They are not paid staff, but volunteers, improving their English skills and gaining experience for their CVs – and they are here in this quiet Essex town because they have each made the drastic decision to leave their native Hong Kong Kong, and start a new life in the UK. More than 130,000 Hong Kong residents made the jump in the first 18 months after the government opened a special visa regime last January in response to an increasingly authoritarian political climate in the former British territory. This is a significant collective migration – by comparison, the highest number of citizens arriving in the UK in one year from the accession countries in the EU8, Poland, Hungary and so on, was 112,000 in 2007. Christy Lee, 53, left because of concerns for her daughter’s future. “Hong Kong’s chaos is a famous chaos,” she says, referring to waves of pro-democracy protests in recent years as Beijing has tightened its grip. Pepi Sanchez, the owner of the GO4 cafe: “I want to give them a little community base so that everyone feels safe.” Photo: Martin Godwin/The Guardian She feared her daughter could fall victim to the draconian security law passed in 2020. “My daughter is at a dangerous age,” she says. “They grab you, put something in your bag, and then you’re charged. As a mother, I had to find a way for him to leave.” The couple first moved to Taiwan before coming to England when daughter Lee won a place to study at the University of Essex. In total, experts expect around 300,000 people to come from Hong Kong under the scheme. British National (Overseas) was a special category made available to Hong Kong residents after the territory was handed over to Beijing in 1997. Holders of the status were already entitled to a British passport. but under the visa scheme introduced by the then foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, in 2020, they can apply to come to the UK, for either two-and-a-half or five years – and can then apply to become permanent residents . The decision to open the visa route came as relations with Beijing soured significantly, ending a charm offensive in which former chancellor George Osborne promised in 2015 that Britain would “stick” with China and “create a golden decade and for both of us. Countries”. Rishi Sunak was expected to use a meeting with President Xi Jinping this week to initiate a rapprochement. but it was canceled amid the chaos over the missile attack in Poland. Heather Rolfe, of the thinktank British Future, who has researched the new arrivals for an umbrella group called the Welcome Committee for Hong Kongers, says most of them have no intention of returning. “The big thing is they want their children to grow up British,” he says. They are here to stay, indefinitely, unless things change dramatically in Hong Kong.” Iris works at the GO4 cafe. Photo: Martin Godwin/The Guardian “Growing up children in a different environment is very important for them,” he adds. “This is behind the interest in settling in areas with good and excellent schools.” It cites Sutton and Kingston in London, Trafford and Warrington in the North West of England and Solihull in the West Midlands as popular destinations. Here in Colchester, another volunteer, Iris Yip, 46, opened an online bakery, making small mooncakes and other treats alongside her shifts at the cafe. “In Hong Kong, I was an accountant and baking was just my interest. And then I found out that it was easy for me to apply for a home baking license in the UK and that’s how I started my online shop,” she says. Like Lee, when asked why she made the move to the UK, she cites her children’s future. “I have two daughters, they are 13 and 11 years old. I think it’s dangerous for them to grow up in Hong Kong,” he says. She and her family made a snap decision to leave – and packed up for Colchester because a close friend, with children the same age as hers, was also going there. “We arrived in Colchester on the same day,” she says, adding, “my two children are enjoying their school life: it’s very friendly.” The cafe project is run by Kitty Ng, 49, who is also involved in organizing a range of other activities to help Hong Kong people integrate into the local community, with the help of £30,000 of government funding. Language courses and cultural events are offered through an online Hong Kong Welcome Center for Essex, which also includes jobs and volunteering opportunities. “It’s very difficult for Hong Kong people to find work here,” says Ng, citing her own experience. “I worked in a university for 15 years, I also studied in the UK: but when I came here, many people asked me, ‘what is your experience in the UK?’ He hopes coffee shifts might help. “We have six or seven volunteers. We hire new people and say, ‘maybe work here for three months and get some experience – then go out and find another job’. The government recently announced £6.6 million in additional support for projects like this across the UK, as well as a network of virtual reception hubs. A government spokesman said: “The BN(O) Welcome Program provides support to new arrivals through projects that provide skills training, job and business initiatives, mental health support and a wide range of local events to help BN (O ) settle in their new communities.” Recent community events here in Colchester, including a mid-autumn festival, have involved the local Chinese community, despite initial concerns that some members may be sympathetic to Beijing. “They are Chinese from different countries: Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore. Some of them came to the UK more than 40 years ago: they know about the culture here,” says Ng. Lee echoes Ng’s concerns about difficulties finding work. He hopes that the experience, and especially the language skills, gained at the cafe will help. “I can practice my English better, speak more fluently,” he says. “I’m enjoying it – I keep talking, talking.” As with many exiles from warmer climates, the weather is a frequent topic of conversation. Ng chose not to return to Bristol, where she studied many years ago, because, she says, “Bristol is very windy. All week, wind and rain.” Lee had spent some time in Warrington in recent months, where another community of Hongkongers had emerged, but he did not enjoy the damp climate of the north-west. “It’s always raining, raining – and even when it’s not raining, the floor is all wet,” he complains. All afternoon, food arrives at the tables – neat little chicken pies, buttery French toast, pineapple shortbread. “Food is a very good entry into our culture,” says Ng. The idea of volunteering came from a relationship he formed with the café’s charismatic co-director, Pepi Sanchez, who runs a local community garden next door to this social enterprise, called GO4 Café, located in a former park sports pavilion. Sanchez had already used the cafe to train locals with learning disabilities or mental health issues in hospitality. After meeting Ng and her plans, he extended the same principle to the newcomers as they find their feet in a strange land. “I want to give them a little community base so that everyone feels safe and not afraid to say what they want,” he says.
