First off, I call myself Chin which is short for Chintamani – a South Indian name given to me by my North Indian, Punjabi parents.

Why so? Because in school (back in the late 80s) it was completely acceptable to be given a name easier for my white counterparts to pronounce.

Happy that this meant “acceptance” on some level, living as an immigrant in “their” country, it is now a part of my fused identity with being both Indian but also very much British.

My parents came to the UK in the 60s, as many did, looking for a life in Britain. This was driven in part by the lasting impact of post-colonialism in India; they wanted a good life for me and my siblings and to contribute to our working society. Born in India but only four months old when I arrived here, I have very little experience of what its like living as an Indian in India having only really spent two years there between ages six and eight. Living in the heat, going to a convent school - I have fond memories of eating aloo tikki chaat (a type of Indian street food) whilst learning Hindi and spending a lot of time with my lovely extended family.

But I also do remember how much of an outsider I was perceived to be at school in Punjab, being named “the English girl, she doesn’t sound like us or look like us…” in school and being bullied for it. Unsurprisingly, when I came back from that trip and settled into a comprehensive school in Halifax, the same happened, but this time it was the other way around.

I guess, I say this because I don’t know if people really understand what it is like to live with a dual identity and have to work incredibly hard to belong; we are all seeking a sense of belonging, be it at work, home, personal life, as without that, the world is a very stark and uninviting space. Who am I? Does it matter who I am? Does my voice count? Am I an equal in this space?

All these questions are relevant and those I ask myself daily. People talk about identity a lot but what does it even mean? To me it’s extremely personal and more than who am I and what my allegiances are. This depends on what day I wake up, whether I’m having a good or a bad day, who’s lived or learnt experience I have seen on that day or what I am cooking for dinner! Identity is multifaceted and not static, it changes day-to-day over the course of our lives.

The important thing for me is how do we create spaces for people to explore this within the context of their daily life and challenges they face. We all have important and relevant experiences which shape who we are but also impact on how we see people who come to seek support from our services.

We have a very long way to go.