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Sand, sea and …. Reading |
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Since the 1950s, there has been, in a small way, a complete reversal of England’s colonisation of Barbados; Reading in Berkshire has become a Barbadian haven, and is home to their biggest national community outside of Barbados. All it lacks is the sand, the sea and of course the weather.
The original English settlers’ estates, became the first large sugar plantations in the Caribbean, and proved enormously profitable, 
The Barbados shores have attracted settlers since 1625 |
and by the mid-17th Century the planters and merchants were flourishing Over the ensuing years, they continued to successfully capitalise on the natural resources.
Decline in the west
In the 1930’s, there was a global surfeit of sugar, and the Barbadian producers were experiencing a financial squeeze. This led to an economic depression on the island with bad unemployment and worsening living conditions. In turn, street riots erupted in the capital, Bridgetown.
To offset increasing political instability on the island, the British Government unwillingly gave black reformers a role in the political process. Barbados gained internal self-government in 1961 and became an independent nation five years later. One of those reformers, Grantley Adams, became the first Prime Minister of Barbados in 1962, and was knighted by the Queen 10 years later.
While Barbados was a politically independent nation, economically it was struggling. The sugar industry, the island’s main source of income at that time, fell into decline after World War Two; this downturn resulted in many Barbadians deciding to emigrate. Many of those who decided to leave made the choice to come to Britain.
After 1961, when Barbados was granted internal self-governance, the British Government invited applications for nurses to come to Britain to work in the staff-strapped National Health Service, but the Department of Health are unsure as to how many actually emigrated specifically for that reason.
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