar on the 14 September, 12:00-13:00. You can sign up to attend.  

2. Halpin Partnership (Halpin) is a specialist management consultancy founded to meet the needs of the UK higher education sector. Halpin places high-quality research at the heart of all projects and draws on the experience of a team of Consulting Fellows, each with their own unique areas of expertise, at senior and cross-sector levels. The full team deployed on this project can be found on the Halpin website. Halpin was appointed by Universities UK in February 2023 to conduct a review into the UK higher education sector’s response to the invasion of Ukraine following a public and open tendering process. If you have any questions, comments, or contributions regarding this report, please contact [email protected]. 

3. The ‘Responding to international humanitarian crises’ report and individual contributions are the independent views and work of the authors and are not necessarily endorsed by the project funders: Universities UK, Universities UK International, Research England and UK Research and Innovation.