A man says he is ready to welcome Ukrainian refugees into his home to repay the British government - more than a century after they gave sanctuary to his great-grandfather.
Charlie Rubin, 30, has been particularly moved by the crisis in Ukraine as the situation echoes what his relative went through in the early 1900's. In 1910, Wilhelm Dank, Charlie's great grandfather on his dad's side, fled violent Russian pogroms and massacres in the Pale of Settlement.
At the time this was a vast area of the Russian Empire, covering large parts of Eastern Europe and including most of Ukraine, where marginalised Jews were forced to live. After seeking refuge in the UK in his early twenties, the British government greeted Wilhelm with open arms, and he settled in Manchester.
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He spoke no English when he first arrived, but attended night school to integrate himself into British society. Within ten years he became an established coat salesman, met Charlie's great grandma Jinney Zelkovich, and started a family.
Now Charlie and his girlfriend Constance Campbell, 25, want to offer the same opportunity to Ukrainian refugees displaced by the Russian invasion of their country.
The couple have just bought their first property in the capital, and have a spare room in the loft which they are keen to offer any Ukrainians seeking refuge in the UK. Charlie is the joint CEO of ethical cleaning brand Purdy & Figg and also plans to donate around 3000 bottles of award winning hand sanitiser to refugees arriving in Poland.
Charlie, from Shepherd's Bush, said: "If it wasn't for the British government who allowed my great grandfather the opportunity to build a life in the UK, I wouldn't be here today. Over a 100 years later I'm repaying a debt to them by taking in a family myself.
"I want to do something on behalf of Britain which was done for my great grandfather, and offer as much help as I can to families fleeing the conflict. It's our first home, and we have a room in the loft perfect for a family to stay in.
"There's no fixed time limit we have in mind, we just wants to help as soon we can. Sanitation seems to be a big issue with those arriving in neighbouring countries so we want to offer our services to help refugees stay as clean as possible on their journey.
"It's not about the money for us, it's about helping others the way my great grandfather was helped all those years ago. Currently Brits are being offered £350 a month to house Ukraine refugees as part of the UK's effort to help."
The move has come amid widespread condemnation over the speed and scale of Britain’s efforts to help those made homeless by the war.
