Community cafe opens at Polish school in Peterborough thanks to National Lottery grant

Supported by a grant from the National Lottery Community Fund, the café is open each Saturday throughout the school year and is a place where parents can meet each other, learn more about the school and other topics of interest or just simply relax.

Free tea, coffee and cakes are provided each week as well as Polish magazines.

Keith Markham, a charity trustee at the school, said: “We wanted to have such a place for parents for a number of years and the grant we have received has now made this possible. Feedback from parents and staff has been excellent and we hope to see the café develop into a hub for the Polish community in Peterborough.”

The Polish School was formed at Sibson Camp in 1951 and since then has grown to be the largest such school in the UK outside of London. A registered charity, the school currently has 500 students aged between three and 18 years old who are taught by more than 60 part time teachers and teaching assistants.

Each Saturday during term time, students are taught in Polish about Polish language, culture, history and geography and the older students are prepared for both GCSE and A Level Polish exams.

The school uses facilities at St. John Fisher and St. Thomas More, between 8.45am and 12.20pm.