Ukrainian children ‘forced' to study Russian GCSE

Telegraph

19-05-2025

Ukrainian children living in the UK have claimed they are being 'forced' to take Russian GCSE to boost their schools' grades.
The Telegraph has spoken to several Ukrainian refugees who allege they were pressured into taking the subject despite feeling deeply uncomfortable speaking the language following the Russian invasion.
Bridget Phillipson, the Education Secretary, has now written to exam boards asking them to consider introducing a GCSE in Ukrainian.
Ms Phillipson is also expected to meet her Ukrainian counterpart this week to discuss deepening educational links between London and Kyiv.
Top private schools are among those understood to be pushing Ukrainian children to sit a GCSE in Russian, alongside several high-performing academies.
The Telegraph has chosen not to name the schools after the children asked to remain anonymous, with each school likely only to accept a handful of Ukrainian refugees.
The Government described the allegations as 'shocking' and said it was encouraging exam boards to introduce a Ukrainian GCSE to help refugees 'celebrate their heritage and their native language'.
'It feels like a betrayal of Ukraine'
Liuba, an 18-year-old from the west of Ukraine, said she was pressured by a UK academy into sitting Russian GCSE even though she did not speak the language.
'I only had science, maths, [English] language and literature – I needed at least one more to get into college. I got told to do Russian, even though I was thinking of doing German, but I wasn't allowed,' she told The Telegraph.
'It was psychologically hard for me because I don't use Russian in my day-to-day life and I'd never done it before the war… There was one point in one of my teaching sessions where the woman was like 'oh well, if we're learning Russian then you might as well just start speaking Russian, because an exam has a speaking part as well'.
'I kept on trying to say something in Russian, and I kept crying because it was such an emotional thing for me to do – it was psychologically hard to find it inside of myself and to actually start speaking that language.'
Liuba said she felt 'guilty' about learning Russian during the invasion and chose not to disclose the matter to her friends back in Ukraine.
'I felt like I betrayed Ukraine by taking this GCSE because I had to speak the language of Russia, of a country that is killing our people, and I found it very hard,' she said.
'I felt furious as my friends were dying'
Liza, a 17-year-old from Kharkiv who arrived in the UK with her mother in 2022, said also she was 'forced to take Russian' for her formal exams last year.
'In Year 11, my school said I needed to do one language except English, and they suggested to me Russian or Ukrainian [GCSE], but then found out there wasn't a Ukrainian one,' she said.
'So I was forced to take Russian because I didn't have another choice, I didn't know another language… I felt furious about the fact that I needed to take Russian GCSE [while] my friends, my relatives [were] dying in the city I was living in.'
'Cruel and dreadful'
Vitalik, an 18-year-old from Ukraine, said: 'When I arrived in the UK, I wasn't familiar with the GCSE system, so I was a bit confused when I was asked to choose additional subjects.
'I was asked if I knew the Russian language. I said that I could hold a small conversation but have no understanding of the grammar or writing. Despite this, I was suggested to take Russian GCSE as an additional subject, as it could be beneficial to my grades and future education. I refused.
'Suggesting Ukrainians do Russian GCSE is cruel and dreadful. How can I do Russian GCSE when my people are being tortured and bombarded by Russians? It's ridiculous to me.'
Around 35,000 Ukrainian children are thought to have fled to the UK since the Russian invasion in February 2022, with official figures showing more than 20,000 were offered places at English schools in 2022/23.
Although many Ukrainians do speak Russian given their linguistic similarities, some have made a concerted effort to abandon the language in favour of Ukrainian to show solidarity with Kyiv during the war.
Russian GCSE entries rise
There is currently no Ukrainian among the formal exams on offer in Britain, but entries for Russian GCSE have been steadily increasing over the past few years.
A Telegraph analysis shows overall entries for the subject have jumped 47 per cent since Russia's invasion of Ukraine – with 3,484 pupils taking the subject in the UK last year, up from 2,376 in 2022 and 3,255 in 2023.
The rise may be partially explained by increased interest in Russia as its role on the world stage has received heightened attention, or by families fleeing Moscow for Britain.
However, some think schools are pushing Ukrainian children to take the subject as an easy way of bolstering their grades.
The Ukrainian children The Telegraph spoke to received top marks in Russian GCSE, although some said they were made to study the language in their own time and with little teaching support.
Inna Hryhorovych, the head teacher of St Mary's Ukrainian School, which provides support for around 2,500 displaced Ukrainian children across the UK, said many were 'being encouraged – or in some cases, pressured – to take Russian GCSEs'.
'I think the schools act from the best intentions for the children – but quite often it's not discussed on another level other than boosting the grade it might have,' Ms Hryhorovych said.
'Sometimes the schools will also push, [and say] 'oh, you've got [grade] 9 in Russian GCSE, why don't you do A-level?' So it doesn't stop there.
'We've heard more about the cases in the private schools. Because in state schools, the children often have to find a way to study Russian externally… in private schools, they [sometimes] offer the teacher in school.'
Ms Hryhorovych, who was awarded an MBE for services to education in 2023, urged UK schools to reflect on the deep discomfort they could be placing Ukrainian children under by making them study the 'language of the invading force'.
'It would be the same as if English children were asked to take German in 1943, and being told you need to do that very quickly,' she said.
'There's this misconception that Ukrainian and Russian are the same languages – they're not.
'For them [the children], it's reinforcing the 'terrorist state' and then they have these feelings of guilt… their worry is also how society is going to judge that Russian will be on their list of GCSEs when they return to Ukraine.'
Ukrainian GCSE proposed
Ukraine has been lobbying the UK Government to introduce a Ukrainian GCSE to help boost the confidence of refugees and encourage British students to learn the language of a key ally.
Ms Hryhorovych argued that there were enough Ukrainians in Britain to make the subject worthwhile, with other languages already on offer at GCSE despite relatively low uptake, including Bengali, Gujarati and Modern Hebrew.
A Department for Education spokesman said: 'Children in Ukraine have had their education interrupted by Russia's war, and we are proud to have opened our classrooms to enable thousands to continue their studies here.
'But these allegations are shocking. This Government has set out our decisive support for our Ukrainian friends, and the 100 year partnership between our countries includes a long-term commitment to sharing best practice across both our education systems.
'That's why we have, this week, asked exam boards to consider introducing a Ukrainian GCSE – giving these young people the chance to celebrate their heritage and their native language.'
To hear Ukrainian refugees discuss Russian GCSEs and their experiences in Britain, listen to The Telegraph's special episode of Ukraine: The Latest – the world's most listened to, and award-winning, podcast covering the war.
The Russian language is not neutral for Ukraine's child refugees
By Inna Hryhorovych
More than three years since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, thousands of children have been forced to flee their homes and rebuild their lives in the UK. At St Mary's Ukrainian School, we work every day with displaced families who have endured unimaginable disruption.
While the UK has shown great generosity in welcoming refugees, a critical oversight remains: many Ukrainian children are being encouraged – or in some cases, pressured – to take Russian GCSEs, while there is still no option for them to take an exam in their native Ukrainian language.
For these young people, the Russian language is not neutral. It is the language of the invading force, used in propaganda, occupation, and disinformation. It is the language they have heard shouted during air raid sirens and military checkpoints – not the language of their family, their identity, or their hopes for the future. To present Russian as their only formal language option at GCSE level risks compounding the trauma of war, undermining cultural recovery, and sending the wrong message about whose identity matters.
At St Mary's, we have heard first-hand how this affects children. One teenage girl who fled Kharkiv last year broke down in tears after being told she would need to enrol in Russian GCSE preparation classes. 'It's the language they used to interrogate my uncle,' she said. 'Why should I be forced to study it, when I've never spoken it at home?'
Another boy asked simply, 'Can't I just take Ukrainian instead?' These are not unreasonable requests. They are heartfelt expressions of children trying to retain their dignity, identity, and academic continuity in an already unfamiliar education system.
In many cases, schools mistakenly assume Russian and Ukrainian are interchangeable. They are not. Ukrainian is the official language of a democratic nation under attack – a symbol of national resilience and cultural survival. For families who hope one day to return, or even just to maintain a meaningful connection with their homeland, Ukrainian language education is not a luxury. It is essential.
Including Ukrainian as a modern language GCSE would offer both symbolic and practical support. It would allow displaced pupils to continue their language studies, qualify for national exams aligned with the Ukrainian system, and keep open vital pathways for reintegration or future study. It would also reflect the UK's values and its solidarity with a nation fighting for its sovereignty and democratic future.
We are already seeing what is possible. Since the war began, St Mary's Ukrainian School has doubled in size and opened six new sites across London to meet demand. Over 2,500 displaced children have joined us, supported by a dedicated team – 85 per cent of whom are themselves Ukrainian refugees.
We provide trauma-informed teaching, academic support, and a curriculum rooted in both cultural heritage and global opportunity. This approach empowers not just students, but entire communities, giving parents and educators purpose, agency, and the tools to rebuild.
We urge policymakers and exam boards to act. Ukrainian deserves recognition as a GCSE subject – not only to support those who have lost so much, but to uphold the principles of inclusivity, identity, and recovery that should define any compassionate education system.
The UK has a proud tradition of standing up for those under siege. Now is the moment to extend that principle into our classrooms, and to ensure that Ukrainian children can learn, grow, and succeed – on their own terms, and in their own language.
Inna Hryhorovych is the executive director at Ukrainian St Mary's Trust and St Mary's Ukrainian Schools