Bary works as a Training and Employment Advisor for Horton’s Specialist, Training and Employment Programme (STEP). The service helps refugees to find work in the UK. Bary himself has experienced life as a refugee and can relate to the people he supports. Here he tells his story.
I was born in Kenya in Kisumu, a town near Lake Victoria. I had a wonderful childhood and was fortunate to be surrounded by lots of wildlife. Monkeys used to snatch the schoolbags from me and my friends and climb up trees. We used to have to throw something to them to get our schoolbags back. Hippos also used to climb out of Lake Victoria into residential areas, and people would wave things at them to scare them off. Life in Kenya was great as we were all one – local communities used to get together to celebrate different religious holidays and events.
Sadly, my family and I had to leave Kenya after the country became independent from Britain in 1963 due to the violence against ‘non-African’ people. My parents were from the Indian subcontinent, and East Africa where we lived was part of a British colony.
We moved to Pakistan where my grandparents lived. Having to leave my childhood friends and toys behind was a culture shock. At the time, Kenya was considered an advanced country. Pakistan in comparison had a lot of poverty. There was no television and only radio. I could only speak Swahili and a bit of English. I was bullied and had difficulties in school. Over time I settled down and made friends. I completed my studies and graduated from university with a Bachelors in economics, Arabic, religious studies and history.
Throughout the 1960s and 70s, a rise in unstable situations relating to politics, society, economics and religion made Pakistan an unsafe place to live. In 1975, my family and I were forced to leave the country. We became refugees for the second time and moved to the UK. A Kenyan family we were still in contact with who had settled in Bradford, recommended that we move to the city. I arrived in Bradford with my family on a very cold day, aged 21, with only £5 in my pocket.
Moving to the UK was another culture shock. My English wasn’t very good and I experienced racism and bullying – it was the norm in those days. It was also difficult to get a job as my qualifications were not recognised here. I found work at a textile mill in Bradford. I went on to work various jobs, including for an engineering firm, then a bus driver, where I experienced racism from some sections of the local community. My family and I briefly set up a restaurant in Keighley, but we had to sell the business as a result of the recession. I went on to sell Indian meals and snacks to shops, including frozen Indian meals – this was the first time this was sold in the UK. Over time I became very ill with psoriasis and arthritis and could not handle frozen food, so I had to sell the business.
I moved into jobs in the voluntary and charity sectors in various advice and support roles. My jobs have included supporting children, the elderly, families, people living with disabilities, and people who have refugee status. My job as an Employment Advisor for the Connecting Opportunities (CO) programme for the Halifax Opportunities Trust led me to get to know staff who were running the programme at Horton. I met Horton’s CO Manager at work meetings for all the organisations involved in running the programme. A Training and Employment Advisor job vacancy for the STEP programme at Horton came up. I successfully applied and started working for Horton in April 2022.
My job as Training and Employment Advisor involves supporting refugees to find work in the UK. I help them to write their CV, sign up to training courses, and apply for jobs. Their qualifications can now be converted to UK equivalents, which is a blessing. It feels rewarding to support people and for the person to go onto successfully find a job. It is also good to see a smile on a person’s face, knowing that I’ve helped them and they feel good.
The best thing about my job is meeting a diverse range of people who have come to settle into the UK from all over the world. It is interesting to see different people’s customs and practices. The people I support are often surprised to hear that I’m from Africa. I like my job as I can relate my experiences to them.
Horton Housing delivers STEP in partnership with World Jewish Relief.