Caribbean Community in Birmingham

Where they come from

Birmingham's Caribbean families come from Jamaica, Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, St Kitts and Nevis, Dominica, Guyana and many other islands and nations. Many arrived as part of the Windrush generation from the late 1940s onwards, invited to help rebuild Britain, and settled in Handsworth, Lozells, Aston, Ladywood and beyond.

The community in numbers

At the 2021 Census, out of a city population of 1,144,919, 44,776 Birmingham residents described their ethnic group as Caribbean; 16,553 people living in the city had been born in the Caribbean; and 30,748 Black Caribbean residents gave their religion as Christian.

Working for Birmingham

The first generation drove the city's buses, staffed its hospitals and worked in its factories. Their children and grandchildren are doctors, nurses, teachers, social workers, lawyers, police officers, business owners, artists, sportspeople and councillors, and Caribbean-heritage entrepreneurs run businesses across the city.

Birmingham grew rich as the city of a thousand trades, and that spirit of making and doing is still strong. Today the trades sit alongside healthcare, education, finance, law, logistics and technology. The Caribbean community brings energy to that mix, from people starting small businesses to those caring for patients, teaching in classrooms and keeping homes and workplaces in good repair.

Culture and community life

Birmingham has a proud reggae history, and the city's carnival has celebrated Caribbean culture for decades. Churches, especially Pentecostal congregations, are central to community life, and Windrush Day on 22 June honours the pioneers. Jerk chicken, curry goat, patties and rice and peas are loved across the city.

In a city where scores of languages are spoken, the Caribbean community adds another voice to the conversation. Its members, old and new, are helping to make Birmingham the confident, outward-looking city it wants to be.