Birmingham is a city with a truly international heritage. A City of Sanctuary it has welcomed people from across the globe for hundreds of years - some fleeing conflict, some looking to start a new life amid fresh opportunities.
From Jewish settlers in the 1700s to Irish families escaping the Potato Famine in the mid 1800s and modern day refugees from Ukraine, the city has a vast international community - including diasporas from South Asia, East Asia to the Middle East and African.
People have come in search of a new way of life, others are escaping dictatorial regimes or other political unrest in their home countries. While the debate around asylum-seekers and immigration often raises controversy, there are so many refugees and migrants who helped to make Birmingham brilliant.
Here are 11 refugees, migrants or descendants of migrants that make the city great:
5. Kit De Waal, author
Daughter of a West Indian father and an Irish mother, Kit De Waal was born in Birmingham. Her father was an African-Caribbean bus driver from Basseterre, Saint Kitts. Her debut book My Name Is Leon was published by Penguin Books in 2016. After receiving her first advance, she set up the Kit de Waal Creative Writing Scholarship to help improve working-class representation in the arts. (Photo by Ian Gavan/Getty Images) | Getty Images
6. David Harewood OBE - £5 million
British actor and presenter from Small Heath, best known for roles in Homeland and Superman, David Harewood’s family originates from Jamaica. His parents moved to the UK in the 1950s. His father was a lorry driver, while his mother was a caterer. (Photo - Getty Images) | Getty Images
7. James Wong (L), restauranteer and chair of Birmingham’s Chinese Festival Committee
James Wong’s father and mother, Siu Chung and Yuk Ying Wong, moved to the UK from Hong Kong. They launched the restaurant in 1981 and have held on to its great reputation since then. James, managing director of Chung Ying Restaurants and winner of business man of the year 2016, has been working in the family business for more than 20 years now. (Photo - Westside BID) | Westside Bid
8. Shabana Mahmood, Labour MP for Birmingham Ladywood
MP Shabana Mahmood was born in Birmingham but her parents moved from Mirpur, in Azad Kashmir. She spent five years living in Ta’if in Saudi Arabia, after her father relocated there. She later attended Small Heath comprehensive school and King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Girls in Birmingham and is a qualified barrister. (Photo - JPI) | JPI