Young people from around the world talk to Children's Express about what life was like before moving to the North.
| School here is different because it has a ceiling... here there’s class even if it’s raining or snowing. |
Rodjin, 10, Iran
My life is different here from when I lived in Iran. I had to wear a chador, which is a black scarf around my head, and I had to wear things that covered me from head to ankle. I was not allowed to show my hair and could only wear very little make-up and no nail varnish. If I had a birthday party I could not invite boys and if we did we had to keep it a secret as the government would come and spoil it and put my parents in jail.
We had to go to separate schools from the boys and also the swimming baths had two separate pools for the girls and the boys. There are no clubs or pubs and you are not allowed to dance because if you did it had to be a secret in your own home. I like living here because I am free and I can go wherever I want. If I could have brought anything with me I would like to brought all my family.
Oscar, 11, Bolivia
I have lived in this country for three years. When I arrived here I found it a good country but it was sad to leave my family behind. The school in England is different from the one I went to in my country because there we were at school from eight up to 12, and here it's nine up to 3. If I had a choice to live anywhere in the world it would be the United States because it's nice and big, has lots of people and nice weather.
Ali, 12, Iran
I come from Iran and have been here for a year and a half. I left my own country because my dad and my mum told me we could come here for a holiday but we might stay. I kind of miss my country, I like it. We came to England by plane and the journey was good. What I miss most about leaving my country are my grandad and my grandma because I love them. I would live anywhere in the world as long as it was with my family because we could be happy.
Danny, 14, Bolivia
I am a Catholic and I have lived in this country for three years. When I first arrived in England I found it very good because I was safe. What I miss most about my country is my family - my grandma, my auntie and my cousins. We had to leave the rest of our family behind. It made me very sad to leave them. They were crying.
When I arrived in this country the way people treated me made me feel happier. I could only speak a little bit of English when I arrived. School here is different because it has a ceiling and in my country they don't have this. Sometimes it gets very bad floods and there is no class so we just go home but here there's class if it's raining or snowing so all day you are at school. If I had the chance to live anywhere in the world I would live in Spain because they speak Spanish, the same language as us.
Shervin, 15, Iran
I am from Iran and I have been in England for nearly two years. I came with my mum and my sister. The housing here in England is totally different from my house in Iran. The houses here are too small for us. I miss my country a lot and I miss my friends and my family. I left home because my family are thinking about my future and I want to get higher education.
I was more free in my own country than here. It's women that are not free. If I could have brought anything with me when I moved it would have been my grandma because after my mum I like her best. I think I will see my family and friends at home again and I will return to my own country but probably not for a long time. The food here looks better, but in my country it tastes better. My life would be much happier if I could see my family.
About the team
This story was edited by Jade Henderson and Samantha Newby, 15. Reporters: Michael Holland and Hayley Todd, 12. Junior Jury is a weekly column published in the Newcastle Evening Chronicle.
