Thatcham celebrations mark Polish Children's Day
The day was held by new community group, Polska Together, and aimed to make Polish people feel more at home
AN EVENT which brought together the English and Polish communities took place in Thatcham on Sunday.
It was the first Dzien Dziecka, or Children's Day, to be held by new community group, Polska Together, which has been set up with the aim of supporting local Polish people.
About 40 people attended the fun day at the Burdwood Community Centre, during which Polish games were played and traditional songs sung as well as there being a visit from Cookie the Clown.
Polska Together member Renata Szaja said that the aim of the event was to both make Polish people aware that such a group existed and to help to integrate them into English society.
She said: “The idea was for them to meet more people and to bring the community together.
“We were trying to encourage everybody to come.
“We would like to offer the Polish community support and advice and make them feel at home here.”
She added: “We want to make an impact in the Polish community.
“There are a lot of Polish people here but not all of them know that there is a Polish group here or that there's any kind of support.”
In Poland they hold Dzien Dziecka once a year and is a time to celebrate children by holding fun events.
Organisers said that the event on Sunday was a way of mirroring the one traditionally held in their home country.
It was supported by the West Berkshire Minority Ethnic Forum and community project manager Waheeda Soomro said that she hoped this would be the first of many.
She said that there were some Polish families who had just moved to the West Berkshire area
who were looking for friendship, advice, support and guidance.
She added: “It's important for all minority communities to have a sense of belonging.
“Sometimes language can be a barrier preventing them from accessing services, they might not even be aware of a lot of the services.
“Polska Together is supporting culture so the other communities can learn a bit about Polish people instead of making assumptions.”
