Historian-sociologist seeks Windrush and post-Windrush families living in Banbury for PhD research

Tré Ventour-Griffiths, a Northampton-based PhD researcher at Kingston University, is travelling the country speaking to people about Caribbean communities in mid-to-late 20th-century Northamptonshire.

As part of the research, Tré is looking to speak to Caribbean families that moved to Banbury at any point between 1948 and the early 1980s due to the historic connections between Banbury and Northamptonshire.

Tre said: "Since April 2023, I have been conducting interviews as part of my PhD research.

"The inclusion of Banbury also seeks to help expose a history of Windrush-era Caribbean life out in the sticks, as so many representations of Caribbean people in England in that era have been eclipsed by urban cities such as London and Birmingham.

"Banbury is uniquely positioned between Northampton and Oxford, which would allow its Caribbean populations and otherwise interested communities to participate in Windrush-era events and whatnot in Northampton and Oxford if they chose to."

Having previously spoken to a number of Banbury residents, the researcher is looking for more who can help paint a clearer picture of the experiences of Caribbean communities during Britain’s post-war years.

Tré said: "This project uses the experiences of early Caribbean arrivals (including those that came as children after the War in the 1950s and 1960s), first-generation British-Caribbean (many now in their 50s and 60s), and non-Caribbean people who were positively impacted by their involvement with Caribbean people—to help tell this story."

To contact Tré email at [email protected] or message him on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/treventoured