ABSTRACT
Several million "strangers" now live in Britain. The present chapter sketches out the issues with which this book is concerned, especially the "problem" of immigrant children in the schools. Immigrants have been encouraged by circumstances in their homelands and have, at the same time, been attracted to Britain. The 1961 Commonwealth Immigrants Act had the effect of greatly accelerating the inflow of immigrants, although its ultimate intention was to restrict immigration. The British Nationality Act of 1981 introduced an important principle, in that, since January 1st 1983, simply being born in the United Kingdom no longer carries an automatic right to citizenship. Like the United Kingdom, the Federal Republic of Germany and its political predecessors has been a receiving society for foreigners for many years. Immigrant pupils in British schools come mainly from the West Indies, India, Pakistan, and from Africa, although many of this latter group are of East Indian origin.
