When HMT Empire Windrush arrived on the shores of Tilbury Docks in 1948, over a thousand migrants, mostly of Caribbean descent, answered the call from a government and an NHS unable to fill posts in the aftermath of World War 2.
Today, there are well over 200 nationalities working in the NHS, with one in four of the entire workforce coming from overseas. When you include those who came as migrants but have since acquired British citizenship, the figure is higher still. Migration is part of the very DNA of our health service and social care services.
Our 2025 winter campaign
Our winter campaign — Who’s at Your Table? — in partnership with Comic Relief, is raising money to fund organisations in London and across the country helping people experiencing homelessness and food insecurity, and people who have been forced to flee their homes.
I have had the privilege of working with some amazing nurses during my career — including those who have trained all over the world. What unites nursing staff, whether British born or from across the globe, is care of the patient and a commitment to public service.
One oft forgotten fact, though, is the scale and nature of the racism faced by the Windrush generation when they came over. Despite being invited, and so desperately needed, they had to fight for respect and recognition, often in the face of appalling abuse on the streets and in the workplace.
History has a habit of repeating itself and just as those arriving from the Caribbean faced racism, so too do the migrants of today. Politicians have short memories and their race-to-the-bottom attitude to race and migration is emboldening racists once again, causing widespread distress and breeding insecurity.
As Chief Nurse at King’s College Hospital, I saw selflessness and bravery every day
I’m never angrier about the demonisation of migrants than when I think about their contribution during the pandemic. As Chief Nurse at King’s College Hospital, one of the largest hospital trusts in London, I saw selflessness and bravery every day.
Faced with the worst health crisis in living memory, our migrant colleagues worked relentless and back-breaking shifts, dealing with death on a daily basis. Many lived and isolated alone when they inevitably became sick, some staying in bedsits. For others, they paid the ultimate price. I think about them often.
In truth, our health and care services wouldn’t have survived the pandemic without our international colleagues. In the same way we turned to migrants after WW2, so too did we after the pandemic, supercharging international recruitment, particularly among nurses. Of the previous government’s commitment to recruit 50,000 more nurses, over 90 per cent came from overseas.
Our health and care services wouldn’t have survived the pandemic without our international colleagues
For me, two things are true at the same time. We must welcome, treasure and respect our migrant nursing staff. We also need our government to recognise the value of nursing by investing to make it a more attractive career for young people from the UK.
We should be celebrating the incredible contributions of our colleagues from overseas — they deserve so much better. But In 2025, it’s impossible not to be alarmed at the extent to which migrants are being demonised. I’m sickened at how the arguments of racist rioters and protesters have not been taken on and dismantled, but instead are pandered to by politicians. We at the RCN represent the most diverse profession in the NHS and social care — we will not accept talk of ‘islands of strangers’ or moves to deny people their rights.
When politicians attack migrants and question whether they should be in the UK, it has consequences for all ethnic minority nursing staff, British and migrant alike. While out on hospital visits recently, I was speaking to a black nurse, whose grandparents moved to the UK decades ago. They told me that the rhetoric is more toxic now than they can ever remember.
Calls to our advice line from members facing racial abuse at work have surged by 55 per cent. The rise is even more pronounced in London, with such calls increasing by 72 per cent. Our members have been called ‘animals’, even ‘slaves’. The stories are shocking.
When we say ‘our health and care services would cease to function’ without migrant colleagues, it's not an exaggeration. In fact, it’s hard to name a service that doesn’t benefit from the expertise of a migrant, because they all do.
This campaign by The Standard and Comic Relief couldn’t be timelier. Recognising, celebrating and defending migrants must be a priority for all of us. Without them, our health and care services and our communities would be all the poorer.
How you can help
£10 could help provide a child forced to leave home with a gift to open on Christmas
£25 could help pay for a child refugee to attend a group session to build language skills
£30 could provide a family forced to leave home with a food voucher for a festive meal with loved ones
£45 could provide a refugee with two hours career advice, supporting them to secure employment
Professor Nicola Ranger is General Secretary and Chief Executive of the Royal College of Nursing
