Healthwatch Kingston recognises Windrush 75th Anniversary
Arriving at Tilbury Docks in 1948, 492 individuals from the Caribbean began their new life in Britain. As part of the wider post-war migration of many groups, movements across the Commonwealth facilitated the development of a resilient Black British community. This voyage was one of the first post-war trips from the Caribbean, and other parts of the Commonwealth, and the people that moved following World War Two (1948-1971) are now known as the “Windrush Generation”. Though not always voluntary migration, this period of movement and transition shaped Anglo-Caribbean identities and their prominence in British society to this day.
Many of these people moved in search of the prosperous life they were promised by the British government in order to meet post-war labour shortages, however, upon arrival many faced backlash and racism from their white neighbours. Areas within urban regions of the UK- such as Notting Hill- developed a strong Caribbean community, though by the 1950s racially-motivated riots and violent attacks swept across London, Bristol, Birmingham and other cities. In response to such riots, resistance continued through events such as the Notting Hill Carnival and by figures of resilience, such as Claudia Jones, Darcus Howe and Beverley Bryan. Since the Windrush scandal that emerged in 2018 and ongoing changes to government compensation, the Windrush Generation continue in their fight for equal rights and treatment.
The NHS is also celebrating 75 years since its founding, in which many of the Windrush generation took up work within the NHS. In fact, ethnically diverse colleagues make up 42% of the NHS’ medical staff to today. The foundations of the NHS have the Windrush generation’s contribution to thank, and new waves of migration continue to provide an invaluable asset even today.
The 75th anniversary of the arrival of the Windrush is a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the work of our Black and other ethnic minority colleagues and their significant contributions to the National Health Service, which is also marking its 75th year… They were critical to the formation of the NHS, and I am honoured to work alongside their descendants and generations that followed in their footsteps.
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