Contents Legal status, protection and dealing with authorities Social and cultural life Sense of belonging and identity...

Transcription

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2 Contents Part 1. Introduction... 3 Part 2. Introducing ten migrants...24 Part 3. Analysis Legal status, protection and dealing with authorities Social and cultural life Sense of belonging and identity...60 Part 4. Conclusion...62 The research team...68 Bibliography...69 Researchers: Davide Però, Brenda Tenegra and Elisabetta Zontini (University of Nottingham) Disclaimer: British Council is not responsible for the views expressed in this report. 2

3 Part 1. Introduction Photo: Brenda Tenegra Profile of the city Nottingham is the capital of the East Midlands region and the seventh largest city in England. Geographically it is located less than two hours train journey north of London, near the cities of Leicester, Derby and Loughborough. The southern part of the city is delimited by the River Trent. The city is divided in 20 wards 1 and politically run by the Labour Party, which has retained a large majority in the 2007 municipal elections. The city has a population of 286,400 (of whom 196,490 are of working age) whereas the Nottingham Urban Area s population numbers 666, The city has a younger age structure than the average in England (i.e per cent and 6.6 per cent respectively in the age group). This difference is largely due to the 1 Arboretum, Aspley, Basford, Berridge, Bestwood, Bilborough, Bridge, Bulwell, Bulwell Forrest, Clifton North, Clifton South, Dales, Dunkirk and Lenton, Leen Valley, Mapperley, Radford and Park, Sherwood, St Ann s, Wollaton East and Lenton Abbey, and Wollaton West Mid-Year Estimates for Nottingham City (Source: Population Estimates Unit, Office of National Statistics, 2007) 3

4 significant number of students attending Nottingham s two universities. 3 Overall student represent 16.3 per cent of the city population (ONS Census 2001). Economy, labour market and employment During the Industrial Revolution, Nottingham developed a major textile industry and became internationally renowned for lace manufacture. The development of this industry was favoured by its local supplies of coal and facilitated by its canal and railway connections (Osborne 1988:57). This industry also favoured a very significant growth in the city population during the 19th century. Towards the end of the century Nottingham started to diversify its industrial production with the manufacturing of bicycles, pharmaceutical goods, tobacco and later telephone apparatuses. By the 1920s the lace industry began to decline but employment was found in the new manufacturing industries. However, from the 1960s industrial production started to decline and the Census of 1971 shows the service sector already employing 57.2 per cent of the workforce against the 40.7 per cent in manufacturing. In the 1981 Census the service sector employed 63.8 per cent of the workforce against 33.3 per cent in the manufacturing sector (see Osborne 1988). At present the city s local economy, measured using Gross Value Added (GVA), is worth 6.7 billion. GVA per capita is 24,200, above Greater Nottingham s average GVA per capita of 17, The city s GVA per capita is also significantly above the England average of 17,500 per capita. This is attributable to Nottingham City s role as a local centre for employment. 5 The official figures show there are 184,900 employee jobs in Nottingham City. This accounts to 61 per cent of the 300,800 employee jobs in Greater Nottingham. 6 Nearly 89 per cent (163,800) of these jobs are in the service sector. Public services, including education and health, are particularly strongly represented, with 62,000 jobs. The city s high proportion of jobs (43,400) in the banking and professional sector marks Nottingham s 3 More than 40,000 full-time students attend Nottingham s two universities, of which more than 34,000 live within the city area. This is equivalent to one in eight of the city s population. (Source: Office of National Statistics Mid-Year Estimates 2006 and information from the University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University) 4 Gross Value Added (GVA) is the measure of economic output at a local level. It is similar to GDP, but excludes adjustments for taxes and subsidies that are only collected at a national level. GVA for Greater Nottingham is 10.7 billion and the GVA per capita is approximately 17,800. Greater Nottingham excludes Hucknall (Sources: GVA Headline Series 2006 (2004 data), The Greater Nottingham Economic Review 2007). 5 Office for National Statistics, Annual Business Inquiry, 2004 Inter Departmental Business Register (City Centre). 4

5 importance as a regional business centre. 7 This is narrowly followed by the distribution sector which includes retail, hotels, and catering with 42,200 jobs. Jobs in manufacturing, construction, and energy and water (including agriculture) sectors are fewer. In Greater Nottingham, there was a net decrease of over 11,000 jobs (27 per cent) in the manufacturing sector between 2000 and The other net decrease has been in the energy and water sectors. This is largely due to major employers refocusing and venturing on energy retail and research and development. 8 Growth in the service industry surpassed the England average. Within the service industry, the most significant area of growth has been in public services, particularly in education and healthcare. In Greater Nottingham, there has been a net increase of 17,800 jobs (22.1 per cent) in public services between 2000 and Among the major employers, the Nottingham City Council, Nottingham University Hospital NHS Trust, the Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust, the University of Nottingham, Alliance Boots, Nottinghamshire Police, Nottingham Trent University, and Experian each employ more than 3,000 employees. The Nottingham City Council and Nottingham University Hospital NHS Trust employ an aggregate of more than 26, The survey figures show that over 10,000 people in Nottingham City are self-employed, including some people of retirement age. 10 Nottingham City has an unemployment rate of 9.7 per cent (11.7 per cent male and 7.2 per cent female). The wards with the highest unemployment rate are Arboretum (17.2 per cent) followed by St Ann s (17.1 per cent), Aspley (13.8 per cent), Radford and Park (12.9 per cent), Bridge (12.6 per cent), Bestwood (11.9 per cent), Bullwell (11.3 per cent), and Berridge (10.9 per cent) (See Table 1). For unemployment rates among the different ethnic groups see the next page. TP7 The largest employers in this sector are Experian, an information solutions and credit referencing specialist and Capital One, an American credit card issuer. These companies are employing around 3,000 and 2,200 people respectively (Greater Nottingham Economic Review). 8 The Greater Nottingham Economic Review Source: Policy and Information Team, City Development, Nottingham City Council 10 July 2005 June 2006 Annual Population Survey (Policy and Information Team, City Development Department, Nottingham City Council). 5

6 Table 1. Unemployment by ward and gender in Nottingham City, 2001 Ward Unemployed total* Unemployment rate** % Male unemployment rate % Female unemployment rate % Long-term unemployed*** % Arboretum ,2 20,7 11,5 6,2 1,9 Aspley ,8 15,6 11,5 5 2 Basford ,8 7,1 2,8 1,1 Berridge ,9 13,3 7,6 3,5 1,4 Bestwood ,9 13,9 9,3 5 1 Bilborough 546 9,9 12,5 6,6 3,9 1,2 Bridge ,6 15,2 8,8 4,2 1,5 Bulwell ,3 13,3 9 4,2 1,3 Bulwell Forest 383 5,7 7,1 4,1 1,9 0,7 Clifton North 322 6,3 7,9 4,3 2 0,6 Clifton South 458 8,6 10,4 6,3 3,5 1,1 Dales 573 9,7 11,3 7,6 3,3 1,3 Dunkirk & Lenton 262 9,7 11,8 6,7 3,3 0,8 Leen Valley 268 7,1 8,4 5,5 2,3 0,6 Mapperley 579 8,1 9,6 6,3 2,6 0,6 Radford & Park ,9 15,1 9,5 4,5 1,1 Sherwood 526 7,5 9,4 5,5 3 0,6 St Ann s ,1 21,5 11 6,8 1,8 Wollaton East and Lenton Abbey 136 7,8 8,4 7,1 2,8 0,7 Wollaton West 220 3,5 3,7 3,3 1,1 0,3 Never worked % 6

7 *Unemployed includes all those who had actively looked for work in the past four weeks and were able to start in the two weeks following Census Day (29th April 2001), regardless of whether or not they are eligible to claim benefits. **The unemployment rate is the number unemployed divided by the number of economically active people, aged 16 to 74. Economically active includes those in employment, selfemployed and unemployed. Full-time students who also had a job, or were looking for work, have been excluded from these calculations. ***Long-term unemployed are those who stated on Census Day they had not worked since 1999 or earlier. Source: 2001 Census, [National Report for England and Wales]. Crown copyright With regard to Housing Tenure, Nottingham has an overall 50 per cent of owner occupiers and 26.9 per cent of all households are renting from the Council. Renting from the Council is at its highest in St Ann s (53.6 per cent), Aspley (52.4 per cent), Bestwood (44.4 per cent) and Bullwell (40.6 per cent). St Ann s and Aspley have also a very low rate of owner occupiers, 21.1 per cent and 36.8 per cent respectively. 7

8 Table 2. Housing tenure by ward, 2001 Ward All households (= 100) Owner occupiers % Renting from council % Renting from housing association % Renting from private landlord % Other renting or rent free % Arboretum 4, Aspley 6, Basford 6, Berridge 6, Bestwood 6, Bilborough 7, Bridge 4, Bulwell 6, Bulwell Forest 5, Clifton North 5, Clifton South 5, Dales 6, Dunkirk and Lenton 3, Leen Valley 3, Mapperley 6,

9 Ward All households (= 100) Owner occupiers % Renting from council % Renting from housing association % Renting from private landlord % Other renting or rent free % Sherwood 6, St Ann s 6, Wollaton East and Lenton Abbey Source: ONS ,

10 Migration patterns Historic migration patterns International migration to Nottingham began to appear in population records in the 19th century, although much of the ethnic diversity of the current population is the result of immigration from the 1950s onwards. The 1961 Census and subsequent censuses would show the inflow of people from outside the UK. Following the granting of independence to most colonies after the Second World War, the majority of immigrants to the UK were from either current or former colonies of the British Empire, most notably those in the Caribbean and the Indian subcontinent. After the Second World War, there was a considerable influx of people born in Jamaica, Poland, the Soviet Union, Italy and Germany, who came to Nottingham to find employment mostly in the manufacturing industry. Most of the migration from Jamaica and the rest of the Caribbean took place in the 1950s and 1960s. This was also the period when most migration from India took place. Immigration from Pakistan, including what is now Bangladesh, started more slowly than from India and has been more consistent since. 11 Other smaller migrant communities can also be identified, including a significant Italian community established by Migrants from Kenya tripled their figure in The biggest influx, however, came from Jamaica and the rest of the Caribbean Commonwealth countries. In 1966 non-white migrants in Nottingham were over-represented in some economic sectors and under-represented in others, for example: West Indians were concentrated in metal manufacturing, mining, quarrying and construction; the Indians in transport and communications, textiles, engineering and electrical goods, bricks, pottery and glass and cement making; and Pakistanis in engineering and electrical goods, textiles, transports and communications, and paper, printing and publishing (Lawrence 1974). Overall Nottingham, throughout the second half of the 20th century, has been characterised by a more ethnically diverse population than the average in Britain. According to Giggs (1988), In 1981 the city ranked ninth among the urban settlement of England and Wales in numbers of people born in the New Commonwealth and Pakistan (pp. 84 5). 11 In 2001, immigrants from Pakistan were the second largest ethnic group in Nottingham, after the white British. The third largest ethnic group was black Caribbean, particularly from Jamaica. (Resident population by ethnic group and sex, 2001 Census Nottingham City; Source: Office for National Statistics, Crown Copyright). 10

11 The process of integration of these migrants has not been smooth and many of these people ended up spatially segregated in the most impoverished areas of the city as shown by Lawrence (1974) and Simpson (1981). Nottingham was already a segregated city in terms of class (see Coates and Silburn 1970) at the time of the post-war immigration, and ethnicity became an added dimension of this spatial segregation. Current migration patterns The classification of ethnic groups has changed since the 1991 Census. 12 In the 2001 Census, four new categories were added to include people of mixed ethnicity. The population in 2001 was much more diverse, in terms of country of birth, than previously. This makes comparisons difficult but it appears that there was an increase in the non-white ethnic groups in Nottingham from per cent (5.97 per cent in the Nottingham Urban Area 13 ) in 1991 to 16 per cent (8.23 per cent in the Nottingham Urban Area) in These figures also suggest that non-white ethnic groups are overwhelmingly concentrated in the city rather than the surrounding districts According to the 2001 Census about 84 per cent of the population in Nottingham classified their ethnicity as white, of which almost 80 per cent as white British. This is lower than the average for England and Wales (87.49 per cent). The non-white ethnic groups accounted for 16 per cent of the population in the city. The largest ethnic groups after white British are Pakistani (3.9 per cent), black Caribbean (3.67 per cent), Indian (2.45 per cent) and Chinese (0.71 per cent). Mixed ethnicity comprised 3.28 per cent of all ethnic groups (Table 3). Accordingly, the percentage of non-white ethnic groups in Nottingham is higher than the average for England and Wales. 12 The 1991 Census in England and Wales, and in Scotland, included an ethnic group question for the first time in a British census. (ONS Focus on Ethnicity and Religion, 2006 Edition). 13 Nottingham Urban Area includes: Arnold, Beeston and Stapleford, Breaston, Carlton, Eastwood, Heanor, Hucknall, Kimberley, Long Eaton, Nottingham, Ripley, Ruddington, and West Bridgford (Source: ONS Key Statistics for Urban Areas in Nottingham, 1991 and 2001). 11

12 Table 3. Percentage of people in ethnic groups in 2001 Ethnic groups England and Nottingham Wales Urban Area Nottingham All people White 91,31 91,76 83,92 British 87,49 88,97 79,99 Irish 1,23 1,01 1,39 Other white 2,59 1,78 2,54 Mixed 1,27 1,79 3,28 White and black Caribbean 0,46 1,07 2,08 White and black African 0,15 0,12 0,21 White and Asian 0,36 0,32 0,5 Other mixed 0,3 0,28 0,49 Asian or Asian British 4,36 3,56 6,97 Indian 1,99 1,54 2,45 Pakistani 1,37 1,68 3,9 Bangladeshi 0,54 0,1 0,21 Other Asian 0,46 0,24 0,41 Black or black British 2,18 2,12 4,62 Caribbean 1,08 1,66 3,67 African 0,92 0,26 0,51 Other black 0,18 0,2 0,44 Chinese or other ethnic 0,86 0,77 1,21 group Chinese 0,44 0,47 0,71 Other ethnic group 0,42 0,3 0,5 The wards of Berridge (15.5 per cent), Dales (9.3 per cent) and Radford Park (8.6 per cent) have the highest distribution of Pakistanis. The black or black British population has its highest concentration in St. Ann s (11.1 per cent) and Radford and Park (8.2 per cent). Mixed ethnicity category appears fairly distributed with slightly higher concentrations in St Ann s (5.8 per cent) and Bridge (5.3 per cent). Leen Valley (5.9 per cent) and Wollaton West (5.7 per cent), have the most Indians, while Other ethnic group 14 population in Lenton Abbey (6.9 per cent), Dunkirk and Lenton (3.9 per cent) and Arboretum (3.6 per cent) wards. The wards with the highest proportion of non-white population are Berridge (30.8 per cent), Arboretum (27.70 per cent), Radfork and Park (27.1 per cent), Bridge (23.6 per cent), Dunkirk and 14 Presumably the majority of them are students, given the proximity of the ward to the two universities 12

13 Lenton (22.1 per cent), Leen Valley (22.1 per cent), and St Ann s (21.8 per cent) (Table 4). Table 4. Ethnic group distribution by ward, 2001 Ward White % Mixed ethnicity % Indian % Pakistani % Other Asian* % Black or black British % Other ethnic group % Arboretum 72,3 4,9 3,1 7,8 1,9 6,5 3,6 Aspley 91,4 3,6 0,5 0,8 0,2 3,1 0,3 Basford 86,5 3,7 2,2 1,4 0,4 5,3 0,5 Berridge 69,2 3,4 4 15,5 1,2 5,6 1 Bestwood 91,7 2,6 0,4 0,2 0,1 4,7 0,3 Bilborough 92,1 3 0,9 0,8 0,2 2,8 0,3 Bridge 76,3 5,3 2,9 6,9 1 6,9 0,7 Bulwell 93,4 2,8 0,6 0,3 0,1 2,7 0,2 Bulwell ,8 0,8 0,3 3,4 0,8 Forest Clifton 95,7 1,1 1,6 0,2 0,1 1 0,4 North Clifton 96,8 1,7 0,4 0,1 0,1 0,8 0,1 South Dales 81,6 3,3 1,4 9,3 0,5 3,2 0,7 Dunkirk and Lenton 77,8 2,9 4,9 4,7 1,3 4,6 3,9 Leen 77,8 2,8 5,9 7,4 0,7 4,6 0,8 Valley Mapperley 87,3 3,2 2,3 1,6 0,4 4,1 1,2 Radford 72,9 3,4 3,9 8,6 1,4 8,2 1,6 and Park Sherwood 87,4 3,5 1,9 1,7 0,3 4,6 0,7 St Ann 痴 78,1 5,8 1,1 2,4 0,6 11,1 0,9 Wollaton East and Lenton Abbey 80,3 3,2 3,5 1,6 1,4 3 6,9 Wollaton West 86,1 1,5 5,7 3,4 0,6 1,8 1 Source: ONS 2001 Census 13

14 The population born in England accounted for 86.6 per cent of the population in Nottingham in Those born in Scotland accounted for 1.53 per cent, while those born in Wales and Northern Ireland accounted for 0.95 per cent and 0.51 per cent respectively. The population born outside the UK made up 10 per cent of the population, which was higher than the England and Wales average (Table 5). Of course these figures do not include migrants who find themselves in an irregular position or are undocumented. For them we have found no estimates. 14

15 Table 5. Percentage of population by country of birth in 2001 Area All People England Scotland Wales Northern Republic Other EU Ireland of Ireland Countries* Elsewhere England ,7 1,57 5,38 0,43 0,91 1,38 6,63 and Wales 6 Nottingham ,77 1,41 0,86 0,43 0,64 1,07 4,82 Urban Area Nottingham ,62 1,53 0,95 0,51 0,87 1,3 8,22 *Note: 'Other EU countries' includes United Kingdom, part not specified, Ireland, part not specified, Channel Islands and Isle of Man. Source: ONS Census 2001: Key statistics for urban areas in the Midlands. Because of the differences between 1991 and 2001 censuses, estimates of growth in the ethnic minority population are particularly difficult to ascertain. Despite these caveats, the current patterns of migration would show that there is an increase of Other white (among white ethnic groups) from 2.5 per cent in 2001 to 3.7 per cent in mid Relative to this increase is the increase in working age population from this ethnic group. In contrast, the number of white British population has decreased from 81.1 per cent to 77.3 per cent over the same period. Among the non-white ethnic groups in the same period there has been an increase in Indian, African, Chinese and Other population. The Indian population has increased from 2.3 per cent in 2001 to 3.0 per cent in mid-2005, while the African population has increased from 0.5 per cent to 1.2 per cent, the Chinese population from 0.6 per cent to 1.7per cent, and the Other from 1.1 per cent to 2.6 per cent over the same period. 15

16 The increase also reflects the number of National Insurance numbers (NINo) 15 granted to non-uk nationals. Information has recently been published on non-uk nationals registering for a NINo. The record shows that the number of non-uk nationals in Nottingham has increased considerably in the last three years from 2,480 in 2003/2004 to 5,630 in 2006/ This rise in number is principally due to immigration from the countries that joined the EU in The number of people from EU Accession countries increased from 750 in to 2,880 in Eighty per cent of the registrants from the EU states came from Poland. This is followed by the Slovak Republic, the Czech Republic and Lithuania, with 6 per cent, 3.7 per cent and 3.4 per cent respectively. 17 In 2006/2007, there were 3,690 NINo registrations in Greater Nottingham from EU ccession countries. This was about 50 per cent of the total registrations. Of these EU Accession migrants 78 per cent were concentrated in the city (Table 6). Most of them were registered in Nottingham under the Worker Registration Scheme (WRS) The National Insurance Number is issued by the Department for Work and Pensions. But there are limitations to the data based from the NINo. Firstly, it only includes people in work, looking for work or claiming benefits. Secondly, people are counted in the Local Authority where they are living when they apply for a NINo which may be different to where they work. 16 These are gross figures which do not take any account of people leaving the country. 17 NINo registrations in Nottingham City (Sources: Department for Work and Pensions; The Policy and Information Team, City Development, Nottingham City Council). 18 WRS was introduced by the British government in 2004 when new countries joined the EU with the intent to monitor where citizens of those countries (i.e. Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia) are coming into the UK labour market, the type of work they are doing, and the impact this has on our economy. Once the migrant has been working in the UK legally for 12 months without a break in employment he or she will no longer have to register on the WRS. 16

17 Table 6. National Insurance number registration of EU accession countries in Nottingham EU accession countries 2002/ / / / / 2007 Greater Nottingham* 2006/2007 GN% in the city 2006 / 2007 Poland ,8 Slovakia ,2 Czech ,4 Republic Lithuania ,7 Hungary Latvia ,6 Estonia Cyprus Malta Slovenia Bulgaria Romania Total *Greater Nottingham is the Nottingham Core Housing Market Area (Nottingham, Broxtowe, Gedling, Rushcliffe and Erewash) ** Czech Republic includes those recorded as "Czechoslovakia" Notes: 1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest ten. 2. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 3. Numbers are based on 100% data from the National Insurance Recording System (NIRS). 4. Local authorities are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory. 5. Local authorities counts are base on the most recently recorded address of the NINO recipient. 6. Romania and Bulgaria joined the EU in January Source: Department of Work and Pensions and The Policy and Information Team, Nottingham City Council, 2007 Among the non-eu NINo registrants, the top representations came from India, Pakistan, and China. Relative to the EU Accession group, the registrants from these three countries were also highly concentrated in the city. One hundred per cent of the new migrants and NINo registrants from Malawi, Jamaica, and Iraq were residing in the city (Table 7). 17

18 Table 7: National Insurance number registration of countries other than EU accession countries in Nottingham Countries with > / / / / / 2007 Greater Nottingham* 2006/2007 GN% in the city 2006 / 2007 India ,7 Pakistan ,4 China Peoples Republic Nigeria ,3 France ,4 Australia South ,5 Africa Germany Zimbabwe ,4 Malawi Jamaica Iraq Total ,1 *Greater Nottingham is the Nottingham Core Housing Market Area (Nottingham, Broxtowe, Gedling, Rushcliffe and Erewash) Notes: 1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest ten. 2. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 3. Numbers are based on 100% data from the National Insurance Recording System (NIRS). 4. Local authorities are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory. 5. Local authorities counts are base on the most recently recorded address of the NINO recipient. 6. Romania and Bulgaria joined the EU in January Source: Department of Work and Pensions and The Policy and Information Team, Nottingham City Council, 2007 The age structure of the different ethnic minority population is generally younger than the white British population. The timing of the recent migrants arrival, their age and the skills that they brought with them, are also related to the present-day socio-economic variations among ethnic groups in Nottingham and in the UK as a whole. 18

19 Reflecting the major changes in the labour market that accompanied the advent of the post-industrial society, contemporary migrants are now mostly employed in the service sector, which overwhelmingly dominates the city economy. New migrants seem to be absorbed in significant volume by the distribution sector (which includes retail, hotels and catering). For example, there are many Bangladeshi migrants who work in low-skilled employment in restaurants and catering; many Filipino migrants (mostly women) who work as nurses and care givers for the NHS and private care institutions; Indian migrants who work as doctors in the city hospitals or as engineers or IT professionals (having entered the country in the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme or with a work permit); and Poles working across a wide range of sectors and at different skills levels (ranging from hotel and catering to engineering and from manufacturing to retail sales). With regard to refugees and asylum seekers, reputable civic organisations operating in this sector 19 indicated and ranked Iraqis, Afghanis, Somalis, Iranians and Nigerians as their main user groups in the city. These were considered to be mostly men (approximately 60 per cent). These organisations also stressed the fluidity of the situation which reflects the impact of new wars and conflicts that develop in different parts of the world. Their most recent users include Congo and Zimbabwe. According to these sources, only around per cent of the refugee population, despite being on average quite well educated, ends up working as skilled labour, with the rest finding employment as taxi drivers, in factories of all sorts (e.g. food processing), restaurants and take-aways, corner shops and supermarkets. Even worse is the employment situation encountered by asylum seekers and failed asylum seekers, 20 whose irregular situation marginalises them in all spheres of life. For example, in terms of employment they are forced to survive in the informal economy. This is a position that makes them like undocumented/irregular migrants very vulnerable to super-exploitation and abuse and more prone to resort to illegal activities to obtain a living wage. It was also highlighted how refugees are often victims of racist attacks and abuse by members of the native population (from all ethnic backgrounds) when as often happens they are housed in deprived areas (this was said to be especially recurrent in Aspley and Radford). However, contrary to public perception, the quality of life of traditionally deprived areas such as St Ann s seems to have benefited from the arrival of refugees, who are said to have made a positive contribution to the area both economically and socially. 19 These were the Refugees Legal Centre and Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Refugee Forum. 20 An authoritative informant estimated the population of failed asylum seekers in the city to be approximately

20 As far as unemployment is concerned non-white groups have higher unemployment rates than white ethnic groups. Although there is no up-todate population information by ethnicity, the data from the 2001 Census indicates that the Mixed 21 and black or black British groups have the highest rates of unemployment among the ethnic groups, rising as high as 25 per cent for Mixed (white and black Caribbean). Unemployment was also high among the Pakistani and other Asian (including Bangladeshi) groups at 16.0 per cent and 17.6 per cent respectively. Among Pakistani, other Asian, and Chinese ethnic groups there is also a high proportion of the economically inactive. 22 The available data shows that, in general, the working-age employment rate for women is lower than men and the differential is greater for ethnic minorities. In the East Midlands, in , 80.7 per cent of all working-age males and 70.5 per cent of all working-age females were in work. The figures for white working-age males in employment were 81.9 per cent and 71.7 per cent for white working-age females. In ethnic minorities they were respectively 62 per cent and 53.2 per cent. Among all ethnic groups, the Pakistani/Bangladeshi had the lowest employment rates (52 per cent for males and 25.6 per cent for females). The mixed and other ethnicity groups had similar employment rates for males and females in the East Midlands (see Tables 8 and 9). 21 Mixed includes white and black Caribbean, white and black African, white and Asian, and other mixed. 22 Economically inactive is defined as people aged without a job who have not looked for one in the last four weeks or are unavailable to start work in the next two weeks. This reflects cultural factors. Women in the Pakistani and Bangladeshi ethnic groups tend to answer they are unavailable for work and are classed and categorised as economically inactive rather than employed (Ethnicity Note 2006, produced by the Policy and Information Team, City Development Department, Nottingham City Council). 20

21 Table 8. Male working-age employment rate by ethnic group, 2002/03* Country / Region All White All non - white Mixed Indian Pakistani / Bangladeshi Black Other United Kingdom 78,7 79,8 65,4 63,1 74,6 61,3 64,8 61 England 79,4 80,8 65,3 64,2 74,6 60,7 64,6 60,6 East Midlands 80,7 81,9 62,9 55,1 66, ,5 60,1 *Rates and 95% Confidence Intervals are given subject to: estimate and confidence interval not available since the group sample size is zero or disclosive (sample size 0,1,2). estimate and confidence interval unreliable since the group sample size is small (sample size 3-9). Source: Annual Labour Force Survey, 2002/2003 Table 9. Female working-age employment rate by ethnic group, 2002/03* Country / Region All White All non - white Mixed Indian Pakistani / Bangladeshi Black Other United Kingdom 69, ,4 57,2 62,1 24,5 56,2 48,9 England 69,4 71,6 49, ,3 24,2 56,6 49,1 East Midlands 70,5 71,7 53,2 39,5 65,4 25,6 58,9 36,8 *Rates and 95% Confidence Intervals are given subject to: estimate and confidence interval not available since the group sample size is zero or disclosive (sample size 0,1,2). estimate and confidence interval unreliable since the group sample size is small (sample size 3-9). Source: Annual Labour Force Survey, 2002/2003 In the Nottingham Urban Area, the working-age employment rate of all ethnic groups is 62.4 per cent, which is lower than the East Midlands and United Kingdom average at 75.8 per cent and 74 per cent respectively. Here too, the working-age employment rate was higher among the white groups. Within this group the White not UK Nationals had a slightly higher working-age employment rate than White UK Nationals (67.3 per cent and 65 per cent respectively). The non-white UK Nationals had a relatively lower employment rate at 51.7 per cent but the non-white not UK nationals were the least likely group to be employed (at 39.5 per cent) (see Table 10). 21

22 Table 10. Working-age employment rate by ethnic group and nationality, 2002/03* Country/Region All Nonwhite White White Non-white UK Not UK UK Not UK national national national national United Kingdom 74 75, ,7 52,4 England 74,5 76,6 70,1 59,9 52,2 East Midlands 75,8 77,1 68,5 61,9 43,6 Nottingham Urban Area 62, ,3 51,7 39,5 *Rates and 95% Confidence Intervals are given subject to: estimate and confidence interval not available since the group sample size is zero or disclosive (sample size 0,1,2). estimate and confidence interval unreliable since the group sample size is small (sample size 3-9). Source: Annual Labour Force Survey, 2002/2003 Attitudes to migration in Nottingham: the wider context We have not found statistics on the attitudes towards migrants in Nottingham 23 to report here. In the following chapter we will account for the institutional and civil societal attitudes to migrants observed during fieldwork in Nottingham. However, we think it is crucial here to briefly describe the national public and policy context in which attitudes are formed and defined. The overall policy discourse about immigration in the UK is on the whole scarcely favourable. The way in which migrants and asylum seekers are spoken of appears on the whole negative. Migrants are normally discussed in terms of subjects to control, manage, use and take advantage of in the name of the national interest, while asylum seekers have in recent years increasingly been considered with suspicion (e.g. of being bogus ) as well as being subjected to restrictive and inhumane policies (see The Independent Asylum Commission 2008). This increasingly unfavourable way in which migrants are represented in public and policy discourse in Britain is paralleled by a progressive distancing of the government from multiculturalism in favour of a neoassimilationist posture towards diversity (Back et al. 2002, Grillo 2005, Però 2008a). This a posture that finds legitimisation and authority in the 23 At national level, the three research studies commissioned by the Commission for Racial Equality revealed evidence of widespread, deeply hostile and unfounded attitudes to asylum seekers and migrants (see Finney and Peach 2004; Coe et al. 2004; and Lewis 2005). 22

23 interventions of a number of well-known commentators located on both sides of the political spectrum. In a nutshell this neo-assimilationist position negatively appraises diversity and multiculturalism as they undermine social cohesion. The tabloid press has, on the whole, been articulating an even more overtly adverse representation of diversity in the UK. This backlash against diversity has been particularly evident in relation to Muslims, asylumseekers and Gypsies. In this context, it is not difficult to see how all this authoritative and media discussion of immigration and diversity in negative or instrumental terms in public discourse has been legitimising and reinforcing popular attitudes in less accommodating terms. 23

24 Part 2. Introducing ten migrants This section introduces ten migrants interviewed by the team as an illustration of the patterns of migration in the city of Nottingham (see also Table 11 on the next page). Photo: Brenda Tenegra 24

25 Table 11. Profile of selected in-depth interview respondents Case Age Gender Civil status Country Year of arrival in Nottingham Former immigration status Current immigration status Occupation 1 24 F Single Algeria 2001 student student 2 31 F Single Iran 2003 student Work Permit Postdoc staff 3 33 M Married South 2003 Work Permit Radiographer Africa 4 39 M Married Philippines 2006 Spouse Nurse 5 29 F Married Jamaica 2002 (1st visit); Visit Visa (1st visit); Spouse unemployed 2004 (2nd visit) Visit Visa (2nd visit) 6 37 M Married Banglades 2003 Spouse ILR Construction worker h 7 44 M Married Zimbabwe 2005 Visit and Dependant Refugee Clerk (temporary) 8 27 F Single Poland 2007 Visit registered chambermaid under WRS 9 37 F Single mom Zimbabwe 2006 Visit and Student Failed Asylum- unemployed seeker F Single Thailand 2004 Student student Source: Personal interviews 25

26 1. Odele Name: Odele Sex: female Age: 24 Nationality: Algerian Status/profession: Student Odele was awarded an Algerian government scholarship to study in the UK and came to Nottingham in 2001 when she was only 17. After seven years in the city Nottingham has become her second home. She has no knowledge of other cities in the UK. I feel that Nottingham is my second home. I have been here for seven years. So, I really don t know any other city apart from Nottingham. So, I ve got home back home and Nottingham here. She initially associated only with Arabs and fellow Algerians who shared her cultural and religious background. She later considered joining group activities like the Salsa Society, a multicultural group. Living away from her family did change her personally. I have changed a lot since I came here. When I was back home, I was like a little girl and my mum would take me to school and bring me back so I would say I was enclosed [with emphasis]. Then, suddenly I was responsible for myself, responsible for everything. I live alone. I am the one concerned with my safety, with everything. Yeah, it really helped me build my personality to be here alone. I don t think I would be that independent if I stayed at home. No way. Odele is an independent person and she is currently pursuing a PhD degree and plans to start a career in the UK. To be honest, I think I do really well if I start a career here.at the moment I think I will go for a career here. Odele considers herself lucky to have not encountered any form of racial discrimination. But she is concerned about the lack of mixing and integration (her words) between international students and domestic students. 26

27 They have this cliché about international students they think that we are here just to stick with each other [among international students] and just study hard and whatever. But it s not that case If I feel that they don t want to integrate with me, I will obviously stick with my own people and not make effort. After she finishes her degree she plans to move down to London. No. I don t want to stay in Nottingham. I want to go and experience something different. In London, yeah The nature of the job that I want to do in the future requires me to go down south. That s where most of the industrial companies are [located], and that s where I want to go. 2. Noora Name: Noora Sex: Female Age: 31 Nationality: Iranian Status/profession: Work permit postdoctoral staff Noora arrived in Nottingham in 2003 from Tehran, Iran. She previously came to Nottingham in 2000 as an exchange student for three months and went back to Iran for her Masters degree. She then established contact with a professor and applied to do her PhD in Nottingham three years later, receiving a partial scholarship from the university. After graduation, Noora was absorbed as postdoctoral staff. It was a quick transition for her and the new status she achieved has boosted her confidence. I came out with a studentship it was quite a quick shift. In the same lab, I was treated continuously like a student, like a second citizen. I think it s like that. Me, it took me time to establish myself. Well, [because] I m not a student, I want to have my space Being postdoc staff is better, I have money and can work independently. As staff, it s like an emotional confidence. When asked if she has had any negative experience. She confided: Yeah, the feeling of being a foreigner. When asked whether this was just a feeling or she was talking from actual experience she answered: Well, you should see something to feel something. I had a feeling of race discrimination for being a foreigner and second [class] citizen. Quite a 27

28 few times, I had this feeling. Rather than talking about it, I just try to keep it to myself or swallow it. I just digest it and not be bothered about it. Because I couldn t do anything. I don t want to go back, I don t want to quit. She finds it hard to make close relationships with others, like she had in Iran. Her main problems are cultural and linguistic ones. For example when you can t understand a word in English, this is being taken as a tool to laugh at you. It s not nice Taking advantage for example, if they talk quickly you can t get that. If they used colloquial language or slang language, you don t get that and they use it quite often. It gives emotional pressure on you Noora plans to stay for another two or three more years in the UK, preferably in a bigger city like London, Manchester or Edinburgh. She plans to move later to the USA where her brother is currently based. Her contract will end this year and she is beginning to worry about her job. If I don t find a job, I will be thrown away (smiles, with a sigh). My contract is until the end of this year. I m not applying yet, perhaps I should try to apply for another job. If I get this contract renewed, I will stay in Nottingham. She has no immediate plans to go back to Iran. She has been away from her family since she was 18 years old when she went to study in another city. She said: Those years helped me overcome homesickness. 3. Freddie Name: Freddie Sex: Male Age: 33 Nationality: South African Status/profession: Work permit radiographer Freddie left South Africa for work in Nottingham in He recalled that his first month was a bit tough, as it was the first time that he had been separated from his wife. She joined him more than a year later. Freddie was already a qualified radiographer and had been working for eight years in 28

29 South Africa. His application to come to the UK was a lengthy process and was costly, but he felt that his effort was worth it when he started receiving his salary. My application to come here took ages. There were problems with getting all my papers the sending of papers from the UK to South Africa. It took a lot of time and money. I also paid a big amount of money for the accommodation before coming [here]. Salary-wise, it is a lot. Back home I would not be able to survive there with my salary alone. I had many bills to pay. With my salary here, I could manage everything. Freddie described his feelings about his work: Job-wise, it was like a step down because I used to do a lot more, a lot of things back home what I am doing is a second nature. The only thing that I would have liked is more opportunity to develop and prove myself. It is sad because that was one of the reasons why I came here. When asked about any difficulties during his stay in Nottingham: I was lonely in the beginning. I realised some patients can be really rude about your pronunciation in speaking English. When they asked for example something and you explained, they sometimes rudely say I can t hear what you are saying. They could have just said, sorry, I didn t catch that and no need to be rude, because I was polite. I also sometimes experienced being ignored. Like for example when I asked some colleagues, they would just ignore you. On the bright side, I just talk in my language and they cannot understand me [laughs]. Because of this experience, I was terrified of answering the phone at work. Freddie was granted a five-year work permit and it was being renewed at the time of the interview. His biggest concern now is his wife, who feels frustrated for not having found a job. She was a licensed midwife in South Africa and did nursing studies, but has been unable to find work in Nottingham. Freddie spends his time with her when he is off duty. He used to join social gatherings but now he cannot go as often as he used to. Freddie does extra shifts at work. Eventually, he plans to buy a house in South Africa, so he saves as much as money he can. 29

30 4. Victor Name: Victor Sex: Male Age: 39 Nationality: Filipino Status/occupation: Spouse visa, working as nurse Victor arrived from the Philippines in 2006 to join his wife a nurse as her dependant. Victor is also a nurse by profession. He was working as a nurse in the Philippines when he decided to join his wife in Nottingham. He found a job at the nursing home, where he worked for more than a year before obtaining his new post as a nurse at a hospital in the city. He is on probation and in the interview he described the worries and difficulties he has with his second job: Not only with [fellow] staff but also with the job. I m still adjusting right now with the task so I need to know more. I need to spend more time to be acquainted with the job. So while I m still adjusting, I need some support from my colleagues. It would be nice if they did, so that I can adjust easily. He explained how his previous job was totally different from the second one: It s really different. There, it s nursing home, [while] here is hospital. Now, I am in the [operating] theatre. In the nursing home, I dealt directly with the residents. You have the chance to interact with the residents. But in the theatre, it s more technical. You can t talk to the patient perhaps if the patient is awake, can talk. But you have no time because you re very busy. Patients just come and go. On the other hand, he is quite happy to find several of his countrymen working in the same hospital and find new friends: I have lots of Filipino friends working at the theatre. He admitted that he still has difficulty adjusting to the weather, language and people. When asked if it pays or it s worth it to be in Nottingham. He replied: In some aspects, it s worth it to be here. In general, because I grew up in the Philippines, with this culture, the tradition, the lifestyles and living here is quite different. For me, I just take advantage, just save some money. My friends are in the Philippines, the rest of the family are there. 30

31 Citing health as a factor to consider, Victor plans to stay in Nottingham for another 10 to 15 years and then go back to the Philippines. It really depends on my health. I talked with my wife, we plan to live here for a couple of years, maybe for 15 years then go back to the Philippines. It depends really, we ll have certain age limit. But when we retire, we ll go back to the Philippines. 5. Marion Name: Marion Sex: Female Age: 29 Nationality: Jamaican Status: Unemployed Marion is from Jamaica, born to a Haitian mother and Jamaican father. She first came to Nottingham in 2002 on a Visitor s Visa when she was 23. She was sponsored by her sister who was already settled in the UK. Her sister had given birth to twins and asked Marion to come to the UK to help with the childcare. After spending six months in the UK Marion returned to Jamaica and came back to Nottingham in 2004 on another Visitor s Visa. She met her future husband, a British citizen of Jamaican origin, on her second visit. They married in 2006 and came to the UK together in the same year. Marion has not worked since she came to Nottingham but expressed her desire to find a job one day. I have no job, just full-time housewife. I m planning to work but now it s difficult because my daughter is still young and childcare [here] is expensive. Marion has some college education and plans to attend training courses any training courses, she said. She keeps an eye out for any job opportunity that might come her way and is planning to invite her younger sister to help her with the childcare if she finds a job. I am planning to invite my younger sister to help me with my daughter if I find a job. If not, I may have to wait until my child goes to school. She emphasised how important it is to have a job of her own. She is worried that her husband may lose his job. 31

32 My husband is working at a mobile phone company, a retailer [company], and he has experienced being unemployed. But now seems good, he s working in the company for more than a year now. When asked about her future plans and whether she and her family are planning to stay in Nottingham, she replied, Don t know if I will stay in Nottingham. It depends on my husband and his job. If he ends his contract and finds a job somewhere else, we will leave Nottingham We plan to settle down here in the UK but when we get old we may go back to Jamaica with my husband and child. Marion talked about her feelings and experience as a foreigner in this country. She has many reservations. Being foreigner is not so good experience. Some people will look at you from head to toe as if you are different. It s my common observation. I have many insecurities. Too many to mention. 6. Tushar Name: Tushar Sex: Male Age: 37 Nationality: Bangladeshi Profession: Construction worker Tushar arrived from Bangladesh in 2003 on a spouse visa. He met his wife, a naturalised British citizen, in Bangladesh through a relative. They got engaged and eventually married in Tushar joined his wife in 2003 and found himself unemployed for about three years after arriving in Nottingham. Initially, he was choosy about the job he was going to take. Eventually, he accepted a temporary job at a construction company as a checker of equipment and later as a forklift truck driver. I thought it was not so difficult to find a job in England. I have been looking for decent jobs even clerical work but couldn t find, difficult to find. Cleaning jobs may be easier but did not want it. I finished a course in Agriculture in Dhaka and difficult to apply it here. Now I am working in a construction company, at least my driving skill is put to use, but it s 32

33 temporary, irregular and not permanent. Now difficult, not many job orders... Tushar worries about the decline of the construction business due to the socalled credit crunch. He said that he is looking for a more stable and permanent job. He has a three-year-old daughter and his wife is pregnant. She is working as a clerk at a supermarket in the city and when Tushar is not working he stays at home to mind the child. Many of his wife s relatives are living in nearby Derby and Leicester. One of the elderly relatives often visits them and helps with the childcare. It really helps a lot especially when we are both busy and not in the house. Here, you are always busy finding a living for yourself and for your family. When asked about his impression and about life here in Nottingham he said: Very fast pace. People don t really enjoy life. All they have to think is to earn a living otherwise they cannot survive. [It s] difficult if no permanent work, future is uncertain especially because the food prices went up. In Bangladesh, life is difficult but people can still enjoy. People here are a bit cold, I think. They enjoy themselves in the pub after work, only pub. After that enjoyment, they are back to the same routine, same life. He does not have many friends in Nottingham. He remarked that: Most of my friends are in Bangladesh. We play cricket when we get bored. We don t like drinking in the pub, it will just give you headache I don t have problem with communication. The people here sometimes have problems with communication, especially when they are drunk. Tushar plans to invest in a business with some friends in Bangladesh in the future. For now, he does not have enough savings and he is hoping to find a more stable and high-paying job to help him realise that goal. 7. Katarzyna Name: Katarzyna Sex: female Age: 27 Nationality: Polish 33

34 Status: Migrant worker Katarzyna came to the UK in March She first arrived in Edinburgh, where she worked as kitchen staff in a middle-scale hotel for seven months before coming to Nottingham in October of the same year. Some of her friends from Poland are in Nottingham so she decided to move down from Edinburgh. She found new employment as a housekeeping assistant in a hotel in the city where one of her friends was working. Before coming to the UK, Katarzyna had had various jobs in Poland. She worked as a salesperson in a household appliance company and then as a receptionist and telephone operator in a hotel in Warsaw. She also received training in food and beverages. She heard that the same type of job receives higher remuneration in the UK so she decided to come and try her luck. Another motivation for her to come was of the fact that she already had some friends in the UK. I want to earn higher income so I left Warsaw and decided to come here. I first went to Edinburgh and then here. My friends are also here. But she finds her job tougher than the one she had in Poland: Here, not many staff in the hotel so you have more work to do, more on cleaning. You are paid higher because there are not also many staff Katarzyna spends her days off with her friends and often meets them in town after work. She finds life in Nottingham not much different from Poland and for her there is no reason to feel homesick. She has no problems with the weather, culture or environment. She says she can also buy Polish goods if she wants: There are Polish shops and restaurants. We can buy Polish goods and products if we like. We can cook Polish food if we like, everything is here. I don t have any problem. Also no problem with British culture. It s all right for me. Most of her friends in Nottingham are Polish and she does not have any close friends from other nationalities. She welcomes the idea of being friends to everyone, maybe because I m just new here, maybe when I stay longer here, she reasoned. Although she has Polish friends, she is not a member of any Polish association in Nottingham. She did not know that any existed. 34

35 When asked about her future plans and aspiration she answered briefly: I am here just to save money and go back to Poland. 8. Bruce Name: Bruce Sex: Male Age: 44 Nationality: Zimbabwean Status: Refugee Political activism impelled Bruce to flee from his own home country to seek asylum in the UK. He left Zimbabwe in 2000 to evade political persecution. Working in a radio station and as a freelance journalist had endangered his life. His participation in politics had made him a target of the government and this prompted him to seek refuge in the UK. He described how he got out of his country, feeling that he had no choice. It wasn t an easy thing for me to come. It was like those were the days when our dollars in Zimbabwe were already plunging in the market. I started to [use] the savings that I had to buy the ticket. Then, I sacrificed because I was under the police order. Then, I basically got into the plane flying into UK, where I never thought that I would be in one day. He spent his first seven days in the UK at the detention centre in Cambridge and was released when a friend in London pledged to house him. Since I have political background, they all wanted to know the reasons why I decided to come to England. So, I went through the process of screening They were saying that we were on screening and interview. They were actually verifying my reasons why I came to the UK. His wife followed him to the UK and he became dependent on his wife s student visa. You know what happened was, when I was in London, my wife came in and she joined me. The Home Office sort of working on her papers for sometime until my wife decided to go to college. When she went to college I was joined on her application as a dependent on her visa. That did enable me to go back to Zimbabwe because by then it was virtually very quiet [in Zimbabwe] and there wasn t any political disturbances. So 35

36 when I went back in 2005, I came back again [in the UK] because I had this terrible encounter with this unfair regime. Bruce, his wife and two children were eventually granted refugee status in Moving into Nottingham was not their choice. I went back to Zimbabwe in So when I came back here I told the Home Office (about his experience in Zimbabwe). My application was already in their file. They decided that I should come and stay in Nottingham. So, they did send me from Luton to Nottingham. I had no choice so I had to move with my family to Nottingham. They told me that a lot of our citizens are here in Nottingham so it would be an easy thing for me to get used to. Since his arrival in Nottingham, Bruce has helped to set up a community network for fellow Zimbabweans. The group started with 55 members but membership is rapidly increasing and has reached about Sunerat Name: Sunerat Sex: Female Age: 39 Nationality: Thai Status: Student Sunerat came to Nottingham in 2004 on a government scholarship to pursue her PhD. Before coming to the UK, she was working as a lecturer in a university in the north-western part of Thailand. In her first year in the UK, she was staying in a dormitory, an experience she did not enjoy. She explained why she felt lonely there: I feel lonely sometimes because they need to go alone. Did you see that? So, that s why I say if every people go alone, so I should go alone as well. It s different culture unlike in Thailand or elsewhere where you got a lot of friends to come along. In here, people go alone. That s what I see. Since arriving in 2004, Sunerat has very limited interaction with British people or other nationalities. She said she rarely attends cultural or international events: 36

37 I don t because my speaking is not good. So just talk about studies not for other activities I feel lonely when I come along with these guys. They didn t talk much with me. I didn t talk with them as well. Maybe I m not good. She is currently sharing a house with five other Thais and she feels happy in their company. She maintains regular communications with other Thai students in different parts of the UK. She said: I m quite happy. It was useless in the first year. I tried to think to stay with [people of] other countries to get experience but it was not good. So, I don t want to have this experience again now I m quite happy and if there s any problem you can talk. You can talk everything. Sunerat has no plans to work in the UK after her studies. She intends to go back to Thailand once she has obtained her degree: I ll just finish [my studies] and go back, because when I got the scholarship I have to work back. That s why I need to go back. I don t want to stay longer or get a work in here as soon as I finish, I ll go back. When asked about her overall feeling about living in Nottingham, she replied: Yeah, it s nice just for studies but for others I don t know. The real life maybe I don t know. 10. Jade Name: Jade Sex: Female Age: 37 Nationality: Zimbabwean Status: Failed asylum seeker Jade s involvement with an opposition party in Zimbabwe had endangered her life. She was forced to flee to the UK in 2000, hoping that she could return in two years, that there would be a change in government. She recounted, When I was back in Zimbabwe, my involvement in the MDC, the political party, I did face quite a lot of beatings because I was distributing leaflets for the party. It was It was when the party was just starting for 37

38 some days I could not even walk or wake up from the bed. So, those are the things I went through. And you know, my father said it was okay for me to go abroad. When she arrived in London, she was given a six-month visiting visa. After six months, the situation in Zimbabwe had not changed so she applied for a twoyear extension on her student visa. Her daughter joined her as her dependant and they lived with a brother who had just moved to London from Norway. When her visa was about to expire, she failed an asylum application but it was unsuccessful. Her current status is failed asylum seeker. She is currently appealing for have her case reconsidered. Jade moved to Nottingham in 2006 when her brother told her that he could no longer afford to help her and her daughter financially. She described what brought her to Nottingham. Where I m living in Nottingham that s where my friend is. I got a number through her sister in Zimbabwe. She told me that she (sister) is a trained nurse now and she s based in Nottingham so she gave me the number. I rang her and we started communicating. I told her about my situation. Then she has a child, one child and she was due for her second child. She said, If you don t mind I could offer you accommodation with your daughter, at the same time you could help me babysit. And I said, It s okay so that s how I came to Nottingham. Jade is facing a new challenge. Her friend is going for Canada to a new job, leaving Jade with no choice but to vacate the house they are renting. She spoke about her worries and reasons to remain in the UK. We sort of try our voices to be heard by the British government as well. Our plea to be heard, to say that even if I m in this country, I m still a destitute. Like now, I don t know what will happen to me in the next three weeks. Where will I be?... There is nothing that is more frightening than not knowing where you would go and stay. Jade has not visited Zimbabwe since she left in She could not hold back her tears when she mentioned her mother who died recently: I have never been home and my mum died this year in January which was a shame. I haven t seen her for eight years and didn t even see where she is buried. 38

39 Part 3. Analysis New migrants in Nottingham Photo: Brenda Tenegra 3.1. Legal status, protection and dealing with authorities As we have seen in Part 1, Nottingham has a long history of immigration. During the post-war period migrants came mainly from Commonwealth countries, usually to take up factory jobs in the expanding manufacturing sector of the city. These old migrants have progressively evolved into established ethnic minorities by virtue of their acquired citizenship and longstanding presence. There are now third generation British Asians and Caribbeans in the city. Contemporary migrants come from a greater variety of countries, trajectories and motivations and legal statuses than was the case in the post-war years. Among our interviewees some cited economic motives and career/educational enhancement, others mentioned family reunification as the reasons for their arrival, while others reported having left their countries in fear of political persecution. Some of the recently arrived migrants are legal residents with indefinite leave to remain and the right to 39

40 work in the UK, while others have much more precarious legal statuses that might prevent them from working or even residing in the country (e.g. failed asylum seekers, overstayers and other unauthorised migrants). For most of our respondents, coming to the UK is seen as a liberation or opportunity to realise their goals and aspirations. Among those who came for work, wage differential between the UK and their country of origin was the most prevalent reason given to explain their migration to Britain. Earning a higher salary than in their country was the reason most often mentioned for migrating. Salary-wise, yeah. Back home I would not be able to survive there with my salary alone. With my salary here, I could manage everything and can still save. Salary-wise it s fine Back there, I was doing work in really lousy hours but not properly compensated. (Male, 33, South Africa) Yeah, it s better [here] compared in the Philippines. (Male, 39, Philippines) A significant proportion of the foreign-born population in Nottingham are students enrolled at the city s two universities. Many of these foreign students receive scholarships government or private scholarships to pursue further education in the UK. I was studying [for] my A levels. I passed my levels and really got good marks. I was awarded a scholarship to study here. I came here when I was 17. I never went to the university in Algeria. (Female, 24, Algeria) I got the scholarship from the Thai government It s my responsibility because I am a teacher, a lecturer and we have to get a PhD for the students. I finished MS so I have to continue my studies. (Female, 39, Thailand) Others fled their country in haste, escaping violence and persecution and seeking safety. Once in Nottingham, they find themselves destitute and living in a state of limbo. Their experience is often one of disillusionment due to the lack of possibilities they have as refugees and the inability to take control over their future. None of the respondents who were asylum seekers said that they came to the UK in order to find work, although they assumed that they could work once they had arrived. I don t have access to many things and find myself to say that my life is just stagnant. I can t move from one level to another, same position for 40

41 the past eight years. You miss quite a lot of things. No matter how much you want to go ahead with your education but you can t That s one of the things that we Zimbabweans experience, that s why we say that we re destitute in this country. To find Mugabe the way he s treating us there and here as well. (Failed asylum seeker, 37, Zimbabwe) Most of us are not allowed to practise our profession because of our status. There are a number of our citizens who are languishing in this NASS accommodation, waiting for a decision which is not coming their way. They are suffering. That is the situation which is very difficult. Sometimes we talked to our [fellow] citizens who have been tagged, they have been tagged as if you killed somebody. See! Then the reporting conditions. They are supposed to report to police stations after every week. (Refugee, 44, Zimbabwe) We can infer from the above quotes that some of our interviewees feel marginalised in the city. In the next section we will look more closely at the ways in which migrants and refugees are able to access services present in the city and at the problems some of them have to face. Access to and experience of services Housing is one of the most pressing needs for recently arrived migrants (Zontini, 2001). House prices and rents in Nottingham City are considerably lower than the national average. 24 This means that new migrants in Nottingham have more access to cheaper housing compared to those settling in other parts of England and Wales. However, although cheaper housing is available in Nottingham, affordable properties are often beyond the reach of many migrants, particularly those with uncertain status in the country or those who cannot prove to have a regular income (e.g. those working in the informal economy; see Zontini 2001). The situation of refugees and asylum seekers seems particularly difficult since they often have little choice or control over their housing situation. Often the housing they are able to access in the UK hardly meets their expectations and differs widely from their experience in their country of origin. Owing to dispersal policies they are frequently housed away from the 24 In 2007, an average terraced house costs 102,800 in Nottingham, while it costs 183,900 in England and Wales; a semi-detached house costs 129,700 in Nottingham while it costs 206,100 in England and Wales; and a detached house costs 220,100 in Nottingham while it costs 351,000 in England and Wales. Source: The Land Registry, July Sept

42 capital, where most of their social networks are, to be located in cities around the country (such as Nottingham) where they rarely have contacts or networks of support. When I stayed in London, I moved to Luton where I briefly stayed and I was partly working there in Luton that was the time when I went back to Zimbabwe in So when I came back I told the Home Office. My application was already in their file. They decided that I should come and stay in Nottingham. So, they did send me from Luton to Nottingham. I had no choice so I had to move with my family to Nottingham it wasn t my choice. I had to move away from Luton. I couldn t even have a choice. A failed asylum-seeker and single mother, who did not meet the criteria for a NASS 25 accommodation, had to look and negotiate for a place to stay in Nottingham, offering her babysitting service in return. Where I m living in Nottingham that s where my friend is. I got a number through her sister in Zimbabwe. She gave me the telephone number She told me that she [sister] is a trained nurse now and she s based in Nottingham so she gave me the number. I rang her and we started communicating. I told her about my situation. She has a child, one child and she was due for her second child. She said, If you don t mind I could offer you accommodation with your daughter, at the same time you could help me babysit. And I said, It s okay so that s how I came to Nottingham. The plan to create centres for asylum applicants in order to alleviate their housing needs was announced in October 2001 by the government. 26 The former RAF base of Newton in Nottinghamshire was proposed as one of such centres offering accommodation for around 750 asylum seekers. 27 However, the proposal was vigorously opposed within the local community. More than 1,000 local residents congregated at Bingham Market Place and voiced their opposition to the plan. 28 The plan was eventually abandoned. 25 National Asylum Support Service. The Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 established a directorate within the Home Office the NASS to assist the Secretary of State in providing accommodation for asylum seekers where reasonable in the circumstance (Immigration and Asylum Act 1999, The Stationary Office, 1999). 26 Accommodation centre plan in chaos Community Care (online edition) [accessed on 1 September, 2008] 27 Home Office plans to turn RAF Newton into a centre for 750 asylum seekers have been unveiled Nottingham Evening Post, 7 June ibid. 42

43 At present asylum applicants continue to be housed in low-cost accommodation, usually in the most deprived areas of the city. Our interviews show that the situation of asylum applicants is marked by prolonged multiple disadvantages and deprivation, not only in housing but also in the access to other services such as healthcare and education. Access to good quality primary care is generally contingent upon registration with the local general practitioner (GP). However, getting access to and care from GPs can be difficult. These difficulties sometimes extend to the children of these asylum seekers who also find it hard to access services. A 37-yearold single mother, who is reapplying for asylum, is very worried for her daughter, who cannot even see a doctor if she is ill: My daughter doesn t have access to a GP at all. She s not registered because they would need a valid passport from you to register to a GP. Since she doesn t have that status, she can t register to a GP. Although her daughter has access to education, her legal status prevents her from joining in certain school activities such as school-organised field trips outside the UK. She goes to school. She can t even go to trips with other kids, go to France and Sweden. She doesn t have access because she doesn t have documentation for her to travel. She can t travel. This single mother also wishes to pursue and continue her education but is not permitted to do so by her current status. She can only express her wishes and narrate her grievances. No matter how much you want to go ahead with your education but you can t sometimes you know I think of what if I do social care? What if I do nursing? But because of your status, you can t do anything, just stay to where you are until something else changes. That s why I m putting forward my fresh claim for them to reconsider If I had the right status, even going to school to discuss different things, go to different educational departments that s how you know more. For now, I m in the house babysitting and the like. I don t really have much, just go to church and come back home. When my friend is out to work, I have to take care of her kids. If I had access to other facilities like going to school, that s where you meet different people and get to know a lot of things happening around me. 43

44 Now she is preparing a fresh claim for her case to be reconsidered, but she is doing so without any legal aid. When asked if she has access to legal aid, she answered: I look for a lawyer by myself. They used to say that if you are an asylum they will provide you a legal aid but now I think they ve dissolved the legal aid. That s actually one of the things that we are fighting for, to say that they should open up the legal aid. They said it has been abused in the system that is one of the things that we are fighting for. Even if you want to reopen your case to submit fresh claim but there is no legal aid. If you look for a solicitor you have to pay that solicitor. Before she could make a new application, she was faced with another challenge. The friend who offered her accommodation in Nottingham is leaving for Canada for a new job. Our interviewee has no choice but to find different accommodation. She confided her worries as follows. From October where would I go? There is nothing that is more frightening not knowing where you would go and stay. Further evidence of the exclusionary implications that the national immigration policy might have on the integration of migrant subjects at the local level in Nottingham can be seen in the following statements from a representative of the Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Refugee Forum (NNRF). Speaking about asylum seekers he said: There are no longer free English language classes for failed asylum seekers 29 [ ] who are also increasingly isolated and pushed into cashoriented jobs, the black economy, exploitative and risky jobs. Indeed, our interviews with personnel of charities working with refugees confirmed that recently introduced policy restrictions have hindered their integration into the city s social fabric since such status has prevented them from accessing work and free English classes, leaving them in the kind of isolation expressed by our interviewee above. A leader of the Zimbabwean Community Network confirmed the multiple exclusions faced by failed asylum seekers. 29 The estimated number for this sector of the population in Nottingham is

45 I didn t have that sort of problem because my application went through. Once the application is going through the Home Office, you will be living in a NASS accommodation. But once it has been rejected, then they will ask you to move out from that accommodation. But that doesn t end there, if they tell you to move out of the accommodation, you are not allowed to work. Interviewees also reported that employers are also reluctant to offer jobs to applicants who do not own or rent their accommodation, and sometimes these applicants are being reported to the authorities. A respondent who was granted refugee status said: I would want to walk into an employment agency with a friend. Every person is expecting a good result to come out from an agency. [But] I don t expect to walk into an employment agency with a friend of mine, who without even registering, they will call the Home Office and that person will get picked up. I m psychologically affected by it. The importance of accommodation for accessing other spheres of society is also demonstrated by the access to credit. A 37-year-old male respondent from Bangladesh needs his wife s consent to apply for a loan. He described why he finds it hard to obtain a loan: We are paying council tax and it s under my wife s name. You need a council tax bill to apply for a loan, they ask for it as proof of address only the name of my wife is in it. Holders of work permits, students (including spouses and dependants), however, can enjoy a reasonable support in accessing healthcare, housing and other social services. All respondents from these immigration categories are privately renting their accommodation. Students can rely on the international office department of their universities for various forms of support and assistance (e.g. accommodation and visa assistance); work permit holders can also take advantage of the support and services offered by their employing institutions at no extra cost. Below are some extracts from in-depth interviews: There s a lot of support. I should admit that. They really take care of international students. (Female student, 24, Algeria) I contact the international office about how to extend visa. They provide everything [about how] to extend my visa, that s quite nice. It s okay. (Female student, 39, Thailand) 45

46 Well, if I have problem, thanks to God I haven t got a massive problem so far. But a few times in terms of some mistakes in different expenses or and some things with the Human Resources then, they have sorted the problems. So, maybe I have been very lucky or they are very good and co-operative and helpful [about other kind of support] I think they are efficient. If they are not, they tried to find someone efficient for you. Well, if they have not been 100 per cent efficient they are 95 per cent efficient I would say. (Female postdoctoral staff, 31, Iran) Here in this hospital, they are offering advance training. They have free courses, seminars and trainings to upgrade your knowledge and enhance your skills. (Male nurse, 39, Philippines) I have free medical care. I have been diagnosed as diabetic. All those medications are free. Back home you need to pay. (Male radiographer, 33, South Africa) Some respondents, however, experienced some problems with healthcare services, which perhaps are similar to those encountered by the local population. During a group interview with Filipino migrants, a respondent showed his injury, a fractured elbow caused by an accident and he complained about not being given an earlier schedule for a CT scan: I have to wait for more than a month to have a scan. Maybe it will already heal by then. A 33-year-old respondent from South Africa raised the same problem based on his experience. One thing I realised is that when you have a problem it s quite scary because you can only get a scan in six to eight months. What I find really annoying are the GPs. Back home [in South Africa], I don t need to register to see a GP. Here, you can only be registered to one GP and you can t go to another. In 2004, I had this inoculation for something like rubella, and it made me really sick. I went to my GP. It was Friday and he could only see me in eight or nine days you can t go somewhere else, you need to wait. If you re just only allowed to see another one but can t go anywhere else. The problem if you are really sick and they send you to [a hospital] and you have to wait for four hours in any case. 46

47 Some of our respondents who legally have the same eligibility for NHSprovided healthcare as any other UK resident, in practice experienced difficulties in getting access to and receiving care from GPs. Several local civil society organisations (CSOs) have recognised that access to services is an acute problem for recently arrived migrants. They have been actively engaged in facilitating new migrants access to services, at times in collaboration with the local authorities, at other times helping clients dealing with such authorities (e.g. by providing interpreters or housing and benefit advisers, assisting with City Council or Job Centre related matters, etc.). Some of these CSOs focused on assisting their clients in sorting out their legal status so as to determine or achieve eligibility and entitlements to services, as in the case of the Refugee Legal Centre. Other organisations such as the Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Refugee Forum had a wider remit that also included practical support in accessing services and other opportunities as well as facilitating the social and cultural incorporation of new migrants in the city. As one of our interviewees from this organisation pointed out: We are like a bridge. For people who come in from outside the country into this society we are in the middle like a bridge to help them integrate. Local authorities on their part have very recently begun to act on their concern for new migrants. They have instituted new positions specifically to address this new population and they have instigated a number of initiatives directed at this population. So, for example, a post of Diversity Officer for Emerging Communities was recently (April 2008) created alongside the existing one for faith groups and black and minority ethnic groups (BMEs). The Council now recognises that the needs and realities of new migrants (NECs new and emerging communities) are in many ways different from those of longstanding ethnic minorities. Another example is the recent founding of a working group on new migrants involving City Council officers, police officers, CSOs officers, academics and librarians. There seems to be recognition on the part of the Council of the need to share information among different agencies, charting what is already on offer in the city and also to disseminate this information to newcomers. Access to work As emerged from the first section, work is of crucial importance for recently arrived migrants. Employment, as we have already seen, is what motivated the migration of most of our interviewees. Securing employment is a key factor in the smooth integration in Nottingham. The interviews for the project 47

48 were conducted at a time when unemployment rates in the UK and the fear of job losses are rising. This situation is clearly reflected in our respondents concern with job insecurities. Tushar, a 37-year-old male from Bangladesh, joined his wife in Nottingham in He was out of work for about three years after arriving in Nottingham. Initially, he was choosy about the job he was going to take but eventually accepted a temporary job at a construction company, first as a checker of equipment and later as a forklift truck driver. I thought it was not so difficult to find a job in England. I have been looking for decent jobs even clerical work but couldn t find, difficult to find. Cleaning jobs maybe easier but did not want it. I finished a course in Agriculture in Dhaka and difficult to apply it here. Now I am working in a construction company, at least my driving skill is put to use, but it s temporary, irregular and not permanent. Now difficult, not many job orders... Tushar worries about the decline of the construction business due to the socalled credit crunch. He is looking for a more stable and permanent job. He has a three-year-old daughter and his wife is pregnant. Both Tushar and his wife manage to juggle their working and caring needs but their busy schedule leaves them with very little free time. His wife is working as a clerk at a supermarket in the city and when he is not working he stays in the house to mind the child. He remarked: Here, you are always busy finding a living for yourself and for your family. Tushar s wife can work thanks to her husband s support and sharing of childcare. Many women, however, find it difficult to secure employment due to their caring needs and lack of networks of support. This is reflected in the case of Marion, a 29-year-old Jamaican who has not started any work since she came to Nottingham to join her husband a British citizen of Jamaican origin in Marion expressed her desire to find a job one day. I have no job, just full-time housewife. I m planning to work but now it s difficult because my daughter is still young and childcare [here] is expensive I went to college [in my country] and I am planning to attend a training course here, any training course that will help me find a job. I am planning to invite my younger sister to help me with my daughter if I find a job. 48

49 Tushar is residing in Arboretum while Marion lives in St Ann s, both wards with high unemployment rates 30 and which are among the poorest in the city. As described in Part 1, both wards have high concentration of ethnic minorities. Police, criminal justice and safety In term of policing and safety, Nottingham City Council has developed multiagency teams to deal with complex cases. A Neighbourhood Renewable Fund with a budget of 187,000 has been made available to support tasks to combat anti-social behaviour. A mobile task force is also funded with 65, The Housing Department develops and jointly funds a range of community safety initiatives, including the setting up of CCTV and work on anti-social behaviour. 32 These safety and security measures have generated mixed impressions from our respondents. Some gave an overall positive account: It s quite relaxed. Depending on which area you live in Nottingham because as you know, there are a lot of things happening in different places. In where I live, it s safe and most of the time you see these policemen in bicycles. The neighbour is sort of taking care of the security wise. There are cameras as well, especially in the main streets, there are cameras. So, you feel a bit safe. (Jade, Female, 37, Zimbabwe) Positive. It s peaceful. It s quite. People are nice. But, well I m not an outgoing person, maybe if you want to ask someone who wants to have three nights to get drunk, they don t like Nottingham. But for me it s fine. (Noora, Female, 31, Iran) Others have expressed concern about safety in the city, declaring that although they like Nottingham, they sometimes feel unsafe. A 33-year-old male respondent from South Africa shared his view and observation on the city: 30 According to the Office of National statistics 2001 census, St Ann s and Arboretum wards have the highest rates of unemployment in Nottingham in 2001 (ONS 2001 Census, National Report for England and Wales. Crown Copyright 2003). 31 Nottingham City Council Strategic Plan , published in The outcome include the following: 1) a reduction of almost 50 per cent in the number of new cases between 2002/3 and 2003/4 and referrals reduced by 40 per cent in the same period; 2) a reduction in arrests of 30 per cent, no tax offences of 60 per cent and vehicles removed of 50 per cent. 32 ibid. 49

50 I think Nottingham is a beautiful city. Most of the time, the people are relatively frank I didn t know that the crime rate is high in Nottingham. I m from South Africa and the crime rate is really high there. I am quite used to it. But I still find it strange that they report gun crimes and knife crimes on TV which is bad actually because it s also the same back home. People back home drink a lot. Here, it seems that they can t drink and enjoy, like when I go out with some of my colleagues, they tend to drink as much as possible and sometimes make fool of themselves. It s like they can t go out and just enjoy. They need to be drunk. I used to drink back home but not as much, here especially younger people they drink so I would like that to change. Rashid pointed out how he experienced repeated harassment and abuse when he first arrived in his neighbourhood. He described how his car was vandalised several times, his house windows were broken and eggs were thrown at him. He claimed that many refugees like him are likely to encounter racism and hostility, especially when housed in difficult areas of the city, and that hostile behaviour comes not only from the white population but also from blacks and British-Asians. On the other hand, NGO members have observed that the arrival of new migrants and refugees has improved the safety and quality of life of some of the most deprived areas of the city, e.g. through the opening of new shops and services. The growing presence of new migrants in Nottingham has been recognised by the Nottingham police who, apart from creating the new Diversity Officer for Emerging Communities post dedicated to facilitate trust and collaboration between the police and the new resident population are also in the process of preparing information packs specifically for the new migrant residents of the city Social and cultural life Most of our migrant respondents feel that Nottingham is a good place to live as it is equipped with good amenities, good transport links, nice tourist spots, beautiful countryside, numerous shops, and relatively cheaper accommodation compared with other urban cities in England. But most of the respondents feel and perceive that being a foreigner or non-british still largely means being excluded from the mainstream of British life. The following interview extracts illustrate this point and show some of the coping strategies deployed by our respondents to cope with this situation. 50

51 Being foreigner is not so good experience. Some people will look at you from head to toe as if you are different. (Female, 29, Jamaica) There were few difficult [fellow] staffs in the unit, and even now. But I try not to focus on them because they are not the reason why I came over here. They are not the reason why I m in the unit so I try to ignore, I mean not to ignore but not to be not to create feud. (Female, 36, Philippines) The feeling of being a foreigner Well you should see something to feel something. I had a feeling of race discrimination for being a foreigner and second [class] citizen. Quite a few times, I had this feeling. Rather than talking about it, I just try to keep it to myself or swallow it. I just digest it and not be bothered about it. Because I couldn t do anything. I don t want to go back, I don t want to quit (Female, 31, Iran) Especially the elderly, maybe the 60s or 70s, their view towards other nationalities is different. You ll find some racist. Some of them in an institution didn t want to be attended by black people, in any help or whatever. That s what I found out. The older people I find more racist than those maybe at the age of 30s. Some of them even have affairs with black people and want to get along with each other, and interact unlike those in their 60s and above. (Female, 37, Zimbabwe) Social networks Respondents from diverse migrant groups expressed awareness of the difficulties and challenges that confront them daily. Most reported that when they need support to cope with in their new environment, they turn to social networks. As far as social life and supportive relationships are concerned most respondents seem to be at ease associating with co-nationals who share a common culture and religion. Well, because of my cultural background and religion and things like that, I tend to associate with Arabs, Algerians. (Female, 24, Algeria) I moved from Edinburgh to here because some of my friends in Poland are now in Nottingham. I meet them two or three days in a week I only have Polish friends, no close friends from other nationalities. (Female, 27, Poland) 51

52 Yeah, I have friends. I already have two who work here in Nottingham. I used to work in the nursing home, and have some friends there. I also have friends here in the hospital with Filipino friends. But with other nationalities, I don t have. (Male, 39, Philippines) Only Thai friends I stayed with others like English, Italian, and Chinese on my first year but I didn t like it very much so on my second year I tried to stay with the same Thais. (Female, 39, Thailand) However, it emerged clearly from the interviews that people from the same country of origin will not automatically feel that they have a great deal in common. A few seemed relatively content with a limited if somewhat disengaged social life in Nottingham. An Iranian respondent finds it hard to have a very close relationship with other nationals. She is aware of a fellow Iranian community network but prefers not to be part of it. I get to know lots of people after living here for five years and a half. Even in a local shop but at the end of the day I found it hard to make a very close relationship [here], like what I had in Iran. I have some friends and been with them for 17 to 18 years... There is an Iranian association but I don t attend because our beliefs are not similar. (Female, 31, Iran) The choice of social groups and the sense of belonging that may derive from participating in them are not just culture or ethnicity related; our interviews show that they are also influenced by other factors such as immigration status, employment, and period of migration. For a failed asylum seeker, clearly there are differences in this respect: Oh, there are those with status they don t want to associate with those without status. You group with those you have a lot in common. With those with status, for example she s working, it means all those things are okay for her. (Female, 37, Zimbabwe) Family life What emerged from our study is that while spouses of work permit holders and ILR 33 residents have the right to work in the UK in a paid or voluntary capacity, they face obstacles to employment due to lack of information about job search, the difficulties linked with the accreditation of overseas qualification and experience, language problem, lack of work experience in 33 Indefinite Leave to Remain 52

53 the UK, and discrimination. Often, this has been the cause of tension among migrant couples, particularly those who have no children. Some respondents felt that the lack of job opportunities for their spouses has put pressure on their relationships. A 33-year-old respondent from South Africa described his situation: My biggest stress point now is my wife who is not working at the moment. She used to be fine. She applied from an agency as well and it took ages. Her registration was very expensive for the overseas nurses programme. Apart from the registration you need to work and come to the hospital as part of clinical time, and need to go to the university as well for two months and take basic crash courses again undertake refresher courses. Part of that is the clinical time. Ninety nine per cent of the time was in the nursing home. We were quite lucky because the waiting time for the overseas nurses programme is about two years sometimes. We only waited for about a month. But what was frustrating afterwards were the troubles in finding a job. There was actually an opportunity in the nursing home. She was working as a carer but she s a nurse. They started giving her all those responsibilities she was working many shifts every day. She was doing some care work but it wasn t really a full [time] job. She wasn t really happy it s frustrating for her. She wants to go back. Pressures resulting from job insecurities, inadequate housing, lack of support networks and a general feeling of isolation put many recently arrived families under strain. In other circumstances, however, the perceived hostile environment has resulted in the strengthening of familial bonds, while the need for increased savings has resulted in a more equitable distribution of productive and reproductive tasks between couples, as we have seen in the case of Tushar s family. Religious life The spiritual needs of migrants in Nottingham are met through the presence of several places of worship in the city. Most Christian denominations are represented in the city centre and in different wards. There are also mosques (e.g. Madni Masjid in Forest Fields and Meadows Muslim Mosque in Meadows) and Hindu and Sikh temples in the neighbourhoods (see Table 12). The locations of these places of worship can also be seen as an indicator of ethnically mixed neighbourhoods. The majority of new migrants and ethnic minorities are living near religious and cultural facilities. It is not only the spiritual need that is being met in these areas since they also provide 53

54 multicultural educational facilities for children, specialist shops and cultural support networks. The availability of these multicultural facilities has a direct bearing on migrants lives. Our respondents explained that going to these places of worship provided opportunities for friendship and social activity. A 39-year-old respondent from Thailand who had to travel to Warwick to visit a Buddhist temple said that she did so also to meet new Thai friends: I went to a wat, you know what? It s a temple in Warwick and got to know other Thai people [there]. Table 12: Religious organisations and places of worship in Nottingham Gurudwara and Temples Churches Mosques Gujarat Samaj Notts All Souls Church Madni Masjid Hindu Temple (Carlton Road) Assembly of the First Born Meadows Muslim Action Ramgarhia Sabha Christ Embassy Sikh Temple (Basford) Sikh Temple (Hyson Church of God of Prophecy Green) Sikh Temple (Sherwood) Church of God UK Deeper Life Full Gospel Revival Centre Lighthouse Chapel Mansfield Road Baptist Church New Testament Assembly New Testament Church of God Pilgrim Church Seventh Day Adventist Church St Barnabas Cathedral St Patrick Church United Holy Church of God Sources: Directory of African Caribbean, Asian, Black and Ethnic Minority Community Organisations, published by Nottingham City Council, January 2006; and City Centre Map published by Broadmarsh. 54

55 Language and culture Most of the respondents cited language problems when they first arrived in the UK. Although special language courses, such as English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), are available and are often free (or provided at low cost) but can be in short supply. Some respondents have benefited from this service, yet, as we have seen, some categories, like asylum seekers, are not eligible for such courses. Other respondents claimed that although they are relatively good at English, they experienced difficulty during their first few months in Nottingham. Their unfamiliarity with different British accents and their lack of confidence in speaking the language were a problem. It the beginning I must say it was tough. You know because of different culture and not very understanding people. I spoke in English but they speak a different type of English (laugh) but it s all right now, I get used to everything. (Male, 33, South Africa) No, I don t [participate in activities] because my speaking is not good. So just talk about studies not for other activities I feel lonely when I come along with these guys. They didn t talk much with me. I didn t talk with them as well. Maybe I m not good. (Female, 39, Thailand) Others feel intimidated when somebody is speaking quickly or deliberately talking in slang. One respondent confided that she is emotionally affected and humiliated when she cannot get the meaning being conveyed. For example when you can t understand a word in English, this is being taken as a tool to laugh at you. It s not nice taking advantage of the fact that if they talk quickly you can t get that. If they used colloquial language or slang language, you don t get that and they use it quite often. It gives emotional pressure on you when you can t get that It s not nice to be laughed at. You can t mention like Look, it s rude. Trying to understand things are different between cultures and respecting that. Also, trying to understand that developing different languages and becoming fluent in different languages in order to live in another society, it takes time. (Female, 31, Iran) New migrants have to contend with the homesickness that accompanies migration, combined with the need to cope with a new culture, language barriers and the thought of being a foreigner. Some of our respondents feel misunderstood by others and suffer as a result. 55

56 It s difficult to deal with people like, for instance, you meet somebody, it s sometimes difficult to express yourself. Not everybody understands you. It s difficult to live in a foreign country. You feel homesick. You feel intimated. It cannot be denied that some people really don t understand foreigners It needs time to get acquainted with the language here Also, I m hoping that they will understand the feelings of the foreigners, who can be very sensitive as it s difficult to live in a foreign country. We need a bit of understanding from them I m not talking about all of them, but some. (Male, 39, Philippines) The problems of using the English language raise a number of important issues. It can be a frustrating experience, can lower one s self confidence and can further foster the feeling of non-acceptance in the UK. A respondent from South Africa described his experience: I realised some patients can be really rude if they realised that your first language is not English. It s not because I have problems in speaking but in pronunciation in speaking English When they asked for example something and you explained, they sometimes rudely say I can t hear what you are saying. They could have just said, sorry I didn t catch that and no need to be rude because I was polite. I also sometimes experienced being ignored. Like for example when I asked some colleagues, they would just ignore you. If you asked them, they would just walk away. On the bright side, I just talk in my language and they cannot understand me (laughs).nothing more specific it s just about the way you speak in English. Because of this experience, I was terrified of answering the phone at work. The Council seemed aware that language might be a barrier to integration. With the view of facilitating integration, the Equality and Diversity team of the City Council has positively promoted equality- and diversity-related initiatives; materials on race, disability and gender are now published in community languages: Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, English, Farsi, French, Gujarati, Hindi, Kurdish, Polish, Portuguese, Punjabi, Somali, Turkish, Urdu and Vietnamese. There is also a growing number of materials and references translated into different community languages which are available and accessible in public facilities like the public libraries. We have also witnessed an ongoing effort on the part of the city libraries to widen and facilitate new migrants access through their library development workers to the city s libraries. One way in which this is done is by acquiring volumes and resources in the languages of the new migrants groups. The driving licence manual in Polish was mentioned as one of the most sought-after volumes. 56

57 Intercultural interactions The responses of our participants indicate that opportunities for intercultural interactions are very limited. Time, language barriers, religious and cultural differences are cited as factors that prevent them from participating in the wider community. I think the time is a problem. When I m at home, I sometimes can t go out if tired. I sleep. (Male, 39, Philippines) I used to [participate] but lately not as regularly because my wife is here and I also do more extra shifts. I can t go as often as I used to. The last time I joined was in January, about five months ago. But I often see some of the people in town. We talk and catch up on news. Now, I can t really make commitments and appointments because there is always something to do, especially now that we re short [of staff]. Some ask for off sick. (Male, 33, South Africa) There is no problem is you share the same belief like religion and culture. It s difficult to mingle if you don t share the same belief. (Male, 37, Bangladesh) A local resident shared the same observation. Ethnic groups are still a lot very much divided. I would say that Asian culture is they want to be among themselves. They ve got their own temples, their own synagogues, it s very much divided when it comes to religion it s about understanding. If you understand the Asian culture you probably mix in or blend in but I think it s lack of understanding and lack of knowledge, isn t it? (local resident, mid 40s) As we have seen, several neighbourhoods in Nottingham are very ethnically mixed and in these areas intercultural dialogue and encounters are a reality of daily life. These neighbourhoods have potential sources of strengths. Aside from the wide range of specialist/ethnic shops and places of worship available, there are numerous ethnic community centres which offer education and community development services. These include services for: advice and information, arts, culture, education and training, children and families, health, women, housing and accommodation, older people, and sports See the Directory of African Caribbean, Asian, Black and Ethnic Minority Community Organisations, published by the Nottingham City Council, January

58 Also, Nottingham City Council appears to have actively engaged in facilitating intercultural communication and exchange between new migrants and older residents. For example, Policy and Development officers, in collaboration with other public services and civic organisations, have created opportunities for intercultural communication, networks and solidarity building and information regarding services and opportunities. One of the most successful of such events was organised to celebrate International Women s Day on 8 March. The event, which took place in one of the city community centres, and was attended by over 200 women of which approximately 20 per cent were new migrants (mostly Eastern European and African), 40 per cent black and British-Asians and 30 per cent white British. Political participation The question of migrants political participation in Nottingham has to be contextualised in relation to the following. First, apart from Irish and Commonwealth citizens, newcomers from outside the EU are not entitled to vote in any type of election unless they have British citizenship, while those from within the EU can vote in local and European elections only. As pointed out elsewhere (Duvell 2005; Martiniello 2006; Però 2008b), political participation especially in relation to migrants has to be considered as something broader than voting and standing for elections. Second, newcomers often have a number of immediate and urgent needs to address, leaving little time to dedicate to civic and political engagement. This is particularly the case when they still see themselves as staying temporarily or do not yet regard themselves as settlers (Castles and Miller 2003). It can take a while before migrants start to get civically and politically mobilised regarding integration in their new location (e.g. see the case of Latin Americans in London described in Però 2008a). Third, they may be civically and political inactive in their new community for some time but actively engaged in transnational politics, as often is the case with refugees and asylum seekers. What emerged from our interviews is that political consciousness was very much higher among refugees and asylum seekers. In many cases people seeking asylum are members of social groups facing persecution often for their political ideas. Political activism impelled respondents from this category to flee from their home country and seek asylum in the UK. An aspiring lawyer from Zimbabwe explained how he left the country because of his political involvement: 58

59 It wasn t an easy thing for me to come. It was like those were the days when our dollars in Zimbabwe were already plunging in the market. I started to [use] the savings that I had to buy the ticket. Then, I sacrificed because I was under the police order. Then, I basically got into the plane flying into UK, where I never thought that I would be in one day I was studying law. Then, I briefly worked in one of the radio stations. I was working as a freelance journalist. And it was just like oh, abruptly, my life was in danger. I said Oh, no! I couldn t finish what I had started because of what was now happening. My participation in the politics had made me a target by the government. So I decided to come to the UK. (Male, 44, refugee) A 37-year-old female Zimbabwean left her country after suffering beatings for supporting the opposition party. She related her experience: When I was back in Zimbabwe, my involvement in the MDC, the political party, I did face quite a lot of beatings because I was distributing leaflets for the party. It was It was when the party was just starting. So when we were having like rallies or all these demonstrations and for some days I could not even walk or wake up from the bed. So, those are the things I went through. You know, my father said it was okay for me to go abroad. So, I was just hoping that when the government changes, I can go back. (Female, 37, failed asylum seeker) She did not claim asylum immediately on entry to the UK as she was hopeful that the political situation in her country would eventually improve and she could return. This mistake resulted in her subsequent request for asylum being rejected. Zimbabweans in Nottingham, who are now a fast-growing group, are getting organised: They (authorities) sort of say that a lot of foreign nationals are literally based here in Nottingham. They told me that a lot of our citizens are here in Nottingham so it would be an easy thing for me to get used to since a number of Zimbabweans [are purportedly] in Nottingham. I m still yet to see a lot of Zimbabweans in Nottingham. That s the reason why we actually formed the Nottingham Zimbabwean Community Network. We must groom up our nationals and then we can speak with one voice as an organisation the number is swelling up. We started when we were about 55 [members]. Now, the number has swollen up to almost 300 something. 59

60 Other recently arrived migrants in our study have yet to start to engage politically. This might, however, change in the near future when they manage to consolidate their settlement in the city Sense of belonging and identity Some respondents had to make substantial adjustments in their way of life, attitudes and expectations since coming to Nottingham. All respondents think of their stay as temporary and this feeling seemed linked to many factors. Job insecurity was mentioned as one of the reasons. I like to stay for a few more years. Not [necessarily] in Nottingham. It depends. If this current project goes well, I stay in Nottingham to finish this. If I somehow have to establish [myself] due to lack of funding, then I like to move to another city to another university or college. I want to stay for another two to three years in England. Hopefully after that, I m hoping to find something I want to go to America. So if I find something there, I will move there. (Female, 31, Iran) [We] don t know if stay in Nottingham. It depends on my husband and his job. If he ends his contract and finds job somewhere else, we will leave Nottingham We plan to settle down here in the UK but when we get old we may go back to Jamaica with my husband and child. (Female, 29, Jamaica) A female Algerian student respondent has already developed a sense of belonging and affinity with Nottingham: I feel that Nottingham is my second home. I have been here for seven years. So, I really don t know any other city apart from Nottingham. So, I ve got home back home and Nottingham here. I do like here cause I like town, I like the university. I got used to it basically. But the career and uncertainty for a job in Nottingham prompted her to consider going to a bigger city like London where she could find a more promising career, I want to go and experience something different. In London, yeah. I think I want to go [there]. The nature of the job that I want to do in the future requires me to go down south. That s where most of the industrial companies are, and that s where I want to go. 60

61 Other respondents whose long-term plan is to go back to their countries of origin merely see their stay as a way to maximise their savings. My main goal is to save as much as I can My main goal is to save and buy a nice house in South Africa I wouldn t mind staying here. I m very adaptable. (Male, 33, South Africa) I am here just to save money and go back to Poland. (Female, 27, Poland) Yeah. I have a plan to live for a couple of years. It really depends on my health. If my health permits, why not? Maybe 10 or 15 years?... As for the long term plan, I want to go back in the Philippines I just talked with my wife, we plan to live here for a couple of years, maybe for 15 years then go back to the Philippines. (Male, 39, Philippines) For respondents who fled for refuge and sought asylum, political settlement in their country of origin is what they are waiting for. When there is a full change of government, I want to go back to my country The people just want to change the government. If there s a change in government believe me no Zimbabweans want to stay here, everybody wants to go home. (Female, failed asylum-seeker, 37, Zimbabwe) Most people would want to go back, yes. Some people have lived enough, so long, away from their relatives there. Some people are fed up with their situation. Some people may still want to work for one or two years and then go back to Zimbabwe. We have mixed feelings among ourselves. (Male refugee, 44, Zimbabwe) 61

62 Part 4. Conclusion Photo: Brenda Tenegra Our research reveals an overall desire on the part of our migrant respondents to partake in intercultural dialogue, to meet and interact with others and to become full members of the social and cultural fabric of the city. This desire, however, is for many of them still to be realised. Many of our respondents felt isolated and expressed feelings on non-belonging to mainstream British life and to the city of Nottingham. They also felt little able to establish long-lasting networks beyond their immediate family, friends and ethnic group. The project identified a correlation between these difficulties and the overall unsympathetic, if not hostile, attitude to foreigners articulated by the media and the increasingly restrictive immigration and integration policies promoted by the central government. Both media and government policies contribute to create a climate of uncertainty for newcomers and seemed to exacerbate their feelings on non-belonging. 62