As well as crafting an emotive feature, I wanted to incorporate statistics to provide a clearer understanding of the broader picture of immigration. Data adds depth and context, complementing the personal stories of the immigrants I interviewed.
When researching, I uncovered several significant statistics that reveal the complexities of migration to the UK. These figures shed light on the diverse experiences of individuals who migrate for reasons such as seeking refuge, pursuing education or working opportunities. To explore these motivations further, I conducted background research into the facts and figures connected to these cases.
Immigration to the UK can be classified into key categorise based on migration status. These categories include work, study, family, and humanitarian-based immigration. Humanitarian immigration covers refugee resettlement, the British National (Overseas) Visa Route (BN(O)), Ukraine visa schemes, and asylum grants.
The latest figures from the Migration Observatory 2024 are presented above. To provide a clearer picture, I’ve created a bar chart offering an overall view, along with a series of pie charts that break down the data by year for more detailed insights.
As of July 16th 2024, around 160,000 Ukrainians were living in the UK. This follows Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which led to large-scale displacement. The United Nations estimates that 6 million Ukrainians sought refuge in European countries by June 13th 2024, with approximately 4% (242,000 individuals) arriving in the UK.
Migration for education has also been a significant trend. In 2022, the UK saw a record number of student visas issued, with around 484,000 granted to international students. This growth continued into 2024, with 432,225 sponsored study visas issued by June of that year.
Asylum applications further highlight the diverse challenges faced by migrants. In 2023, 67,337 asylum applications were submitted, involving 84,425 individuals. In the year ending June 2024, this number rose to 75,658 applications. The top five countries of origin for asylum seekers were Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Vietnam, and Bangladesh.
These figures paint a vivid picture of the varied reasons people migrate to the UK, from seeking refuge to pursuing opportunities in education and family life, providing essential context to the personal stories shared in this feature.
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