A recent report by the independent charity Corby Community Partnership (CCP), Living and Working in Corby: The Silent Migrant, sets out that Corby is one of the fastest growing towns in England. Corby was essentially a steel town from the 1930s until 1980 when British Steel closed down its plant with the loss of more than 10,000 jobs. The unionlearn Midlands team has been supporting its community engagement activities and has taken part in a number of community celebration events. 

In the early days, people came from Scotland, Ireland and Wales, as well as eastern Europe to work at the plant. In recent years, high numbers of European migrant workers have moved to the town, which as a result of a huge regeneration project, is expected to double in size over the next 30 years. A significant proportion of the new population are likely to be from black and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds and the CCP estimates that more than a third of existing migrants have no or very little English.

While the scale of development is generally very positive for the town, the level of migration has increased community tensions, in part fuelled by the negative portrayal of migrants in some sections of the national and local media. As a result, the CCP’s research has found, migrant communities are starting to feel more isolated and disconnected.

With the support of local authorities, the police and the Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), the CCP undertakes a wide range of activities aimed at improving community relations. These include providing information, advice and guidance to new migrants and encouraging them to volunteer in order to use and improve their language skills, enhance their employment prospects and get involved in local community organisations. It also runs language and communication classes and organises events to celebrate the diversity of the town and bring together new and settled communities. 

The unionlearn Midlands team has provided information about, and helped to translate information on agency workers’ employment rights; the role of trade unions in the UK; breaking down barriers to progression in the workplace through learning; equality and diversity; and English as a Second Language (ESOL). As the unionlearn Midlands team is a licence holder with UK NARIC, the National Agency responsible for providing information, advice and expert opinion on qualifications worldwide, it has also been able to provide advice on overseas qualifications.

Union Support Officer Jurgita Pranculyte said,

Unionlearn has helped to bring together people from diverse communities and to raise awareness about the role of trade unions, particularly their role in promoting learning in the workplace and in local communities. We are also helping to set up informal ESOL classes so that new migrants can improve their language skills. This will not only enhance their employability, but also help to promote understanding between new and settled communities.”

Unite member George Hill lives in the Kingswood area of Corby and helped, with a wide range of partner organisations, to put on a recent community celebration event on his estate.

There’s never been a more important time to join a union. Unions and the TUC are an important partner in promoting community cohesion. The unionlearn Midlands team, through Jurgita, bring capacity to the table and have valuable experience and knowledge to share both in terms of promoting learning in the local community and helping to promote inclusion.”