The arrival of Central and Eastern European migrant communities into Salford and
Bury has placed extra demand on public services as well as changing the
demographic make–up of communities. While there is general awareness on the part
of public services of significant in-migration, often into deprived urban locations, and
statistical evidence of such migration from governmental recording schemes, there is
limited data on the specific areas of residence and the breakdown by age, gender
and household type of these new arrivals. There is also a lack of awareness of their
particular needs with regard to core areas of public service delivery (health,
education, community safety, etc.) and how services can adequately respond to meet
these. Finally, there is a knowledge gap in relation to the people’s future intentions.
In order to provide an initial baseline of knowledge in these areas a study brief was
developed to enhance intelligence in relation to the Czech, Polish and Slovak
communities in both local authority areas. This study was also intended to inform
community cohesion and integration actions, as well as the priorities for local
neighbourhood level work.
The research was commissioned by Salford City Council and Bury Metropolitan
Borough Council in October 2009 and was conducted by Salford Housing & Urban
Studies Unit (SHUSU) at the University of Salford. The study was greatly aided by
research support from a number of community interviewers. The project was
managed by a steering group composed of officers representing Salford City Council
and Bury Metropolitan Borough Council. The study was undertaken by conducting: consultation with 26 key stakeholders and service providers in Salford and
Bury; and a total of 200 interviews with migrants from the Czech Republic, Poland and
Slovakia
