Roma students urged to be proud of their identity

School pupils from the Roma community said they have been encouraged to "be proud of who they are" at an event celebrating identity.

The charity Union Romani Voice (URV), a Roma-led organisation based in Ipswich, held a conference at The Hold in the town on Wednesday which included Roma speakers sharing stories about their careers and setbacks.

About 20 Year Eight students from Westbourne Academy in Ipswich attended the conference, along with some of their parents and community supporters.

Simona Lazar, the chief executive officer of URV, said: "It's so important for this generation to inspire each other, to feel integrated into the society."

Many of the Roma families in Suffolk are originally from Romania, the charity said, but the term also includes people with heritage from Eastern and Central Europe and the Middle East.

The 2021 census showed 103,020 people in England and Wales identified their ethnic group as Roma, which is 0.2% of the population.

Twelve-year-old Daniel, who attends the Westbourne Academy, told BBC Radio Suffolk his dream job was to be a singer.

"I feel really good because they inspire us to do the thing that we dream of, that we want to do," he said.

Rebeca, another pupil who is also 12, said: "I would be a doctor. It was really good. It was interesting. I liked [the conference] because they were saying about your dreams."

The event's speakers included Ciprian Jacheanu, a Romanian Roma pastor and author, who told the school pupils they should be proud of both their home country and the UK.

Pat Bruce-Browne, the deputy mayor of Ipswich, told the group that speaking English as an additional language was an asset.

"My dream is that the future is good for everybody, that young people can see they have a future," she said.

"I want the young people to know that this is their town, this is their country and their input is important because that's how we grow," she said.

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