WELCOME HERE: James Gunn Atanasov and Alicia Watkins outside the Park Community Centre in Weymouth
COMMUNITY leaders want to hear from Weymouth's growing Polish population.
A call has gone out to Polish immigrants and other people who are not represented at community meetings.
By turning up at meetings and supporting events they can have a say in how the community is run and influence priorities to be tackled by the police.
Dr James Gunn Atanasov is encouraging more people to get involved in Partners and Communities Together panels - a scheme which involves residents in the decision-making process.
Dr Atanasov is vice chairman of Melcombe Regis Pact, the biggest group in Weymouth which covers the Park District, town centre and Lodmoor.
Due to the large amount of rented accommodation in the area it is home to many migrant workers.
advertisement
The appeal comes a week after a horrific road crash in which three Polish men living in the Melcombe Regis area died.
Dr Atanasov said this had been a huge personal tragedy for all those involved, including the wider community in Weymouth.
Long-term Park District resident Alicia Watkins, who is Polish, has been liaising with families through her involvement with St Augustine's Catholic Church and arranging interpreters for families.
She also hopes more Polish people will get involved in Pact.
Dr Atanasov said: "We have an average attendance of 70 people at our meetings which is good, but it's important the whole community is represented.
"Polish people and other Eastern Europeans, ethnic groups, teenagers and young families all have a voice but we're not hearing it.
"We'd like to know how we can help them to aid their integration.
"Safer neighbourhood and environment concerns can be raised at the Pact meeting."
The group won an award last year for its efforts to reduce crime and tidy up the streets of the Park District. Among the Pact success stories are getting rid of junkies' needles from alleyways, clearing graffiti from walls, improving leisure facilities for children and tackling the boy-racer problem in the town's car parks.
* The next meeting of Partners and Communities Together in Melcombe Regis takes place on Monday, March 31, at 7pm, Park Centre, Chelmsford Street, Weymouth.
Posted by: jilly4558, Dorset on 7:49pm Tue 12 Feb 08
Who speaks for that other Ethnic minority., White English people these days then? While we cannot house our own people but seem to find housing or build thousands more to cope with the immigrants!
Who speaks for that other Ethnic minority., White English people these days then? While we cannot house our own people but seem to find housing or build thousands more to cope with the immigrants!
Posted by: JamesAtanasov, Weymouth Town Centre on 4:31am Wed 13 Feb 08
You seem to be doing a good enough job speaking up for yourself Jilly. People are housing themselves by renting in the private sector - not expecting the government to provide for them. Houses are being built for the vast increase in smaller British families and single person households - not for migrant workers who are paying their taxes and providing services that British people can't seem to do.
You seem to be doing a good enough job speaking up for yourself Jilly. People are housing themselves by renting in the private sector - not expecting the government to provide for them. Houses are being built for the vast increase in smaller British families and single person households - not for migrant workers who are paying their taxes and providing services that British people can't seem to do.
Posted by: JamesY, Dorchester on 7:10pm Wed 13 Feb 08
[quote][bold]jilly4558[/bold] wrote:
Who speaks for that other Ethnic minority., White English people these days then? While we cannot house our own people but seem to find housing or build thousands more to cope with the immigrants![/quote] These Poles are filling jobs that lazy white english people choose not to do, preferring to claim benefits instead.
I think we should be deporting the idle, not the Poles.
jilly4558 wrote:
Who speaks for that other Ethnic minority., White English people these days then? While we cannot house our own people but seem to find housing or build thousands more to cope with the immigrants!
These Poles are filling jobs that lazy white english people choose not to do, preferring to claim benefits instead.
I think we should be deporting the idle, not the Poles.
If you liked this article and would like to share it with others on the web who might be searching for good content we've made it easy for you to do it.
At the bottom of all articles, you'll see links to six sites. These sites - commonly called 'social bookmark' or 'social news' sites - have large communities of web users who share and rate interesting, useful and fun things on the web.
Clicking the links will automatically add the address of the story you are reading to one of these sites, letting you share it with others. Each site will ask you to register to share stories. Registration is free and once a member, you can store, recommend and search for stories that interest you.
Print
Email this
Comment
