“English is a global language, and for me, knowing English helps me talk to people from different countries.” (Asian Learner of English)
Picture an affluent, humid, subtropical 24/7 skyscraper-city pulsating at a million miles per hour.
Did you think of Hong Kong? Fast forward to a hilly, damp, windswept townscape dominated by tired and run-down red-brick mills, chimneys, and terraces. Worlds apart – at so many levels. If you could choose to locate anywhere in the UK, you may be forgiven for placing Oldham a little lower down your list of likely places.
This industrial area of north-easterly Greater Manchester is no stranger to multiculturalism: Irish, Eastern European, and principally South Asian people have put down roots. Even so, it has been truly astonishing to encounter the sheer numbers of Hong Kongers who have made the town their home.
So why would people from a global financial powerhouse with a lovely climate and one of the world’s highest age expectancies[1] choose to come to the ‘Gateway to the Pennines’ – as one rather upbeat street sign declares?[2]
Well thanks to an increasingly possessive and aggressive China, hundreds of thousands of Hong Kongers have had their cherished worlds turned upside-down and been driven to leave everything they appreciate to seek refuge in the UK.[3]
Don’t glaze over now but it’s time for some stats: From 31 January 2021 to the end of June 2024, 192,198 “British National Overseas” visas for Hong Kong nationals have been granted – plus a further 50,275 visas for people already in the UK. Those who have taken the plunge and arrived to settle in the UK total 176,800 people.[4] Absorb…those…numbers….slowly.
This begs a second question: “Why Oldham?” Apart from being the invention-place of the “tubular bandage” in 1961, and Winston Churchill kickstarting his political career there in 1900, Oldham doesn’t really have that much to shout about.[5]
At this juncture, I invite you to join me in raising our glasses to new-builds and property developers. I’m all for not building on greenbelt and all that. However, the real reason for my toast is that unique and exciting gospel opportunities have been opened up by a company called ‘Countryside’,[6] that is held in high regard among, wait for it…Hong Kongers.
So why not go for the lovely old houses with character that Brits tend to prefer? My Hong Kong learners inform me that apart from a general preference for all things brand-spanking-new, as new-comers to the UK, they wouldn’t know who to call on for the inevitable renovation and upkeep.
So it seems that Oldham, at only seven miles from Manchester city centre with half-decent road and transport connections, is the place for a community of people, keen to settle down and get stuck into British education, culture, and opportunities. However, are God’s people (aka UK churches) ready to welcome, assist, befriend, love, and share our lives with a group of people who are often nursing hurts and very much open to the gospel?[7]
Just a year ago my wife and I were considering winding down our church-based English group in Oldham. The Iranians had moved on, the one Japanese guy had disappeared. The situation seemed “parched” and desert-like.[8]
The vicar had been door-knocking in a new-build estate near the church and got into a jovial chat with an East Asian man from Hong Kong. Perhaps his Cantonese-speaking wife could do with some help with our fine English language? The following is a common sentiment among Hong Kongers:
“As English is not my first language…it’s very difficult to express an idea or feeling in a simple way, but the teacher help (sic) us a lot.”[9]
Opening up his WhatsApp, he asked the vicar if he could let his contacts know about the English class. Over the course of this year, our inboxes have been inundated with Chinese names courteously and persistently asking about English. Now we cater for up to forty learners at a time – doing what we say we will do – assisting with linguistic needs. However, direct gospel witness is evident through the teaching approach – as the vicar reminds us:
“Through a method of teaching English using Bible stories, the learners are hearing about Jesus every week.”
From very nearly giving up to challenging, multi-level English classes bursting at the seams – with two teachers and three volunteers – a truly precious community is being forged through English language provision. We learn English, yes. But we also spend time together celebrating birthdays, discussing HK/UK customs, drinking lots of black tea, meeting up out of class for Guy Fawkes night, buying each other gifts, making Christingles, and packing Operation Christmas Child boxes together. It’s been great to integrate church events such as men’s breakfasts and craft nights alongside the language classes which have been well-attended – as the vicar explains:
“Not only can we help them to learn English…but the learners…enjoy one another’s company very much…we are keen to take opportunities to explain aspects of the Christian faith and invite learners to other events run by the church.”
While learners haven’t rushed to attend church services – as I hear is happening in some UK churches – many have quietly expressed their appreciation for how the classes have stretched and fuelled their thinking about Jesus: “It’s not the English that I find difficult but the content – it really gets me thinking about God”. Another learner – who attended Catholic school in Hong Kong – explained how she had never really got answers to the ’God questions’ she was seeking – until now. Another learner described how his written homework – a weekly response to the Biblical narrative studied in class – acted for him as a kind of diary of faith.
Surely it is the Lord who has brought this situation about where promising relationships and meaningful conversations abound each week. If you’re thinking about starting a church-based English class or café, why not drop 2:19 a line. But if you’re like I was a year ago and feeling a little weary and parched with your current English language project, who knows the surprising and powerful things God has planned – even in the more unlikely of circumstances.
Written by: Daniel Whetham (2024). As a 2:19: Teach to Reach ‘Regional Developer’ for Manchester, Daniel supports churches in setting up and running English classes. He continues to be astounded by the gospel possibilities and partnerships rippling out from the mass movement of Hong Kongers to the UK.
References
Baldwin, David. “Hong Kong Ready?”, 2:19 Teach to Reach article. https://www.twonineteen.org.uk/2021/hong-kong-ready/ (Last accessed Nov 24)
Bryson, Bill. The Road to Little Dribbling: More Notes from a Small Island. (Transworld London: 2015)
Whetham, Daniel. “Is the UK (and the Church) Hong Kong-ready?” 2:19 Teach to Reach article. https://www.twonineteen.org.uk/2022/is-the-uk-and-the-church-hong-kong-ready/ (Last accessed Nov 24)
Photo references
Being the good Christian I am, I am compelled to reference the pic of new builds to https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2780668 (last accessed Oct 24)
Footnotes
[1] With long working hours, stress, and pollution I was surprised by such longevity. I wonder what Hong Kongers make of the NHS – more so with having to pay £3,120 excess for just 5 years of usage. See my article @ https://www.twonineteen.org.uk/2022/is-the-uk-and-the-church-hong-kong-ready/ (last accessed Nov 24)
[2] It was culturally intriguing and refreshing to hear Oldham described as “countryside” by my HK learners who are used to cramped, concrete, vertical living spaces. Such sparks of hope and joy can only be positive for Oldhamers and Mancs in recalling the blessings of the area among the challenges.
[3] “You are safe here.” – UK government assures UK-based Hong Kongers that the latest security law brought in by China to crush dissent holds no authority in the UK. Imagine the fear and anxiety: https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/uk-seeks-reassure-hong-kong-citizens-britain-you-are-safe-here-2024-04-15/ (last accessed Nov 24)
[4] I’m grateful for these readily available, up-to-date stats from the UK government: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-system-statistics-year-ending-june-2024/safe-and-legal-humanitarian-routes-to-the-uk#british-national-overseas-bno-route (last accessed Nov 24)
[5] Even so, the great Bill Bryson deigned to mention Oldham not once but twice in his travel-logue ramblings. See Bryson: The Road to Little Dribbling: More Notes from a Small Island. (Transworld:2015).
[6] Check out your dream living space in Oldham! https://www.countrysidehomes.com/locations/new-build-homes-for-sale-in-greater-manchester (last accessed Nov 24)
[7] In his article, 2:19’s David Baldwin balances our tendency to be unprepared with the characteristics of readiness among God’s people. Be encouraged by reading it for yourself @ https://www.twonineteen.org.uk/2021/hong-kong-ready/ (last accessed Nov 24)
[8] See Isaiah 41:17-20 for the stark spiritual neediness of historical Israel – which we can appropriate for our own needy lives and contexts – with the hope of the Lord’s awesome power to send rivers in dry land.
[9] For humility’s sake, “the teacher” remains unidentified. And although sic can sometimes come across as pompous, I really didn’t want you to think I had made a typo – as I often do. In any case, +s on verbs is a common-enough challenge in English Language Teaching.