Unique Polish-English centre to open in Bognor Regis

The town is to be the home of the first Polish-English Centre in West Sussex.

Husband-and-wife-team Louis and Joanna Harrison will open the doors to a youth and community centre in Westloats Lane.

They believe their centre is unique in a small town in the UK. Most of the work focused on eastern Europeans is based around the large cities.

The centre will be open between 9.30am to 5pm on weekdays from Monday.

But Mr and Mrs Harrison will also be available around the clock by phone and internet to help with emergencies.

They expect to have a couple of volunteers alongside them

initially. There will be at least one English person as well as a Polish individual on duty to ensure everyone who goes along can speak in their native language.

More may be recruited if demand grows among the 7,000-strong

eastern European community which Mr Harrison estimates lives around Bognor.

Mrs Harrison, 30, who is Polish, said the centre was not intended to divide communities in the town or to provide competition to the well-established Citizen's Advice Bureau.

Many of the residents from eastern Europe would still go to the CAB.

"Not every single Polish person in Bognor will come to us. It is not necessarily the case they will have to come to us or go to the CAB.

"The new centre is about giving people more choice. If there are more options, it is better for the community," she said.

Mr Harrison, 49, who came to Bognor 30 years ago, said: "People have to have choice. It's an alternative service we are trying to provide.

"There is also the cultural barrier and the language barrier for an eastern European. We will also be available 24 hours a day if

necessary."

They will publicise the centre with a family day on Saturday to raise funds for the Bognor Community Action Network.

This will be held at the Westloats Lane green space opposite the centre.

The idea for the help point arose after former employment agency worker Mrs Harrison, who has lived in Bognor for five years, and her husband carried out a large survey among the Polish community in February.

They got the views of 600-plus individuals face-to-face or on

the internet.

They have concentrated on Poles because they form the largest

number of eastern Europeans in the town.

The couple are working with the British Council-backed Foundation for the Development of the Education System and the Polish Business Centre in Ealing, west London.

They also hope to extend a free transport service from London for any Poles who are penniless and want to return to home.

Mr and Mrs Harrison are running the centre as a business. Advice, such as how to deal with a difficult landlord or cope with being homeless, will be provided free.

But there will be a charge for specific services. These could include helping a business market itself to the Polish community. The couple are using personal money to pay the start-up costs.

A POLISH MESSAGE

Polish Version:

Zapraszamy do zabawy! Dzie? Dziecka w Hampshire Avenue Recreation Ground, Westloats Lane, Bognor Regis pomi?dzy 11am i 4pm. Na Naszej stronie internetowej znajdziesz wiecej szczeg?w www.snoopget.com

English Version:

Come along for a fun-filled day for all the family and celebrate

children's day with us at the Hampshire Avenue Recreation Ground, Westloats Lane, Bognor Regis, between 11am and 4pm. Visit our website www.snoopget.com for further details.