Ceremony at County Hall welcomes new UK citizens to Northumberland

The citizenship ceremony is a lesser-known duty of councils that sees those who have gone through process to become a UK citizen officially welcomed to the country.

Prospective citizens pledge allegiance to the UK and the Crown, and promise to uphold our laws.

While Northumberland does not have the same numbers as other authorities the ceremonies are fairly regular, taking place at least every two months.

The latest ceremony was held on Thursday, January 18 at Northumberland County Council’s headquarters in Morpeth and featured a speech from the council’s civic head Catherine Seymour.

The Berwick North councillor told the new citizens she was “delighted” they had chosen to settle in Northumberland.

She added: “Northumberland has a proud history and has produced many people of distinction.

“It is populated today by people with a reputation for being warm, friendly, and kind.”

Ruth Robinson, part of the council’s registrar’s team, who led the ceremony, said she found doing so emotional. She said: “It is the final stage in people becoming British citizens. It is really lovely to see.

“It means so much to so many people. It is really humbling to see and I am nearly in tears at every one. It reminds you of how lucky you are.”

Among those receiving their citizenship on Thursday was Amir Arefyan, who attended along with his partner Lois Hetherington and their children.

Amir, who left Iran to come to the UK, explained how much the day meant to him.

He said: “It is a new feeling, a new era in my life. Just a few years ago, I was just coming to this country. I was starting everything from scratch.

“Now, I have a beautiful family and I am settled in the North East. I am so grateful.”

Speaking after the ceremony, Cllr Seymour added: “It is a lovely experience to witness. They all seem so delighted to get their citizenship.

“It is a pleasure to be able to participate in a ceremony that we do so well here in Northumberland.”