Circular migration, wellbeing and citizenship: Central & Eastern European (CEE) family experiences in the UK

This project is funded by the internal University of Portsmouth scheme 'Themes Research & Innovation Fund' ('TRIF') to the sum of £15, 706.40.Recent elite, public and media discourses on European Union (EU) migration to the United Kingdom (UK) have been characterised by obscure policies, hostile discourses, and a divisive social and political milieu. Despite the heightened attention EU migration has received, little is known about the actual experiences of people undertaking circular migration – a relatively new and rising trend in which family members and their extended networks move, together or separately, back and forth between the UK and other EU countries, mostly for temporary labour opportunities. These developments raise important questions:Project Question i. What can empirical research add to our understanding of the ways circular migration affects the wellbeing, citizenship and identities of CEE migrant families? Project Question ii. How can we best utilise this empirical research to ultimately improve the lives of these migrants who are frequently overlooked in policy, research and practice?Adopting an interdisciplinary approach to answer these questions, this project will draw on Social Work and Cultural Studies for issues on wellbeing, integration and family life and Political Science for issues on migration and citizenship. It will address two of the University of Portsmouth (UoP) research themes; 1) ’Health and Wellbeing’ and 2) ’Democratic Citizenship’.

Ongoing