Newton Abbot’s MP has stepped into the battle for Britain’s last care home for Polish allies who fought alongside British forces in the Second World War.
The Ministry of Defence has launched a consultation into the future of the Ilford Park Polish Home at Stover, which was opened in 1948.
Known locally as Little Poland, it was part of ‘Winston Churchill’s Promise’, in which the country’s wartime leader pledged perpetual support for Polish people who had stood by Britain.
However, the home has room for 90 people and currently only houses 40, and the MoD says it may soon be time to close it down and move residents elsewhere.
The MoD has pledged to make sure residents are cared for, and has also promised to foot the bill, but the news has already sparked a backlash.
Newton Abbot’s Liberal Democrat MP Martin Wrigley said: “Ilford Park is the final remaining hostel established for our Polish allies – the very heroes who proved vital to our victory in the Battle of Britain.
“We owe it to them to keep these doors open for as long as they are needed. To close them prematurely would be a profound insult to veterans everywhere.”
Reaction to the news online has been mixed.
In a comment on Devon Live’s Facebook account one reader wrote: “The MoD should use it to rehome veterans who are homeless.” Another said: “If this is closed, it is a disgrace. We should honour the memory of those who helped keep our freedom today.”
Other posters said the home may be used in future for refugees from other, more recent, conflicts, while others admitted that it may have to close.
One said: “The number of residents has halved in the past five years. There’s hardly any left now. You can’t run it empty.”
And another added: “It’s pointless being there if hardly anyone lives there any more.”
Among the key Polish contributions to the Allied war effort was that of 307 Squadron, known as the Lwow Eagle Owls after their home city, which is now known as Lviv and is part of Ukraine.
In recent years it has been the target of numerous Russian missile attacks.
The pilots were based at RAF Exeter, which is now the city’s airport, and flew Beaufighter aircraft on dangerous missions to protect the city.
On one night in May 1942 alone the Polish pilots shot down four German bombers during an overnight raid. Historians say their actions saved Exeter from further loss of life and damage.
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