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What Makes Wales My Home: the Experiences of EU Migrants Living In

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What Makes Wales My Home: the Experiences of EU Migrants Living In What makes Wales my Home: the experiences of EU migrants living in Swansea About the Bevan Foundation The Bevan Foundation is Wales’ most innovative and influential think tank. We develop lasting solutions to Wales’ most challenging problems. Our vision is for Wales to be a nation where everyone has a decent standard of living, a healthy and fulfilled life, and a voice in the decisions that affect them. As an independent, registered charity, the Bevan Foundation relies on the generosity of individuals and organisations for its work. Acknowledgements We would like to thank the Community Fund which awards money raised by National Lottery players for funding this important project. To find out more about the Fund please see the information on their website www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk We are also extremely grateful to those who shared their stories of home with us in an open and honest way, and for sending us pictures of their lives in Wales. Cover photo: ‘Castell Coch’ by Eva Bevan Foundation [email protected] 145a High Street, www.bevanfoundation.org Merthyr Tydfil CF47 8DP bevanfoundation Tel. 01685 350 938 Registered charity no. 1104191 Company registered in Wales no. 4175018 2 The people who took part 22 Claire’s Story Contents 2 The people who took part 14 The Welsh quality of life 3 What we did 15 Family: values we all share 4 Wales: A place of opportunities 16 Making friends and being accepted 6 Putting down ‘roots’ in Wales 18 Being proud of where you live 8 Wales: A place of culture and history 19 Shared concerns 10 The Welsh language 20 Making Wales my home 12 The Welsh environment: 21 Conclusion: Making Wales Home The landscape, the hills, the colours! 22 Claire’s Story 13 A Swansea gem: Singleton Park What makes Wales my Home | Bevan Foundation | 1 THE PEOPLE The people who took part We are grateful to the 17 people who took part in this project and shared their story with us. Here are just some of those who took part: Robert is 40 and Rhiannon is 24 and originally from Hungary. lives with her partner. She He came to live in the UK was born in Leicester but in 2004 and then Wales in moved to Swansea when 2006. Robert has a she was six years old, with background in IT and has her mother who is from created a website based here. Her favourite hobby on his love of Wales is watching American www.superwales.com ice hockey. Jayne is 52 and a life- Eva is 34 years old and is long resident of Swansea. originally from Valencia, She is a lecturer and Spain and moved to enjoys dog walking in her Swansea to live with her spare time and looking Swansea born partner. after her daughter. Although she misses the warm weather, Eva enjoys living in Wales, especially visiting castles. Dai is 36 and has lived in Dom is 38 years old and Swansea for 18 years. He moved from Italy to works in the aerospace Swansea when he was just industry and due to the 21. Since living in Wales he limited opportunities in went to university where this field may have to he was awarded an MBA. move elsewhere. Dom has really settled in Wales, making friends and is in a job that he ‘loves’. 2 | Bevan Foundation | What makes Wales my Home INTRODUCTION What we did Around 80,000 people born in the EU live in Wales, with more than half moving here in the last ten years. Since coming here, many EU citizens have put down roots and a developed a sense of Welsh identity. Much recent public debate has been hostile to migrants, and as the UK leaves the EU it is sometimes assumed that EU migrants will ‘go home’. But for many EU citizens, Wales is now their home and they intend to stay. The Bevan Foundation wanted to increase understanding between migrant and local communities by finding their shared values, issues and concerns about the place they call ‘home’. We felt that sharing experiences would improve relationships between EU migrants and local residents. It would help to increase understanding Eva at Carew Castle about the lives of EU migrants living in Wales, and dispel any negative stereotypes. Importantly we This booklet tells the stories of seventeen people wanted to highlight the common ground between about life during lockdown. It explores why people communities, to help bring people together and came to Swansea and settled there, and why they feel encourage familiarity and good community that Wales is now their home. We found that ‘home’ relationships. Finding this common ground will help can be made up of several different factors and often to increase integration and cohesion in communities. if you have lived or spent your childhood elsewhere home can represent a mixture of past and present What we did experiences. Home can be several places, or it can The Bevan Foundation had planned to meet EU be represented by a house, work, people, family, citizens and local residents to share experiences. memories or a landmark. We had to change as a result of the Coronavirus outbreak: we swapped face-to-face to meetings for Our stories show that whatever someone’s virtual meetings, kept in touch over a period of time, background or wherever they may have been born, and explored issues in more depth. We listened to the people enjoy similar things and share the same experiences of twelve people who were originally values. People become invested in where they live, born outside of the UK and have lived in Wales for they care about the people who live there and the lengths of between a year to nearly 20 years, and of friends they have made. Swansea is a place they have five people born in the UK and Ireland. We focused found a job, a partner, had children and where many on people in Swansea as the area has experienced have put down roots. For all those reasons and more, modest levels of EU migration. Swansea (or Wales) is where they call ‘home’. What makes Wales my Home | Bevan Foundation | 3 OPPORTUNITIES Wales: A place of opportunities Finding a job, seeking career opportunities or starting to study are important reasons why people chose to come and live in Swansea, They are often the reasons people stay, settle and come to call Wales ‘home’. Many of those we engaged with said they have stayed “In a year after living here I was able to work in what in Swansea because they have found a job they love I was qualified in which was teaching. It is wonderful and have advanced their career opportunities. For a and I am thankful for the opportunities I was given. few, they feel that their career goals and ambitions I found better work opportunities for me here than may not have been realised if they had stayed where I had in Poland; I am sad to have to say that but it they were. is true.” Stavros Dom Before coming to Swansea, Stavros was working in Dom grew up in Italy and came to live in the UK the hospitality sector in Cyprus where he had studied seventeen years ago when he was just 21. His plan was media and communications. However, there were to learn English and study. He went to London, then to simply no opportunities there in this profession. Manchester but decided to move when one of his When working in a restaurant he met a woman from friends told him about Swansea. Since arriving in Swansea who advised him that Wales has a booming Swansea he studied at the University achieving a MBA film and television industry and he decided to come and is now working at a large company in Swansea in to Swansea to study for an MA. Two and a half years a job that he ‘loves’. later Stavros is now working in a communications and marketing role and feels like he has more “I joined university opportunities. but I was still working … Then I “That lady was waiting for me at the train station ... managed a she even came to my graduation! ... She is my restaurant in adopted mother or would it be Mamgu? One of my Swansea and I dreams has been to be a scriptwriter and never would thought I would I have thought that the opportunity would have come take it an extra to me in Wales - a country which is foreign to me ... step and then I it was a dream come true!” did the MBA.” Lidia Lidia was a qualified teacher in Poland but had Matt been unable to get a job. When still in Poland she Matt had Dom at his graduation was recruited by an agency to work in a care home worked across in Wales. Since coming to Wales she has gained Europe before additional qualification and is teaching English for taking up a position at Swansea University. speakers of other languages (ESOL). Although the job in Swansea was not his first choice, in the eight years since he has worked there he has 4 | Bevan Foundation | What makes Wales my Home Swansea University (stock photo from Alamy) been promoted to an associate professor and is thankful for the opportunities he has had in Wales. one in Swansea and Swansea was just the interview that I got and it was my least favourite of the three! I “The nature of my work means I travelled around a started off as a lecturer, then a senior lecturer, then an lot.
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