More sinned against than sinning? Perceptions about European migrants and crime

Abstract

The article draws on perceptions of those working in professional capacities with European migrants in one area of the UK, to explore understandings about the relationship between European migrants and crime at the local level. The qualitative study informing the article involved semi-structured interviews with representatives from the criminal justice system (CJS) and community representatives. A key finding of the study was that both CJS and community representative respondent accounts were largely congruent. European migrants were more likely, in respondent accounts, to be victims, rather than perpetrators, of crime. Much of the predominantly ‘low-level’ crime associated with European migrant offending was reported to be largely a function of cultural difference and based on misunderstanding of UK law and CJS processes. The article concludes with some implications for the enculturalization and education of new migrants and the fostering of better understanding between European migrants and CJS agents and processes.

Keywords

Crime European migrants qualitative victimization

Introduction

Following European enlargement in 2004, citizens of eight European countries were granted the right of free movement across Europe, and to the UK, to find work. This article contributes to the debate on some implications of this enlargement by exploring perceptions, of those working in professional capacities with European migrants in one area of the UK, about the relationship between European migrants and crime. Terminological sensitivities exist in the field of immigration and crime. For the purposes of this article we use the terms migration and migrant, in preference to immigration and immigrant, to avoid the pejorative nuances that have come to be associated with the latter terms. Moreover, the term migrant will be used only in reference to those entering the UK post-2004, and not in respect of previous diaspora.

According to Banks (2008) and Solivetti (2005), in almost all West European countries migration is popularly linked with a rise in crime. Bianchi et al. (2008) argue the crime–migration nexus dominates the political debate in most migrant destination countries. In the UK this is also the case, despite the fact that the crime rate has been falling for a number of years (McLaren and Johnson, 2007). Moreover, migrants tend to be represented in the media less favourably than members of the white indigenous UK population. An analysis of media representations of migrants indicated that they are frequently portrayed as a threat (Rasinger, 2010). Crimes committed by new European migrants to the UK are the subject of increased media speculation and commentary (Mawby and Gisby, 2009). For example, the Daily Mail (Hickley, 2006) suggested Eastern European migrants committed one-tenth of all crimes in the UK, while the Telegraph (Harper and Leapman, 2007) suggested ‘foreigners’, and especially Polish migrants, were responsible for almost a fifth of crime in London. In the same year Julie Spence, Chief Constable for Cambridgeshire constabulary, made media headlines by demanding more staff to deal with the rising crime rate occasioned by migrant workers in the UK. In the latest phase of European Union enlargement, Bulgaria and Romania were admitted to EU membership on 1 January 2007. According to Mawby and Gisby (2009) a particular feature of the UK media coverage of this related to the crime wave that was predicted to follow. Some researchers note how such reporting can have a strong impact on public opinion (Wortley, 2009). Moreover, they argue that as a result, the crime–migration nexus is now firmly established in the minds of a significant proportion of the population of western nations (Simon and Sikich, 2007).

While some media reports claim to offer ‘the facts’ about crime and migration, it is suggested that the impact of recent European migration on patterns of crime is under-researched (Goodey, 2000). A search of contemporary UK literature appears to support this claim. Where research exists, the focus has been more on the experiential rather than the ‘effects’ of migration on crime (White, 2011). To some extent this is the case in the UK because European migrant groups are not readily identifiable through current ethnicity classification systems used by the CJS (criminal justice system) and tend to be classified as ‘any other white background’ (ONS, 2005). Indeed, due to the difficulties in capturing data, at the current time, even the size and patterning of European migrant populations may not be known in many areas of the UK (Baker, 2008).

It is known, however, that the pattern of European migration to the UK is changing (Kelly, 2009). Current figures indicate that migration levels are balancing as more Eastern Europeans are now leaving the UK to return home (Kelly, 2009). Be that as it may, the crime–migrant nexus remains an issue of popular commentary because it appears commonsensical to link migration with increased crime. Criminological theories often focus on an association between poverty, differential opportunities and crime. Since migrants might be expected to be characterized by lower legitimate earning opportunities and poverty, than the indigenous population, it is not surprising that migrants are perceived as having a greater propensity to commit crime (Mariani, 2010).

Under and over reporting of crime, and differential policing and criminal justice practices, when dealing with migrant and native communities, confound statistical attempts to describe the association between crime and migration. The evidence linking migrants with crime is conflicting. That is, while some research in specific countries suggests particular migrant groups are more criminally inclined than native groups (e.g. Bianchi et al., 2008; Killias, 1997; Tonry, 1997), other research suggests an absence of any such association (Banks, 2011). Indeed, it has been suggested that the association between crime and migrant groups is manufactured as part of the criminal justice process (e.g. Angel-Ajani, 2003; Tonry, 1997). According to Banks (2011), in June 2009, there were 11,350 foreign nationals in prison in the UK and this represented an increase of 111 per cent over the past decade. However, it is suggested that increased rates reflected the growth of Eastern European migrant populations rather than increased criminality (Bell et al., 2010). Moreover, perceived over-representation of migrants in the criminal justice system, potentially reinforces ‘taken for granted’ associations made between migrants and crime.

As Mawby and Gisby (2009) point out, however, over the last 10 years, and since 9/11, the crime–migration nexus has become stronger in the popular consciousness by dint of heightened concern about national security. According to some, a new crime–migration–security nexus has been formed which not only links crime to migration, but migration to international terrorism (Goodey, 2002). Moreover, as Antonopoulos et al. (2008) argue, a related discourse among social and political commentators across Europe links transnational organized crime with increasing levels of migration. The new migration–crime–security nexus can arguably be understood from a Foucauldian perspective. That is, it represents the disciplining of an increasingly diverse late modern world where the boundary between external and internal threats has been blurred (Reiner and Newburn, 2007).

The perceived relationship between migrants and crime is evident among a range of stakeholder groups. For example, in study by Antonopoulos et al. (2008) interviews with 29 Greek police officers indicated that they held stereotypical views about Eastern European migrant groups like Albanians and Romanians, who were understood to be criminally inclined. Interestingly the study highlighted how stakeholders, in different countries, may differentiate between migrant groups in this respect. That is, in that particular study, some migrants were perceived as largely industrious and less criminally disposed than others.

Studies on Eastern European migrants and crime in the UK have found that migrant populations tend to define themselves as largely law abiding, in the face of discrimination. In Kempny’s (2011) ethnographic study in Northern Ireland, for example, migrants identified themselves as victims. They provided accounts of racial discrimination, including negative experiences in the workplace and in the community, and of the police. In a study by Osipovič (2010), Polish migrants, working legally in the UK, distanced themselves from an association with crime. They reported embarrassment regarding the way in which a link between Poles and crime was made by the local indigenous community and reported in the UK media and subsequently by the Polish media. Associated with this, it is argued that there may be reluctance among migrant communities to become involved with the criminal justice system and its agencies (Kempny, 2011; White, 2011). Here, language, understanding, distrust, independence and cultural mores have been identified as barriers to reporting (Kreft and Ritchie, 2009). In turn, reticence to engage with criminal justice services may exacerbate risks that migrants themselves face of becoming victims of crime, either from members of their own families, members of their own communities or in the form of hate crime and exploitation by members of the host community.

The article draws on a small qualitative study (funded by a Criminal Justice Board) in which perceptions about the criminal behaviour of European migrants and their relationship to the criminal justice system were sought from representatives from a range of organizations/agencies either representing the criminal justice system or working closely with the migrant population in the study area. In doing so it provides some rich and contextualized data provided by those working in various capacities, at the local level, with European migrants. The purpose of the article is not to identify rates of crime, but more specifically, to explore perceived criminality of European migrants and perceptions of the relationship between of migrant groups and the CJS.

Methods

Sample

A purposive sampling strategy was employed whereby 21 respondents were recruited to the study from a range of organizations either representing the criminal justice system (n = 9) or working closely with the migrant populations (n = 12) in the study area. Whereas the former are referred to in this article as ‘criminal justice’ (CJ) representatives, the non-criminal justice representatives are referred to collectively as ‘community representatives’ (CR), because of their experience of European migrants in the community context (that is, for example, in, housing, employment and other social contexts). CJ respondents included representatives from the Crown Prosecution Service, the courts, probation service, a prison, the police and a Youth Offending Team. Community representatives included employers and respondents from Mental Health Services, Social Services, religious institutions, Housing, Race Equality Network, a Community Partnership, Local Authorities and a voluntary sector provider of drug and alcohol services. The CR sample included three respondents from the East European community, comprising a Polish Priest, a Polish community worker and a Czech neighbourhood officer. Ethical approval from the Glyndwr Ethics Committee was gained prior to commencement of the study.

Data collection

Semi-structured interviews, which were conducted with respondents either face-to-face (n = 19) or by telephone (n = 2), were audio recorded. The interview schedules were tailored to respective respondent groups. Informants from the criminal justice sample were asked about their perceptions of levels and patterns of crime among European migrant populations, and criminal justice services. Respondents from the community sample were asked about their perceptions of social issues affecting European migrants (including crime), and their perceptions of the relationship between European migrant groups and criminal justice services.

Analysis

The data set comprised both transcribed audio recordings and detailed notes made by interviewers. Audio recordings were transcribed by interviewers following the interview. A qualitative data software package (NVivo 8) was used to manage and structure the data. Following initial reading of notes and listening to the recordings, an analysis framework was developed which was used to structure data under identified headings. This comprised the first stage of the data analysis which was informed by a constant comparative, thematic approach. Validity of identified themes was checked across the whole data set and across research team members. Themes identified are evidenced by recourse to data extracts.

The Findings

The study area was characterized by a mix of urban and rural communities, but not, traditionally, by its race and ethnic diversity. The precise number of European migrants in the area was, as expected, largely unknown. For example, estimates of European migrants in one urban centre, provided by respondents, varied enormously, ranging between 700 and 9000. It should also be noted that respondent accounts focused primarily on specific European migrant groups which were perceived as most prevalent in the study area. These were European migrants from Eastern Europe, particularly from Poland, and, to a lesser extent, Portuguese migrants.

Prevalence of crime

It is important to understand respondent perceptions about European migrant-related crime, in the wider context of their general understandings about crime in the study area. Criminal justice respondents, when asked about crime generally, tended to focus upon what they described as ‘low-level crime’. This included mainly ‘alcohol problems’ (CJ15) such as ‘drink driving’ (CJ6), ‘domestic violence’ and ‘acquisitive crimes like shoplifting’ (CJ6). This is summed up in the following data extract by a representative of the Crown Prosecution Service, who depicted the general profile of crime in the area as:

low-level alcohol-fuelled crime, pockets of drug abuse, some domestic violence … Lots of drink driving, fairly steady numbers through the courts for that, … There’s more shoplifting related to the increase in unemployment … Typical perpetrator is male, poor from a number of well-known estates in our area, … Like most courts we have our regulars who probably bring in 60–70 per cent of the non-driving-related work. (CJ2)

As indicated in the above data extract, prevalence of particular crimes was linked in respondent accounts to conditions of social disadvantage, where particularly men found ‘themselves in difficult times’ like ‘loss of employment and accommodation’ (CJ6).

Generally, European migrants were not perceived by respondents (in the criminal justice services sample) as a significant perpetrator group. On the contrary, most respondents, like CJ7 claimed there was ‘very little ethnic minority crime’ in the area, and that the majority of criminal activity ‘tends to be home grown’.

First, respondents talked about European migrant populations as settled and embedded in the locality, and relating to this, as presenting relatively few problems for the CJS. The following two data extracts are taken from interviews with representatives from the Crown Prosecution Service:

There is very little crime. [They are] totally assimilated by now. You couldn’t say there’s been a blip or anything in crime rates from migration … They are a big percentage of the population. (CJ1)

I’d say there were about 500–700 Polish people in (this area) … we get four or five cases every week involving a Polish person. But from about 500 or so cases, 1 per cent of our cases involve Poles. They are not very criminal [and] there are less coming through the courts than before. (CJ2)

Respondents associated law abiding behaviour among European migrants with perceived characteristics of European migrants and their reasons for moving to, and settling in, the area:

From our figures, it does not seem that we have youth offending from Poland or Portuguese. There are hardly any offences of dishonesty, because they have a very high work ethic and they go out to work, and make money, and send it home. (CJ11)

Second, prevalence of particular crimes among migrant groups was described by CJS respondents as largely no different from prevalence among indigenous population groups. Hence:

I found there was some domestic violence. I would think it was the same ratio to domestic violence here in our population. I would not like to say it was more prevalent but it was there, in the same ratio to other populations. (CJ1)

The national average for B&ME [British and Minority Ethnic] MARAC (multi-agency) referrals is 6 per cent. We understand that the local B&ME population is well below the national average. (CJ9)

Third, it was reported that prevalence of specific crimes associated with European migrant groups decreased over time. That is, respondents, from both the CJS and the community samples, argued that much of the European migrant-related crime arose as a function of cultural differences and ignorance about the legal requirements of the host country:

Different cultural issues about alcohol such as drinking on the street. We have been working with the police to provide information about the law, about off licences and not buying alcohol for underage. (CR19)

Sometimes they have trouble the Polish people with it, you know the documentation, driving licence, Polish, European, International you know. Sometimes they ask me about it, ‘is it legal to drive you know if I have just a Polish driving licence?’ or ‘the points will be the points in Poland as well when I go back?’ (CR4)

The perception of CJS representatives that European migrants are largely law abiding was supported by respondents representing community groups and organizations. These respondents reported variously, that there was:

no more crime here, because of the Polish Community. (CR12)

I don’t think the police have seen any rise in crime … where the economic migrant workers are the perpetrators. (CR18)

people are people aren’t they? You get good ones and bad ones. (CR3)

Notwithstanding this, however, respondents reported that while there was no (or little difference) in levels of crime between indigenous and migrant populations, crime among the latter group was perceived as more visible:

[The Polish are] not more or less likely to commit crime, but when they do commit crime they stick out as being not from local. Just as if somebody comes from Liverpool, immediately there is certain outrage and certain feelings of somebody coming and committing serious offences. (CJ6)

While CJS respondents perceived the level of crime among European migrant groups as no higher, and in some cases lower, than among the indigenous population, they tended to associate the former with specific offences. These were: (a) alcohol-related crime; (b) traffic offences; and to a lesser extent (c) domestic abuse. What is notable here is that prevalence of these offences among European migrant groups was again associated by respondents with issues of cultural difference:

The culture towards drink driving is different (in Poland) to ours … If someone was caught drink driving in Poland they were just told off by the police officer and that was it really. So they have a much more blasé, I suppose, attitude towards drink driving (in Poland) than what we have here. (CJ11)

From a domestic abuse perspective, in terms of reporting, we have become aware of the issues faced by these [Polish and Portuguese] communities … I often liken it towards the attitude to drink driving in this country, how we view this harshly and how in Poland, it is seen as relatively normal behaviour. It runs in parallel with the attitudes towards domestic abuse. Both perpetrators and victims don’t always appreciate that it is something that the police would investigate. And they don’t understand how we are involved with other agencies, like child protection and prevention. (CJ19)

While criminal justice respondents differed in their perceptions of whether domestic violence was more prevalent among migrant workers than the indigenous population, they did agree that it was probably under-reported to an even greater extent than among indigenous groups: ‘I still think domestic violence is under-reported (among European migrant groups) and I am trying to get that increased as much as I can’ (CJ14).

In summary, for the most part, respondent accounts suggested that European migrant groups are not associated by CJS representatives with ‘cases involving violent offences’ (CJ16). On the whole, these migrant groups were perceived as intent on establishing themselves in the community and the level of criminality among these groups was reported as decreasing with length of residency:

[The] Polish community don’t come to court for shoplifting or burglary. It tends to be for drink-related crime, assaults, public disorder. Absolutely off their trees, heavily drunk, hard spirits. They are not very criminal and less are coming through the courts than before. [There is now] a more established Polish community, married to local people, local partners, so you’ve got criminality linked to traditional problems, neighbour dispute. They really did stick out at the beginning with drink driving, but now we don’t see many. (CJ2)

Respondents made few spontaneous comparisons between European migrants and Black Minority Ethnic (BME) groups in term of criminal activity. Notwithstanding this, community respondents tended to associate Black BME groups with more with drugs offences and European migrants more with alcohol-related issues: ‘If talking about black population, maybe a lot drugs-related whereas if you had to compare addictions it would be alcohol-related … but can’t generalize would need to look at statistics’ (CR8).

Disposition to crime

Respondent accounts suggested that, to some extent, European migrant behaviours were influenced by how they perceived any misdemeanours would be received back home by relatives and friends:

If they find out back home that over here they have reported domestic abuse to the police, and other agencies are involved, they are very good at communicating with each and all of that filters back home. They are worried that their home communities will find out. (CR5)

Religious leaders, in the sample of community respondents, linked the imperative of avoiding negative news arriving back home both to the religious allegiances of individuals and to the often small knit communities from which migrants hailed. They talked about the ‘guilt’ and ‘shame’ associated with knowledge of criminal involvement reaching home. Indeed, this ‘shame’ or ‘guilt’ was often understood as a shared rather than an individual burden, as reported here by a Polish respondent from the community respondent sample:

A Polish man charged for murder [although] I didn’t know him personally … it’s very sad and I’m ashamed it’s happened because you know I feel ashamed, when I can see or hear of the Polish man, Polish lady, Polish people doing or have done something wrong. (CR4)

While CJS respondents were less likely to talk about concepts such as ‘guilt’ and ‘shame’ among migrant populations, they did highlight the largely law abiding tendencies of European migrant groups, and specifically a promptness in paying fines, compared to members of the indigenous population:

When they do come if they get fined they expect to pay it straight away, not like [those from] this country. (CJ2)

They pay it straight away, you never get them defaulting. (CJ15)

European migrants as victims of crime

European migrants were more likely to be perceived by both CJS and community respondents as the victims, rather than the perpetrators of crime (including hate crime):

It is more against them if anything on a crime basis. (CR18)

They are not perpetrators of hate crime. I can’t think of an incident for a racially aggravated crime but there are numerous examples of them being the victims of such crime [attitudes such as] ‘coming over here taking our jobs’, verbal abuse. (CJ2)

Notwithstanding this, the majority of racially motivated crimes were associated by CJS respondents, with crimes against black people, because of their very visible differences from the indigenous population: ‘We do 250 hate crimes per year, including race crimes but it’s at a plateau at the moment, most of it is anti-Asian. Biggest proportion is hostility by white persons to persons of colour’ (CJ1).

Community respondents, however, clearly perceived incidents of ‘racism’ as under-reported by European migrants:

Racism, I think it is under-reported and therefore not on the statistics. (CR17)

People do not report generally [because it’s perceived as] not worth it. From a migrant worker view, it is not knowing the system, and having confidence in the system. Why would you report it and how does the State get involved, etc.? Not knowing is an area of mistrust. (CR18)

I have come across cases of people who are clearly victims of unequal treatment/victims of inequality at work … they don’t want to report, can’t get it out in the open. (CR20)

Racism is high, but is interesting if you ask some have they suffered racism some likely to say no initially, but later in the conversation it will come out. (CR8)

It was also noted by one community respondent, that of all European migrant groups, it was towards Polish people, that most racially aggravated hate crime was directed. This respondent, by way of example, described an incident where a man was subject to assault simply because his assailants had assumed he was Polish. When the victim denied being Polish, he received an apology from his assailants. This respondent noted: ‘Just as anyone with brown skin is brandied a “paki” a terrorist, the indigenous people view anyone who is eastern European as Polish’ (CR17).

Misconceptions

Community respondents reported misconceptions about migrant populations, highlighting the importance of robust statistics to dispel commonly held myths:

About Eastern Europeans, they say that they drink a lot and are criminals. American movies maintain this [because] the criminals have Polish sounding names … really when people mix, they find out Eastern Europeans are not that bad, not really criminals. They have only come here to work. (CR12)

It was the issue of migrant employment, however, which was cited by community respondents as problematic in terms of prejudice among the indigenous population:

I am aware of some local service users who … I think they are discriminating because maybe some Polish immigrants have come over and sort of ‘you’re trying to take my job’. It’s not said with any real knowledge, but really through the general news of what’s going on in the papers. (CR16)

In terms of indigenous population, to hear them talk, often it is in terms of ‘they’re coming to take our jobs’ … You could cut and paste headlines from Daily Mail etc. from 50 years ago into today’s papers, the messages are the same, ‘coming here, sponging off the State, put up in five star hotels etc.’ … exactly the same stories, just the groups are different. (CR20)

Not only employment, but also housing, was highlighted by community respondents as a source of prejudicial attitudes:

There seems to be misconceptions among the local community that Polish people have been accessing all Council housing and it’s just not the case. We’ve got the stats to prove it. (CR5)

[We hear] lots of rumours which we try to quash. Even from our own staff say, for example, ‘there’s no point indigenous people being put on the housing list as they are all going to Polish people’. It’s not true, but staff really believed it … The other one is ‘they are taking all our jobs’. (CR4)

Respondents provided the following examples of where simple misunderstanding provoked community concern:

It [was] about the Polish shop in (local town). Rumours were going around that there was a sign on the door saying ‘no British welcome here’. Police and neighbourhood wardens went down. There was no sign, but they kept getting calls, insisting that there was this sign. [When a caller was] asked where the sign was [and] what it said, the [caller responded] ‘it’s in Polish so I can’t read it’. [It transpired that the sign] said ‘come in and buy our lovely Polish bread, made by Polish bakers’. (CR19)

There was a problem in where there is the Polish shop which is not run by Poles, its run by some other nation. There was some story that a child came to buy bread and was told that the bread is Polish, meaning it’s brown not white. He went home saying ‘they don’t want to sell the bread to me’. Then [as a result] there was some, not riots, but trouble within the communities. (CR16)

It was also noted that any criminal activities reported about migrant workers were likely to fuel existing prejudicial attitudes, and to be understood out of context. For example, respondent CR19 described an incident where a Polish man had assaulted two other Polish men and was subsequently sentenced to prison. Here, the respondent noted that while this was no different to assault by and on the indigenous population, such incidents were likely to fuel prejudice:

[The incident] was alcohol fuelled; outside a pub … people have got it out of proportion, it is no different to young men wherever they are from, we need to keep it in context, it is what you could read every day in the paper. (CR19)

Concern about these misconceptions was reportedly such that one local council had previously produced and circulated a leaflet with the aim of dispelling myths:

Two years ago we produced a myth buster leaflet which was to quell the rumours. We called it the legal migrant worker myth buster. It was taken on board well by staff, the indigenous population, voluntary sector, and it’s been out to Schools, the University, etc. (CR18)

Issues for Criminal Justice Services

Two issues emerged from respondent accounts as important for criminal justice services. These were the issue of language and relationships of European migrant populations with the police. Both of these issues were described by respondents as relating to the overriding issue of general understanding about the law, processes of law and agencies of the law: ‘The main area generally would be the lack of knowledge of the law’ (CR13).

Generally, community respondents felt that migrant groups would benefit from a greater understanding about the way in which criminal justice services operated:

No-one [among new migrants] realizes which bit of criminal justice does which and there is a lack of communication and feedback. For example an incident is reported to the police and the police say they are passing it on to the CPS. They don’t know what the CPS is. They don’t understand why there is a delay. (CR8)

People are not aware of the criminal justice system, and I feel there is a lot of work to be done there to ensure people are aware. I know Criminal Justices Services did produce a booklet ‘Welcome to (town)’ … It’s been very useful, but more needs to be done with families … On a crime basis [we also] need to know more about the ‘bad guys’ coming in. (CR18)

While generally migrants were described as well assimilated, respondents did note how ignorance of the law and lack of knowledge about criminal justice services, related to and compounded by a poor grasp of English, affected their relationships with CJS. In the following data extract, a CJS respondent describes the level of motivation among Polish people to learn English, as low:

We have people who have been here five years and they can barely say hello. What [would they learn the language] for? They work with Poles, socialize with Poles, there are Polish shops. Anything to do with benefits, [someone] will go and sort it out for them, anything else they will give me a ring. So integration is minimal really, very much a hermetic community. There are exceptions but broadly speaking you could live your whole life … I can spend my whole day out in (town) and never speak English. There is a very good support network [for them], so you don’t have to learn English. (CJ14)

Respondents reported that generally, upon arrival, migrants tended to be distrustful of the police. Much of this distrust was perceived as a function of the relationships between migrant populations and the police in their countries of origin:

I think they have a different relationship with their police in their different countries. I think they are a bit fearful of us. (CJ15)

[We’ve been] told that a lot of these drivers do not speak English, so an issue when stopped, again some think you are asking for a bribe or can’t read the signs yet … in terms of relations with criminal justice, new arrivals do not trust it, their experience is invariably bad. (CR20)

Notwithstanding these issues of distrust, when discussing actual relationships between European migrants and the police, respondents from both the CJS and community samples made favourable comparisons with police/public relationships in their countries of origin:

I can really only speak for myself [but] … relationship between the police and the public in Poland, is not the best. There are legacies from the communist era. The relationship here does appear to be a lot better. I think probably because our tradition is more welcoming than the Polish tradition. (CJ14)

Likewise, respondents talked about how initial encounters with the police were difficult because of migrant expectations, based on experiences of the police back home:

I spoke to a taxi driver who saw a policeman coming towards him, so he started scrabbling about for money to pay him to go away. The policeman came to his window and said ‘Excuse me sir did you know that your light is cracked?’ he said he had never been called sir by a policeman. He was expecting trouble. (CR20)

One respondent also noted that some policing practices were quite alien to migrant groups. Here it was noted that once familiar with these differences, they were often perceived as positive: ‘In Eastern European countries not many women join the police, while here it is quite balanced. It is strange for a Polish woman to see this’ (CR12).

Good relationships between European migrants and the police were in part described as a function of the recruitment of Polish speaking police officers, and in one (often cited) case, a police officer who had learnt Polish:

A lot of people visit [the Polish speaking police officer] for things like simple housing benefit forms. I think he would confirm that there were a lot of Polish people coming to the police station but they were not issues connected with crime. (CR12)

People love, really they love the Polish policeman. That is a blessing. It’s more comfortable for them to speak in Polish with their British policeman than to use an interpreter to do it, because they are inside the conversation. (CR4)

When asked how relationships between criminal justice services and European migrants might be improved, community respondents agreed on the importance of:

[Doing] what the police have already been doing, and employ more officers from different nationalities. There is now a Polish police woman … she learns about them and they learn from her. It is experience for experience, and that is very important. Have a multicultural police force because they can respond more quickly to issues and better. (CR13)

More help language-wise when they come into conflict with the law. A police constable … here in (area) can speak Polish and there’s another cop from Poland who works [here], a beat officer … there should be, or someone should be, a liaison between the community and the authorities. (CR4)

More officers that can speak the language over the whole of [the area]. (CR17)

Respondents also talked about the importance of ‘building bridges’ between the police, a range of other agencies and migrant groups:

The idea of it is that you get to know them in primary school and you then follow them through to secondary school. Build bridges between the police and children. We have a fantastic relationship with the kids. I can’t go anywhere in (the area) without being recognized. It is really good … The LEA, neighbourhood watch, the different communities within the police, teachers. Different operations we do: work with the fire service, social services, we work with the child exploitation online protection people down in London; we work with lots of different agencies. (CJ15)

Concluding Discussion

The study set out to examine current perceptions of crime among European migrant groups, and perceptions of the relationship between migrant groups and CJS within a small geographic area.

It should be noted that the qualitative research findings presented here are based upon the analysis of respondent accounts about European migrants, provided by a range of criminal justice and social service providers, and community representatives rather than migrants themselves. The research methods literature highlights how respondent accounts, while providing interesting and in-depth data on the subject of study, must be treated with caution in that they may serve a range of purposes for respondents as well as reflecting their beliefs and experiences (Blaxter, 1997). Hence, we are aware that respondent accounts should not be understood as accurate representations (Atkinson, 1977) but as providing a useful perspective on a range of social phenomena (Barbour, 2002).

The research concentrated primarily on perceptions of Eastern European migrants, and more specifically the Polish population due to the greater prevalence of this group in the area under study. Accordingly, issues surrounding other EU and non-EU migrant groups were not explored in this article. White (2011), suggests while issues around integration could be extrapolated from the experience of Poles to other ‘new’ EU migrants, caution should be exercised in as much as Polish migrants represent the largest group, with a longer history of migration to the UK. Most studies are confined to specific localities and no wider stakeholder studies of EU migration to the UK appear to exist at this time.

Nevertheless, an important finding of the study was that perceptions of representatives from criminal justice services and the community respondent groups were remarkably congruent with each other and with research findings reported in the literature. European migrants were for the most part perceived as law abiding, and perception of crime among European migrant groups, reported by both CJS and community respondents, was low. When crimes were committed by EU migrants they were generally perceived to comprise alcohol-related ‘low-level’ crime, driving offences and domestic abuse. This finding was similar to that reported by stakeholders in a Carmarthenshire study carried out by Kreft and Ritchie (2009). Respondents however indicated that the levels of these offences among European migrants appeared to be little different from that among the indigenous population. Moreover, crimes when they occurred, were perceived to be more due to a lack of understanding of UK systems, linguistic and cultural differences than intention.

Community respondents observed how (particularly Polish) Eastern Europeans, were very conscious of the way criminal activity perpetrated by members of their community may be perceived. Here, they talked about migrants experiencing a ‘collective sense of shame’ in response to such events. Reports of negative media coverage about Polish migrants and the embarrassment this causes have been identified in the literature, which highlights fears of misdemeanours occurring in the UK being revealed to employers as well as to communities back home in Poland (Kreft and Ritchie, 2009; White, 2011). Moreover, Kreft and Ritchie (2009) noted that, when arrested, Polish migrants do what they can to extricate themselves from the situation as rapidly as possible.

For the most part, study participants perceived that European migrants were more likely to be the victims, rather than the perpetrators of crime. This reflects the findings of previous research which indicates that racially motivated hate crimes are on the increase (Moszczyński, 2009). At the same time, it was acknowledged how inadequate language skills, a poor understanding of UK systems and cultural issues, coupled with a reticence to involve the police may lead to the under-reporting of such crime (Kreft and Ritchie, 2009; White, 2011). Because effective planning of CJS services is contingent on reporting, addressing the barriers to reporting among migrant groups is particularly important.

As the types of criminal activity associated by respondents with European migrants was often understood as a function of cultural misunderstandings and language fluency, it is perhaps not surprising that the majority of lawless behaviour associated with European migrants was perceived as temporary in nature. Accordingly, similar to Kreft and Ritchie’s (2009) observations, as migrants became familiar with the host community and cultural expectations, then decreased involvement in criminal activity was anticipated. In terms of relationships with the police, this was particularly highlighted in respondent accounts. Hence, good relationships between settled migrant populations and the police were perceived as a function of knowledge about, familiarity with and experience of the police. ‘Myth buster’ leaflets, and the greater involvement of officers with Eastern European language skills, were cited as examples of good practice, and were also seen as effective in promoting understanding from both the perspective of CJS representatives and community members. The use of such mechanisms to promote access to services has been previously documented (White, 2011), and indeed recommended (Moszczyński, 2009).

However, as noted by respondents in the current study, access to, and cost of translation, services come at a price. While organizing court referrals by linguistic group may potentially maximize the cost-effectiveness of translation services, this may prove difficult in areas where a more diverse range of EU and other migrants reside, as would the provision of other culturally specific materials.

The authors suggest that European migrants might usefully be more informed about UK law, CJS processes and the role of CJS service providers, upon their arrival in the UK. We also note that proficiency in English is very important, especially in respect of European migrant understandings about the law and CJS. Arguably, greater understanding among the migrant population may lead to a decrease in criminal activity arising as a function of ignorance about UK law and CJS practices and processes. The findings not only highlight the importance of understanding among the European migrant population, but also how this understanding should ideally be fostered in the context of good relationships between CJS providers and migrants. Hence, positive relationships reported between the police and European migrants were largely linked in respondent accounts to the provision of Polish speaking police men and women.

In conclusion, while small in scale, the study highlights the mismatch between popular media representations of criminality within the migrant population and perceptions of CJS services. While new migrant populations are becoming embedded, integration is affected by linguistic competency and this has implications for understandings about the law, cultural competency and relationships with CJS. It is evident that much can be done to improve migrants’ understanding of UK systems, and further research is warranted to explore how this may be achieved.

Footnotes

Author biographies

Sally-Ann Baker is senior lecturer in the psychology team at Glyndwr University. She has been involved in a wide range of funded research projects within health, social and educational settings with a range of stakeholders and her specific interests are in service evaluation, research design and safeguarding issues.

Iolo Madoc-Jones is principal lecturer in Community Justice at Glyndwr University. He has published widely on language and criminal justice related issues in such journals as the British Journal of Social Work, Social Work Education and the British Journal of Community Justice.

Odette Parry is director of the Social Inclusion Research Unit at Glyndwr University and has a substantive experience in health and social care research, attracting funding from a range of funders including the ESRC and Department of Health. Previously she headed a qualitative research programme at Edinburgh University exploring health-related risk behaviours.

Emily Warren is a research assistant in the Social Inclusion Research Unit and having been involved in a range of research projects exploring health issues has recently completed her PhD into the links between diet and school performance in Wales.

Kirsty Perry is senior lecturer in social work at Glyndwr University having previously practised as a social worker in Adelaide, Australia. In the UK she has been an Inspector of Children’s Services for the Welsh Assembly Government.

Karen D Roscoe is a senior lecturer in Social Care. She is published in a variety of journals including the British Journal of Social Work and Journal of Social Work Practice. Karen is particularly interested in exploring discourse in the context of social work education and practice.

Richard Mottershead is senior lecturer is Mental Health Nursing at Glyndwr University. He has published on topics relating to mental health and is undertaking a PhD exploring the relationship between mental health, British veterans and the criminal justice system.

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