Current Situation
Asylum seekers
Leicester is home to a significant number of Poles, Ugandan Asians, Kosovars and Somalis. However, the refugee and asylum seeking population has grown and diversified considerably with the implementation of the Home Office's dispersal programme, which has made Leicester a key city in the reception and resettlement of asylum seekers and refugees.
The existence of a significant Polish population in Leicester has attracted other Polish refugees arriving in the UK and Leicester is today used as a dispersal cluster area for both Polish and Latvian speaking asylum seekers. Data gathered at the end of May 2004 showed that asylum seekers of 57different nationalities were being supported by NASS in Leicester. According to NASS figures, of these, the largest groups were Turks, Somalis, Iraqis, Zimbabweans, Iranians and Afghanis.
Refugees
There is also a significant population of those who have been granted leave to remain living in Leicester. Some of these residents derive from the earlier settlement of populations as outlined above. Others may have arrived prior to the implementation of the dispersal scheme, for example, having been placed in accommodation in Leicester by London boroughs. The majority of the remainder may have arrived under the dispersal scheme and subsequently had their claims successfully determined, or may have arrived from elsewhere in the UK following social networks or attracted by Leicester's multiculturalism.
The council notes that languages such as Albanian, Bosnian and Tamil are becoming significant in the city and a report commissioned by the council also points to ‘micro-communities' of refugees and asylum seekers from Vietnam, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and Zimbabwe (Leicester City Council), suggesting that these nationalities are beginning to constitute significant populations in the city.
In particular, it is thought that the Zimbabwean refugee community in Leicester is now quite sizeable and that a significant portion of Zimbabwean asylum seekers in Leicester receive subsistence only support from NASS, with many of them staying with friends and relatives who have been in Leicester for some time.
Minority Ethnic population
Leicester has now seen over 50 years of settlement of Black and Asian people from former British colonies, the Caribbean and India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, and East Africa. Outside of London, Leicester has the largest Black and minority ethnic population in England and Wales, at 36% of the total population (Census 2001), and its Bangladeshi community is the largest in the country outside London. The Somali community is variously estimated to number between 8,000 and 10,000 people.
There is also a large population of Romanians in Leicester, which has grown as people have arrived and moved to Leicester in order to be nearer family and friends.
It is also reported that one of the fastest growing new communities in Leicester is the Mongolian population. Estimates place this group at between 50 and 100 residents. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the rapid growth of a Mongolian community in Leicester can be traced back to one Mongolian man who stayed in the International Hotel for a period. It is thought that Leicester has the largest Mongolian population in the UK.
RCOs
The existence of several constituted Somali refugee community organisations (RCOs), demonstrate that this community is sizeable and well-organised.
Key organisations
There are a multitude of local and regional, voluntary and statutory organisations working to support refugees and people seeking asylum who are arriving in the Leicester area under the dispersal policy. Proliferation of the sector has intensified particularly since the implementation of dispersal. The East Midlands Consortium for Asylum and Refugee Support (EMCARS), a partnership between local authorities and statutory and voluntary service providers, aims to develop a multi-agency partnership approach to meeting the diverse needs of asylum seekers and facilitate information sharing and joint working.
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Last Updated: 18/05/09
