Go to main content
Professionals (EN) Private (EN/DA) Asylum (EN/DA) Integration (DA) Volunteers (DA) Shop (DA)
Danish Refugee Council
Donate
News

Ukraine: Reclaiming home — Supporting accessibility in Sloviansk

For Ivan and Tanya*, life together has never been simple. Both live with disabilities, and their everyday routines require extra effort and patience. But in the face of war, displacement, and persistent barriers, they remain grounded in each other — and in the place they call home. With support from the Danish Refugee Council (DRC), their living space in Sloviansk has become safer and more accessible, allowing them to regain a sense of dignity and independence.

©DRC Ukraine, Sloviansk, Donetsk Oblast, March 2025, Krystyna Pashkina

Posted on 07 May 2025

Ivan and Tanya met nearly twenty years ago in a sanatorium. He has lived with cerebral palsy since birth; she was diagnosed with polyarthritis as a child. From friendship grew a strong partnership, rooted in care and shared experience. When the war reached Donetsk in 2014, Tanya left her home and moved to Sloviansk to live with Ivan. Years later, in April 2022, they were forced to evacuate together. 

Finding housing was unexpectedly difficult. “The landlord refused to rent us the flat,” Ivan says. “He said we wouldn’t be able to keep it clean, and that the wheelchair would ruin the floors.” 

They turned to local authorities but were offered an apartment on the third floor — without a lift or ramp. “I couldn’t move inside without help. The steps, the uneven ground — it was too painful,” Tanya recalls. Eventually, the couple returned to Sloviansk, even though it didn’t feel safe. 

Small changes, big impact 

Back home, daily life remained complicated. The entrance to their house had no ramp, and the yard was uneven and full of holes. Tanya depended entirely on Ivan to push her wheelchair. When they reached out for help again, the mayor of Sloviansk connected them with DRC.  “There was no dedicated programme at the time for adapting private homes,” says Anton, a DRC Shelter and Settlement Assistant. “But we knew they needed help, and used flexible donor funds to respond.” 

DRC supported the couple with basic improvements: levelling the ground in the yard, adapting the entrance, and widening the front door to make it easier for Tanya to enter and leave independently. “Now I can move around without fear of falling,” she says. “It’s the first time I’ve felt this kind of comfort in years.” 

The floor in the courtyard and the entrance to the house before and after renovation. ©DRC Ukraine, Sloviansk, Donetsk Oblast, March 2025, Krystyna Pashkina

← →

A space of their own

In their small yard, Ivan grows vegetables and tends to young fruit trees. Inside, Tanya paints. “I get anxious sometimes, and painting helps,” she explains. Their bedroom walls are filled with her drawings — landscapes, city monuments, and quiet portraits of couples holding hands. “Art helps me stay hopeful,” she adds. “It reminds me what peace might look like.”

Moving toward inclusion

As of October 2023, more than 100,000 internally displaced people in Ukraine live with disabilities. For many of them, basic infrastructure remains out of reach. In shelters and modular housing sites, ramps, accessible toilets, and safe outdoor spaces are still rare. DRC continues to work with local partners to support accessible housing solutions where possible and to advocate for broader inclusion in humanitarian response. Because everyone deserves to feel safe — and at home. 

©DRC Ukraine, Sloviansk, Donetsk Oblast, March 2025, Krystyna Pashkina

©DRC Ukraine, Sloviansk, Donetsk Oblast, March 2025, Krystyna Pashkina

03 Oct 2025

DRC advocates for principled humanitarian action at UNGA 80

01 Oct 2025

DRC Headquarters is moving to a new location in Copenhagen

30 Sep 2025

Eastern DR Congo: The essential role of schools in protecting children

30 Sep 2025

Community action creates safer schools and builds brighter futures

24 Sep 2025

Story from the Field: Reaching remote communities in Lesotho for drought response

24 Sep 2025

Ukraine: How women are mastering welding with DRC support

23 Sep 2025

Ceasefire in name only: Ongoing attacks, occupation and displacement in Lebanon

23 Sep 2025

DRC attends the 13th Meeting of State Parties of the Convention on Cluster Munitions

22 Sep 2025

Ukraine: A second chance behind the wheel – vocational training helps address labour shortages in Mykolaiv

19 Sep 2025

Paving the way for sustainable change: Decarbonizing DRC in Afghanistan

<
13 May 2025
Ukraine: Rooted in resilience — Partnering with civil societ…
>
07 May 2025
Ukraine. “I couldn’t get used to it — now I have”: Getting l…
Read more about Ukraine Europe Shelter