Nearly 10,000 people have signed a petition calling on the government to step in and save Devon’s own ‘Little Poland’.
The future of the Ilford Park Polish Home at Stover – the country’s last remaining ‘hostel’ for Polish veterans who served alongside British forces in the Second World War – is in doubt.
It was opened under the Polish Resettlement Act in 1947 as part of the ‘Winston Churchill Promise’ that Britain would never forget its debt to Poland, but the number of people living there has dwindled to the point where its owner the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has begun a consultation on its future.
Local campaigner Jerry Bird launched the online petition on the official UK government website, meaning that if it surpasses 10,000 signatures it will trigger an official government response. It currently stands at just over 9,700.
If it reaches 100,000 before it closes at the end of November it will be considered for a debate in parliament.
Mr Bird’s petition says: “We call on the government to fund the continued operation of culturally appropriate retirement provision to Polish veterans and their families. Such homes provide culturally specific care for elderly residents. The last home of its kind, Ilford Park Polish Home, is due to be closed.
“We call on the government to provide funding to ensure there is culturally appropriate retirement provision for Polish veterans, such as the Ilford Park Polish Home.”
He said: “It’s such an important issue. This has been a big piece of local history since the end of the Second World War.”
At its peak the Stover site housed 600 Poles in basic barrack blocks and a shared central hall. The original care home on the site fell into disrepair and a new one was opened in 1992.
It has Polish-speaking workers along with a Polish priest. Polish food is served to residents and national holidays are celebrated. The home can cater for up to 95 residents, but it currently houses just 40.
The MoD consultation says the numbers have been declining steadily in recent years. Covid led to a higher death rate in 2020/2021 and new arrival numbers remain low.
The MoD is encouraging anyone eligible to move to the home to do so, but it has made contingency plans to work with the charity sector and the local authority to source alternative accommodation for the remaining residents, funded by the MoD.
A review of occupancy will be carried out next year – the 80th anniversary of its opening – with closure expected by 2028 if there are not enough people living there to support a ‘viable community’.
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