ANOTHER visit to bring shoeboxes to the houses of Ukrainian families takes us to a region of Simferopol where wealth and poverty live side-by-side.

We meet a couple who have seven children, including a three-month old baby. Inside the house damp ravages the walls and condensation droplets cover the plywood ceiling.

As we hand out shoeboxes to the youngsters, two of the girls break into song. One of them sings We Wish You A Merry Christmas perfectly. The family say they were helped by the charity Samaritans Purse when they received a heating system.Twelve months on it is working very well, and both the mother and father thank the charity which is supported by hundreds of people across Hampshire.

Heating is of course a huge issue for families here as efforts continue between Europe, Ukraine and Russia to resolve the current gas supply problem. Although I am assured the Crimea has enough supplies for another season everyone is running systems on a reserve level of pressure.

This explains why the reasonably plush hotel we are staying in overnight has only cold water.

Our hotel is just a few hundred metres from the rundown three-room house we have just visited.

As we pass back to the wealthy side of the ice-covered streets, another family is preparing to check into our hotel because their heating cannot run on the low gas pressure and they are worried about the health of their children.

If a quick resolution isn’t found to settle the gas dispute, many poor people will soon start freezing in their homes.

Click HERE to read all of Corey's Crimea Blogs