Triangle report finds that Ukrainian refugees are staying out of school due to the presence of unaddressed barriers to enrolment. 

[WARSAW, FEBRUARY 22, 2024] – Two years on from the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the large majority of young Ukrainian refugees are missing from Polish classrooms, a new report has found. The report entitled “Out of School: Assessment on barriers to school enrolment for Ukrainian refugee adolescents in Poland,” finds that without immediate action by public and private actors, Ukrainian adolescents in Poland will continue to experience heightened protection risks and move further and further away from entering formal in-person education.  

“It’s time to acknowledge the barriers to education and protection these children face from being out of school are resolvable, and take decisive steps to integrate all children in the Polish education system to ensure no child is left behind,” said Sami Halabi, Triangle’s Director of Policy and Team Leader of the report. “This is especially true given the current discussions around funding for Ukraine in Brussels and Washington, alongside other capitals.”  

Commissioned by CARE International, and supported by Save the Children and the International Rescue Committee, the study adopted a mixed methods approach to provide policy makers and practitioners with nationally representative data around education and protection issues relating to out-of-school Ukrainian adolescents aged 10 to 18. The research consisted of responses from government officials at the local and central levels, representatives from international agencies working in Poland, local-level school staff, and over 1,000 Ukrainian refugee women, men, and adolescents currently in Poland.