A Ukrainian teenager who fled her war-torn country has finally been granted a place at a Suffolk school despite initially being told they were all full.

Eva Danchak, 13, returned to the UK in the summer this year and Paul MacGregor, of Cockfield, started to apply to schools in Bury St Edmunds on behalf of his step-granddaughter.

However, the teenager has been forced to learn from books at home since the start of the school year after Mr MacGregor was told by the four schools he contacted they were not taking admissions. 

Eva has been given a school place after a six-week waitEva has been given a school place after a six-week wait (Image: Paul MacGregor) "This has been going on for six weeks now," said Mr MacGregor. 

"There's four schools in Bury I am trying to get her into, but they're all saying they're full.

"She's bored senseless; she's got no friends; she's come from the Ukraine and it is a horrible situation. 

"It is hopeless." 

Eva first came to the country with her parents in 2022 when the Russian troops first invaded Ukraine. 

Her family came to the UK in 2022Her family came to the UK in 2022. From left, mum Svitlana, Eva, Nick and son Max (Image: Svitlana Danchak) She returned to their home, around 80 miles from Kyiv, before the family decided to come back to the UK earlier this summer. 

Mr MacGregor continued: "She's come from an area where bombs have been flying overhead. She hasn't been in school in Ukraine in years, she's been doing online schooling. She's done no schooling for over a year now apart from what I've done with her." 

After contacting the East Anglian Daily Times at the start of this week, Eva has now been granted a school place at Sybil Andrews Academy in Bury St Edmunds. 

Paul MacGregor (centre), Eva's step-grandfatherPaul MacGregor (centre), Eva's step-grandfather, with Svitlana and Max (Image: Sarah Lucy Brown)

The Fair Access Protocol (FAP) set out by the Department for Education states that when an application is made outside of normal admission rounds, it is considered an in-year application and handled by the school directly if it is an academy.

A referral can be made to the Fair Access Protocol if it can be demonstrated that reasonable measures have been taken to secure a school place through the in-year admissions process.

The Department of Education website states: "The purpose of a FAP is to ensure that vulnerable children, and those who are having difficulty in securing a school place in-year, are allocated a school place as quickly as possible, minimising the time the child is out of school."