We are launching the Evening Standard Ukraine Appeal to raise money for the thousands of men, women and children who are fleeing the fighting in Ukraine.

The crisis has shocked our readers and the world and we have set up a fund to bring desperately-needed help to those who require it now.

Your donations will go to charities on the ground, including the Red Cross, who are supporting refugees crossing the border into neighbouring Poland, Romania, Hungary, Moldova and Slovakia, as well as to those displaced from their homes.

Funds will be used to provide humanitarian aid in the form of food, water, medical supplies and shelter.

The UN’s latest estimate is that more than 500,000 Ukrainians have already crossed the border and that figure is expected to rise dramatically in the coming days.

Journeys to the border are long and fraught with anxiety, with a normal two-hour train trip turned into an 18-hour ordeal.

Others are having to walk 50km to the border, carrying their children and what few possessions they can manage. Please give generously.

Mike Adamson, chief executive of the British Red Cross, said: “We are gravely concerned about the crisis in Ukraine. People are losing their homes and lives; families are being separated.

“Essential services, like water and healthcare, are under threat. Donations will help us reach displaced people in Ukraine and those fleeing to neighbouring countries with food, water... and medicine. Any donation makes a difference.”

To donate please go to: gofundme.com/eveningstandardukraineappeal