EU families and 'eurochildren' in Brexiting Britain: renegotiating inclusion, citizenship and belonging

The UK has been a member of the European Union for 40 years. Throughout that time there has been intermingling of people and institutions which can be most clearly seen in the growing number of bi- and mixed-nationality EU families in the UK and their children, many of whom born in the UK and holding a British passport. This is a growing, and yet understudied and underreported, segment of the British society. In a post-EU referendum context, where the rhetoric about curbing EU immigration has permeated political, media, and popular discourses, producing a stark 'us and them' narrative, the question left unasked and unanswered is what are the human and emotional costs of this abrupt geopolitical shift if 'us and them' are the same?
Through the study of Eurochildren and their families and their experience and responses to Brexit, the project aims to portrait the emergence of a new politics of belonging which reconfigures discursively and legally who belong to a post-EU Britain and establish a baseline for future research on migration and settlement decision making in families with EU27 nationals following the formal exit of the European Union. In order to do so, it will:
1) Profile and map the population of UK- and EU-born children of EU nationals in the UK and examine, at the aggregate level, different types of EU families and measure their socio-economic inclusion into British society.
2) Investigate how families with at least one EU27 member experience and respond to the process of exiting from the European Union and identify factors that shape such responses.
3) Examine the impact of the EU referendum and its aftermath on different age cohorts of UK-born Eurochildren, examining in particular how they articulate their sense of belonging and attitudes vis-á-vis the UK and the EU.
With a team comprising academic experts in the fields of migration and integration, third sector collaborators and legal experts, and using a mixed methods approach, this project provides an empirically-rich and in-depth account of how EU families, often including both UK and EU passport holders and members with dual citizenship, experience and plan to respond to Brexit, a baseline from which to further analyse the process family migration decision making following the formal exit from the EU.
The project involves three interconnected work packages (WP). WP1, which is of a quantitative nature, will analyse historical Census and Live Birth data in order to profile and geographically map EU families and their children. Different configurations of EU families, based on their demographic, geographical, and inclusion circumstances, will be established via this data and will inform the qualitative work in WP2 and 3 and our analysis of legal and policy implications of Brexit on this population. In WP2 focus groups and in-depth interviews will be conducted with EU families, as well as reflexive research, in order to explore questions of belonging within the context of the exit from the EU. In WP3, interview with UK-born adult Eurochildren and EU-born parents of Eurochildren will be conducted in order to bring to the fore the ways in which children experience migration decision-making and belonging. This mixed methods study will generate ground-breaking new data on EU families and their EU and UK-born children in the UK, contributing to the strategic, political and policy responses of UK and EU policy makers and to a more informed public debate on the consequences of Brexit on UK and EU citizens alike.
The project includes a strategy set to maximise dissemination and impact. This will be done via: producing robust, composite and promptly accessible evidence (journal articles, blogs, briefings, media and online materials); engaging from the outset with a wide network of researchers, policy makers and practitioners; and using tailored dissemination channels to reach out to relevant audiences.

The research will deliver societal impact at regional, national and European levels. It provides the first mixed methods historical profile and map of UK based Eurochildren and their socio-economic circumstances and in-depth insight into their decision making strategies in response to the uncertainty produced to Brexit. These individuals are situated at the nexus of debates on citizenship and migration - often holding dual citizenship or in bi- and mixed nationality families their circumstances and dilemmas raise fundamental questions concerning the changing politics of belonging in the UK and how it impacts on all EU nationals (including UK citizens).
The work is framed by the realities of EU families' lived experiences and their conceptions of belonging. It supports close engagement with a wide range of beneficiaries, including policy-makers, front-line professionals, NGOs and the general public; and, through their direct participation, the project will reveal the wide-ranging implications of Brexit and the legal complexities of leaving the European Union for EU families and their children.

The project will create an authoritative evidence base on a) the location and socio-economic inclusion of EU families for joined-up and reflective policy formulation and implementation with respect to EU families' future options; b) the social lives of UK- and EU- born Eurochildren and the legal and social impact of Brexit on them and their families; and c) the decision-making strategies of mixed and bi-national EU families living in the UK.

Recognising how public opinion significantly influences policy debates, outputs from the research include infographics and videos, policy primers and legal briefs and the extensive use of public and social media. This will benefit society as a whole, promoting social cohesion through increased societal understanding of the complexities and uncertainties faced by EU families (many of whom include UK citizens) and facilitate the social inclusion of a significant and growing number of UK residents at potential risk of social and political marginalisation.

Through working with organisations (Migrant Voice and the 3 Million Forum), legal advisor and advisory group members, the research will influence the work of UK government departments directly involved in the negotiation process and the Home Office , Scottish government departments, NGOs and advocacy groups supporting EU nationals and migrants' rights more broadly, and the general public. Media attention to the complexity and uncertainty faced by EU families' since June 2016 are illustrative of how policies and the public can be better informed through this work.

The indisputable need for an academically rigorous and coordinated body of research mapping the scale and scope of Brexit for EU families has been confirmed by the wide range of interest from partners and beneficiaries of the project. Close collaboration with UK and Scottish policy makers, including tailored briefings and policy and legal workshops will ensure the relevance of this work for policy and practice on EU families across the UK and beyond. Its replicable methodology will shift political debate beyond the dominant binary of 'us' UK citizens versus 'them' Europeans, towards closer attention to the specifics of the interrelations between these two categories. More broadly the research will enhance statutory and non statutory efforts to protect the rights of EU nationals and UK citizens alike by in-depth understanding of the complexities and practicalities of the Brexit process.