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Becoming more Pole friendly
Ways in which UK organisations are helping our new arrivals
! Increasing numbers of organisations are taking strategic action to become more Pole friendly and it can be argued that it makes perfect business sense to do so with almost 2 million Poles having relocated to the UK. Indeed, organisations of all sizes are fast recognising the value of our new residents and are understandably keen to cash in on the new arrivals. Whilst many of the moves are business motivated it's important to point out that substantial numbers of organisations are also genuinely just trying to help the new arrivals to lead a happy and settled life here. What is more significant is that there is no one type of organisation making adjustments to become more Pole friendly as examples include banks, recruitment agencies, supermarkets, real estate agents, travel agents and even public organisations such as hospitals, police forces, community protection groups and council offices.
Notably, most organisations are becoming more Pole friendly simply by providing information about their services in Polish; a small step but a strategic one that is seeing huge benefits for both Poles and organisations alike. For example, local councils throughout the UK, such as Slough Council, provide a proportion of their website content in Polish and at minimum, many are now providing contact information of staff who speak both English and Polish (http://www.slough.gov.uk/language/polish.aspx). While many Poles come to the UK skilled in English hundreds of thousands do not and therefore many require a helping hand if they are to confidently use day to day services and ultimately lead a normal life here.
In the private sector, banks in particular have been quick to react to the rapid changes in the UK's demographics. Barclays Bank for example has recruited Polish speaking staff in at least 30 of its branches throughout the UK, naturally targeting cities and towns densely populated with Poles. On the other hand, Lloyds TSB is introducing Polish language brochures and application forms for its current accounts and in response to demand is also launching a bank account aimed at Polish workers with the Lloyd's Silver account so that money can be sent back home, something which is an essential part of life for many Poles living in the UK. Indeed, in a recent BBC article a spokeswoman for Lloyds TSB said its research had found that sending money back home was a top priority for recent Polish immigrants. With over two-fifths of their survey respondents recently transferring money back to Poland and nearly three-quarters planning to do so again in the near future it makes sense for the bank whilst being seen as very Pole friendly at the same time. The figures speak for themselves with Lloyds TSB having opened 100,000 new accounts for recent arrivals from Poland in the past year alone (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6587073.stm).
British supermarkets are also becoming more Pole friendly by stocking up on Polish food to supply the many Poles who have relocated to the UK. High street names such as Tesco, Sainsbury's and Asda are introducing Polish ranges which include items such as borsch, meatballs, pickled vegetables and sauerkraut soup. Stores are even expected to develop Polish ready meals to sell along side other foreign cuisine such as Italian and Chinese favourites. Understandably, the many Polish living here like to buy familiar foods and the supermarkets are meeting their needs whilst also cashing in on those immigrants with a significant disposable income. The BBC reports how Tesco's in particular has realised Poles are missing their comfort foods such as soup, pickled cabbage and marshmallows covered in chocolate, and so are importing them to meet demand (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/5332024.stm). Such moves are warmly welcomed by both the Poles who crave their comforting homeland flavours and other foreign food enthusiasts throughout the UK looking for some fresh adventure in the kitchen. At the same time, it can be argued that the small gesture of stocking favourites such as chocolate covered marshmallows for example can only make the daunting move from Poland to the UK that little bit sweeter for the new arrivals.
Such moves to become more Pole friendly can cost little money to organisations and require little effort whilst larger more ambitious projects require greater research, expertise and more resources. However, in all cases such costs and efforts are quickly offset by the significant benefits that such new projects bring to Poles, the organisations involved and arguably the UK as a whole.
05.04.2007. 16:35
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