Polish Community

The Ipswich Polish club is currently under development in the former Suffolk auction house on St Margaret's Street.

The arrival of thousands of Polish migrant workers to Suffolk has created a need for a focal point in which they can come together and get the information needed to settle into county life, find work and arrange accommodation.

For a modest introductory membership fee of £5 members can have access to a range of activities and services.

Origins of the Polish Club

The Polish Club committee consists of four members of the local community, with Polish roots or connections, which have inspired them to want to develop a cultural centre for Poles living locally.

"My parents are Polish, they came here after the war and I was born here," explained Andrew Soltysik, Treasurer and Fundraising Secretary.

Andrew and Sheila Soltysik

Andrew and his wife Sheila run a travel business in Ipswich and have grown to see a need for a facility such as the Polish Club.

"When we moved here from Nottingham we saw the Polish delicatessen and we introduced ourselves to the owner Przemyslaw Wegrzynowski.

"He was getting a number of enquiries from young Poles who were new to the county and we decided to get a group together.

"We wanted to find a property where we could open up a club for the Polish people and any other migrants to prevent them from going into isolation and being in a situation where they just have the church to go for support."

Offering a new kind of support

At present Ipswich has the Polish church (Polska Parafia) and the Polska Chata delicatessen on Regent Street where Poles can come together and share information.

Many migrant workers find it difficult to fit language classes into their schedule due to work commitments, so for those living in smaller towns and villages across Suffolk it can be incredibly difficult to make contact with other people speaking their native language.

"One of the most important things that they will gain access to here at the club in the future is signposting to help them to find information for work and to help with any sort of problems that exist," said Andrew.

"We don't want them to clog up the agencies of the Citizens Advice Bureau or the Job Centre because the biggest problem many people have is the language.

"If we can have an area where people can sit and learn the language, understand, relax and further their careers it makes it a lot easier for them to integrate into the wider community."

Sustainability

The club spans one floor with several small rooms and offices, a large roof space and a large central room which was originally used to showcase the articles on sale in auctions.

The main function room

Andrew and Sheila hope the smaller spaces will be used for internet access and as areas for relaxing.

The large room will be very much multi-functional, providing a space which can be used for craft fairs, film screenings and weddings - allowing a commercial opportunity for the club.

"Sustainability is one of the biggest things about this club and we believe we've done our homework correctly," said Andrew.

"If we can rely on the funding and grants that we're getting alongside the membership fees we do believe we can make a success of it, but at the same time if it doesn't work we know that we haven't let ourselves into a trap because of the contracts and the information that we have to make it viable."

As well as the renovations on the ground floor, the committee hopes to extend into the roof space providing an area for travel and information offices.

The relexaxtion area

The refurbishment process has taken longer than originally anticipated because of significant issues with the roof, which needs to be fully replaced before any internal work can be started.

Widespread support

The club has attracted widespread interest from the Polish community, local councils and from the Polish Ambassador Barbara Tuge-Erecinska.

Andrew, along with his colleagues, hopes the Polish Club will be used not just by Poles but also by members of the wider community and offer a greater understanding of the experiences of migrants, reducing exploitation.

Despite the credit crunch, Andrew and Sheila believe many Poles who have chosen to come and live and work here will stay on because they have settled themselves into local life and want to contribute to their new communities.

Polish Ambassador Barbara Tuge-Erecinska

"The Poles have come over here initially to earn money which is far more lucrative here than it would be for them in Poland," said Andrew.

"A big group is still here because, while in Poland work is available and the economy is beginning to boom, the Polish people that do come over here to work tend to like it very much and enjoy staying here.

"Those who don't like it will go back, it is a natural progression. But at least things like this give them a chance to sound things out and see what's here and if they can be accepted it helps the economy and the community in many ways."