Tell me your story - United Kingdom I

Kuldeep Seehra is a 74 year-old Asian lady who was born and brought up in Nairobi, Kenya, East Africa. She belonged to a large and quite prosperous Asian minority, living in her grandfather’s large house with her parents, her brothers and sisters. In 1976, she and her husband made the decision to migrate to England. They had seen the terrible results of Idi Amin’s regime in neighbouring Uganda, when Asian refugees with no money, food or spare clothing and no possessions had been herded onto trains out of the country they had lived in so long, and felt vulnerable in case the same problems arose for them in Kenya. She worked for many years in the local tax office and loved the work. Now she is retired but supports women who belong to the Sikh community with necessary paperwork and bureaucracy which is a big problem for many of them. She is an important member of the wonderfully hospitable Sikh community in Woolwich. She has 6 grandchildren and is enjoying her retirement.

Tell me your story - United Kingdom II

Titilope Ajomale comes from Kwara State, Nigeria. She has lived and studied in Ibadan and Offa in Nigeria, as well as South Africa, for a while. She had family support from her three brothers and two sisters. She had studied at Offa college for an OND in Business Administration and an HND in marketing, a 3-year course ending in 2003. Despite having good qualifications, she found it very difficult to find work. She did not have an official work permit and so could not earn an official wage or salary. Her daughter, Desiree, was born in England and is now 6 years old. Titilope is trying to get permission to remain and to be employed. At the moment, she can only do small voluntary jobs. She plans to try again for citizenship when her daughter is 7 and again when she is 10 years old.