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A Ukrainian student who arrived in the UK with only a backpack has been awarded a special bursary to help fulfil his dream of becoming a vet.
Thomas Westley, who had to flee his homeland, has been awarded the ‘Fostering Compassion’ bursary and will receive £1,000 from the charity.
The 21-year-old, whose grandparents were killed during the Russian invasion, arrived in Manchester with no money and only a backpack containing his remaining possessions. He also didn’t speak English.
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Thomas has just completed the first year of his five-year veterinary medicine and surgery course at the University of Central Lancashire.
With the dream of always becoming a vet, he was brought up surrounded by animals as his mum opened a sanctuary, home to over 20 different species.
At 16 Thomas volunteered with the American Peace Corps where he helped disabled children and HIV-positive patients have contact with animals.
A family incident led Thomas to move in with his grandparents.
He said: “I was highly academic at school and my grandparents pressured me into enrolling for a degree in medicine because veterinary medicine is not held to the same regard in Ukraine.
“I started at Vinnytsia Medical School in 2020 but during my second year, my life got really bad as Russia invaded Ukraine. My grandparents, who had taken control of our sanctuary, died during the initial invasion. I returned home to bury them and re-home the animals, including my beloved cat, Bonya.
“Fearing for my life I had to escape Ukraine and I was granted access to the UK under The Homes for Ukraine Scheme. I was taken in by some wonderful sponsors in Manchester, who helped me through my toughest time.
“I felt broken as I’d lost everything but I heard about a veterinary access course at Manchester College and that was a life-changing moment. I knew this was my chance so I thankfully got on to the course and worked alongside my studies as a cleaner.”
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Thomas then heard about Preston’s University and the plans to open a School of Veterinary Medicine.
“I was thrilled to get an interview at the University and then absolutely delighted to get a place on the first year of the degree course. It has been a very financially challenging year so this bursary is a huge help for me.”
Fostering Compassion is a charity which teaches children the importance of caring, compassionate and nurturing behaviour towards animals. They also work to support and care for animals who are suffering or in distress.
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Lesley Winton BEM, founder of Fostering Compassion, said: “We are absolutely delighted to support Thomas in his career with our inaugural bursary.
“We hope through our programme we will be nurturing some of the vets of the future and through our bursary, we aim to support vulnerable individuals currently studying to be vets.
“To support Thomas is a great honour for us, especially given the dreadful amount of trauma and loss he has suffered. We hope we will play a small part in helping him forge a career in the veterinary profession as he gradually begins to rebuild his life.”
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