Young EU Migrants in London in the Transition to Brexit

London has long been a magnet for migrants, millions of whom have been attracted by its economic, educational and cultural roles as a truly global city. This book examines recent European migration to the London region through the narrated experiences of a large number of younger migrants from ‘old’ and ‘new’ EU member states, of varying educational and skill backgrounds.The research opens multiple windows into the lives of young EU migrants from six different countries before and after the 2016 Referendum on 'Brexit'. A key concept which lies at the core of the analysis is the interrelationship between geographical mobility and the youth transition to adulthood. Among the dimensions documented are study and employment trajectories, housing and social inclusion, identity and belonging, and transnational ties. By paying attention to young people's own accounts of their mobile lives, the research pushes the boundaries of traditional understandings of youth transitions and life paths.As an indispensable account of young EU migrants during the Brexit process, the book will appeal to undergraduate and postgraduate students across the social sciences, especially those interested in migration, youth studies and European studies, as well as researchers and policy-makers.

"Young EU Migrants in London in the Transition to Brexit analyses how moving across borders and moving through life are inter-related. Drawing on rich empirical material, theoretically informed and engagingly written, the book is an invaluable resource to experts and newcomers to Migration Studies and Youth Studies. It is a fantastic introduction to both fields, uncovering connections, contradictions and complexities in everyday experiences, relationships and trajectories, and relating these in an accessible and informed way to social theory. Its methodology and argumentation are a model of excellent social-scientific research." Bridget Anderson, University of Bristol, UK"In their timely study on how geographic mobility and youth transition to adulthood shape each other, Aija Lulle, Laura Moroşanu and Russell King have succeeded in setting new standards. In a conceptually sophisticated, methodologically rigorous and empirically rich case study of mobile young adults in London, they convincingly compare the pre- and post-Brexit worlds of European mobilities. This superb account is bound to become an essential guide for debating how issues around mobility relate to work, study, changing identities, transnationality and future expectations of migrants."Thomas Faist, Bielefeld University, Germany"London was an unparalleled success story of the EU’s free movement regime, attracting subsequent waves of young migrants from all over the continent in search of social mobility and a multicultural atmosphere. Brexit wrought havoc on these avatars of a borderless Europe. Their unsettled voices are vividly heard in the pages of this book, which remarkably expose how a democratic choice snowballed into a climate of othering and racialisation."Ettore Recchi, Sciences Po Paris and Migration Policy Centre, EUI, Florence, Italy"Understanding better the social repercussions of Brexit for young mobile Europeans remains a timely and important research task as the consequences of the UK’s departure from the EU are still unfolding. This book sheds analytical and empirical light on the realities of mobility in the EU, acknowledging that it brings together both opportunities and challenges, particularly for youth."Anna Triandafyllidou, Toronto Metropolitan University, Canada

Aija Lulle is Senior Lecturer in Human Geography at Loughborough University. Her research interests cluster around exploring migrants’ experiences and wellbeing over the life course. She has published widely in geography and interdisciplinary migration journals.Laura Moroşanu is Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Sussex. She is interested in migrants’ social lives, identities and work trajectories, and has published her research in leading journals, including Ethnic and Racial Studies, Sociology and the Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies.Russell King is Professor of Geography at the University of Sussex, where he headed the university’s partnership in the EU YMOBILITY project. He has wide-ranging interests in the field of migration. His latest book is the co-edited Handbook of Return Migration (2022).