Deadlines creeping up very fast. Our printer in Preston is closing over Christmas. We are in a rush to finish off the materials that go with the new suitcases. Am looking for up to date statistics on migration to include. After googling fruitlessly decide to pick up the phone. An extremely helpful press officer at the Home Office finds many positive stats. Migrants contributed an estimated £6 billion to the economy in 2006. Call the UN in New York for up to date figures on global migration. Again, someone has facts at his fingertips. We get the red hot off the press estimate for 2010. Talk to Nigel Costley, regional secretary southwest TUC. He sends me a link to their excellent publication Who Makes Up the South West? - facts and figures about migrant workers and in particular debunking tabloid scare stories... "They're taking our jobs' etc. Arrange to have some copies to take into schools with the exhibition and workshops.
Talk to the head at Pool School, book dates to go down for assemblies. We'll also produce materials for discussions in classrooms in the days after the assemblies during registration periods. Will be consulting Michal Kirstein, a psychology graduate currently studying for a Masters in Denmark, on the content. Michal worked in Cornwall for several seasons, labouring on farms.
Am very glad that we will be working in at Pool. Pool is an area where migrant workers were recently in the news.
Hopefully we can link up with community police work in the area while we're there... A new policeofficer dealing with migrant workers is actually to be based there, funded by the Migration Impacts Fund (as are our materials.)
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A spotlight on work and life... migrant workers, local communities and rural unemployment
