Reasons for immigration in the Modern Era 1900 - present - OCR ARefugees seeking safety in Britain

Although the 1905 ‘Aliens Act’ restricted immigration, it still allowed entry to refugees.

During World War One, about 250,000 Belgian refugees came to Britain to escape German invasion. In general they were warmly received, although there were some tensions because some British people suffering hardship felt the refugees were living in better conditions than them. Resettlement centres were set up in places such as Earl’s Court Exhibition Centre and Alexandra Palace in London. Some went to live with families, while others went to live in specially built camps. There was even a purpose-built Belgian village in Tyne and Wear with its own school, shops and churches. Most returned to Belgium after the war.

During the Spanish Civil War in 1937, about 4,000 children came as refugees. The Salvation Army and the Catholic Church were amongst others who volunteered to look after the children.

When Jews were being persecuted in Nazi Germany and Austria following the rise of Hitler in 1933, human rights groups argued that the UK should take refugees and about 40,000 were accepted, although many more were refused. In 1938 and 1939, thanks to the work of campaigners, around 10,000 Jewish children came to safety in Britain from Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia in what is known as the Kindertransport. Their parents, however, were not allowed to come with them and many died in the Holocaust.

After the Nazi invasion of Poland and during World War Two, some 160,000 Polish refugees arrived in Britain and many Poles served in the Allied armed forces. After the war, the 1947 Polish Resettlement Act allowed them to stay and be joined by their families.

Since World War Two, refugees from many conflicts have come looking for safety in the UK.