Ornela Angelova

My name is Ornela and I live in Shrewsbury. I'm from Bulgaria. I moved to the UK with my family more than 15 years ago. I'm married and a mum of two children. I have been part of CWOT since February 2022. What made me choose to be an outreach officer is my desire to help and support people who, for one reason or another, have moved to live abroad. Moving abroad is a big challenge, and I know this from my experience. To settle into a new place, people need advice, support, understanding, or just a conversation to make them feel more at ease.

In my role as a Bulgarian community wellbeing outreach officer, I work mainly with the Bulgarian community, but I often meet with people from other ethnic minorities - Ukrainians, Romanians, Polish and Turkish people. I also support the team during community events and when we participate in projects and programmes. I help ethnic minorities in different ways, such as offering welfare support and help with housing, applications for universal credit, schools, food vouchers, translation and education about understanding local systems. I work closely with GP practices and educational settings to facilitate their communication with ethnic minorities, and help the minorities to adapt more easily to local systems and institutions. My belief is that, with the right support, ethnic minorities can improve their lifestyle and become a valuable part of society.