File:Still smiling despite the hardship they face (11174085546).jpg

Muhanad and Ahmad*, two Syrian refugee boys outside Ahmad's temporary home, in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley.

Ahmad's 'home' is just a timber frame shelter covered by plastic sheeting. It will offer little protection from the coming winter, when deep snow frequently falls here. It is typical of the temporary shelters that thousands of Syrian refugees are now living in at hundreds of informal camps across Lebanon.

There are over 800,000 Syrian refugees in Lebanon now - 400,000 of whom are children. Aid from the UK is helping NGOs like Save the Children to improve informal shelters like these for up to 3,500 families, to help them withstand the winter. Ahmad's family shelter has recently been fitted with additional plastic sheeting and straps funded by the UK.

The UK will provide winter tents, warm clothing and heaters as part of an allocation of nearly £90 million to help hundreds of thousands of Syrians, especially children, cope with the onset of winter.

As part of the UK's ‘Lost Generation’ initiative, the British government is also currently match-funding Save the Children's Syria Crisis Appeal.

If you're a UK citizen and you donate to this appeal, your donation will be matched by the UK government pound for pound, to help Save the Children prevent a lost generation of Syrian children.

For full details on how the UK is helping people affected by the conflict in Syria, please see: www.gov.uk/government/news/syria-the-latest-updates-on-uk...

Picture: Russell Watkins/Department for International Development

• Names have been changed