Are my children white British or white European ?

[wua]

Which box would you tick ?

I am white European and always tick the white other or white European box. I don't have a British passport. I could have one, I just haven't done it yet. I've lived here for 20 years.

My husband is also white European and ticks that box, even though he has a British passport and was born here. He also has a European passport.

Which box are our children ? They have British passports, so I think they're ' white british '.

However technically, heritage wise, they're not British at all. Heritage wise, my kids are 100 percent European on both sides.

I was ticking white other for them and realised that I'm probably ticking the wrong box !

What do you think ?

this is one of those things where there's an element of how you identify which is part of what they're asking for in those surveys. Ethnicity in the form of skin colour, but also where you consider yourself from.

Me and DH are both white but neither are British (although I have a British passport and am of British heritage). I tick white Other for myself. But I do tend to tick White British for my children. Admittedly, on my side, they are also at least partially genuinely British plus they're born and bred here.

Well that was sort of my point! Europe covers so much, it can’t really be used as a specific marker. I don’t think in this context it is used for medical purposes and more about data collection and analysis.

Yes. For example in our home area it’s nearly as common to be lactose intolerant in childhood as it is further across into Asia. At least half of children are.
It was REALLY annoying whilst mine were at nursery in the UK trying to justify dairy free like I was following a fad. And that long term malabsorption of lactose may not be as urgent as anaphylactic shock, but was still a massive impact on development.
I was quite strong on the ‘not British’ for this reason for the oldest two, to advocate for needs

Often it is, but on occasion if you know your history then it may be relevant to the question of ethnicity. If it’s just box ticking then it’s simply whichever is correct for your own identity if you choose to answer.

"White European" is a bit vague and pointless because some from Norway will have a different culture to someone from Greece who will have a different culture to someone in Poland......(and so on).

Even if you had Non-British ancestors, you are still British, and should therefore say as much on your passport application form.

If everyone started doing that, putting their nationality based on their ancestors from centuries back, there would barely any actual BRITISH passports!

You were born and raised in the UK? You're British. You're not French or German or Italian or Irish or Swedish, because an ancestor of yours was back in the 17th century. 🙄

I think those forms are about ethnicity, not nationality, so personally I would choose "White European" in your circumstances.

In the future, it will be for your children to decide whatever box they feel best describes them. There's no real right or wrong here, as the categories are pretty arbitrary.

I tick “white other” for my kids - I’m British, DH is not, and I want them to know that it’s not only their British side that matters. (Which makes zero difference to the recipients of the forms!)

White mixed I would read as mixed race rather one being white from the continent and one white from the UK.

Tick white British.

I was working teaching in a college and a student ticked that she was from an African country but she didn't have a passport as it had run out.

I was slightly panicking thinking, "she's not here legally, she hasn't got a visa. Do I have to inform the home office?"

Then she mentioned in passing that she also had a British passport.

Her identity was from her parents country and she was a dual citizen but it was the British passport that meant sh wasn't paying for her course (FE college and under 19).

If it's for something medical, it might be worth ticking European. I was anaemic and a doctor asked my ethnicity. I said British but my husband pointed out I'm only half British, half European - which prompted extra tests for a particular type of anaemia which is common in some countries, not so much in the uk.

I don't have a British passport. I could have one, I just haven't done it yet. I've lived here for 20 years.

Are you a British citizen? Is it a British passport you haven't applied for yet, or is it British citizenship you haven't applied for?

Either way, your children are "white European" ( although Britain is part of Europe so all Brits are European really)

The question isn't about passport it's about race/heritage/genetics....so european

I would put white British

Nobody looks at these boxes. I work in healthcare and can't say I ever went and checked this information. It is likely collected somewhere upstream for statistical purposes. For example, we know that we have almost no patients from ethnic minorities in our specialist service so there is likely to be some need for outreach.

So tick whatever you want or nothing at all.

@catza is right. It's got nothing to do with any actual medical background or history. It's for general data collection. So the NHS might use this data to analyse what percentage of their patient base is white British vs any other culture. If it's for hiring purposes, it will be about what percentage of people hired identify as x or y. My accent and my children's surname give it away pretty quickly that their background is not 100% British. THAT is what is flagged when they're being treated, not the "white other" box. For example, DS had a slightly odd rash which was clearly confusing the doctor as it's common in Irish/Scottish children and she could tell clearly we were not either of those things. However, my father of Irish descent so once I explained that she understood and was more comfortable.

Your children are white, born in Britain and have British passports, I would put them down as white British because for statistical purposes, that's what they are. They are using services as white british people.

I am white British
My dh is white european
For my kids I have always ticked the white other box (it doesn't usually say white european, just white other)

I do that because it is part of their heritage.

They are adults now and have 2 passports, Bristish and their EU ones form dh country

I don't have British citizenship currently but could get it.

If it’s medically relevant I put white other. If it’s general, white British

My German born nan ticks white British.
She has a British passport, speaks with a BBC accent, cooks roasts, and swears in Anglo Saxon.

I don't think it makes any real difference in the grand scheme of things.

I'm curious, is this a UK based ethnicity question or for a different European country? Only I don't think European is one of the options.

The blood donor service do.

Seeing as rather a lot of us in this island have European ancestry , ticking white British prettty much covers it!

Depends on the form imho. When I was pregnant they were very specific and wanted to know about me and DH. I'm half Asian but look fairly white/mediterranean/ambiguous. DH is white but one set of grandparents are East European Jewish. The nurse booking in thought it was all relevant and really drilled down. Big London hospital if that matters.

The rest of the time I give a level of detail appropriate to why they're asking. Medical stuff, I always truthfully tick mixed white/Asian. Diversity monitoring, I sometimes put Other, because I do have white privilege due to passing. One (well-meaning but 🙄) boss once practically clapped her hands together when she found out my mum was Pakistani "ooh great! I thought the leadership team were all white!". Me, I'm your only box ticked? Yeah you still need to do better. It's like when boards have got one gay guy but he still went to Winchester and Oxford.

I always wonder the same! DH is White British and I’m from Australia (British, German, Swedish ancestry). Sometimes I mark our children (born & raised in the UK) as ‘White Other’ and sometimes ‘White British’. I never know which is correct…