Norfolk Polonia CIC

11/10/2026

🇬🇧 ⚔️ Even medieval knights followed fashion trends! 😁 If you enjoy medieval history and interesting facts like this, check out Knights Academy Norwich and give page a follow!

🛡️ And some exciting news — a new medieval soft sword-fighting group for adults is coming soon to 🏫 West Earlham Community Centre.

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🇵🇱 ⚔️ Nawet średniowieczni rycerze podążali za modą! 😁 Jeśli lubicie średniowieczną historię i takie ciekawostki, zajrzyjcie na profil Knights Academy Norwich i zaobserwujcie stronę!

🛡️ A od nas mała zapowiedź — już wkrótce w West Earlham Community Centre powstanie grupa średniowiecznych walk na miecze treningowe dla dorosłych.

🛡️ SURPRISING ARMOUR FACT: Some medieval armour had a “wasp waist”!

When we picture medieval armour today, we often imagine a bulky metal shell designed simply to protect the person inside.

But a beautifully made suit of plate armour was much more than protective equipment.

It was also fashion. ⚔️

Depending on the period, armour style, and wearer, expensive armour could be carefully shaped to fit its owner and create a fashionable silhouette. Some suits, especially certain 15th-century styles, had a noticeably narrow “wasp waist,” with the armour tapering inward at the waist before flaring out below.

But this was not a feature of all medieval armour.

The shape varied over time and could differ according to regional fashion, the type of harness, the wearer’s build, and the armourer’s design. Some suits emphasized a narrow waist more strongly than others, while some had a straighter or fuller silhouette.

That variation wasn’t accidental.

Medieval armourers weren’t simply trying to wrap somebody in as much steel as possible. Their work reflected the fashions and ideas of beauty of their own time. A wealthy knight could therefore wear armour that was protective, mobile and flattering.

Interestingly, if you watch people fighting in reproduction armour today, you won’t always see such an exaggerated waist. Even very good modern armour can have a somewhat different silhouette, particularly when it has been designed for the practical demands of modern historical combat.

So medieval armour wasn’t just medieval safety equipment.

For some of its owners, it was effectively high fashion… made from steel. 😁⚔️

04/10/2026

🇵🇱 Miło nam podzielić się kolejną dobrą wiadomością z naszej lokalnej, polonijnej społeczności.

📖 W katalogu „Polska Sztuka na Wyspach. Laureaci 2026”, przygotowanym w ramach I Festiwalu Kultury Polskiej na Wyspach, znalazły się również prace mieszkającego w Norwich artysty 🎨 Jacek Błoński.

🖼 Prace Jacka zostały wcześniej zaprezentowane podczas wrześniowego festiwalu w Polish Social & Cultural Association POSK w Londynie, w ramach którego znalazł się w gronie siedmiorga laureatek i laureatów wybranych spośród 56 zgłoszeń.

👏 Serdecznie gratulujemy i życzymy dalszych sukcesów artystycznych!

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🇬🇧 We are pleased to share some good news from our local Polish community.

🎨 Works by Norwich-based artist Jacek Blonski were featured in the catalogue “Polish Art in the UK. Laureates 2026”, prepared as part of the 1st Festival of Polish Culture in the UK at Polish Social & Cultural Association POSK in London. His work was also presented during the festival in September.

🖼 Jacek was one of seven artists selected from 56 submissions.

👏 Congratulations and best wishes for continued artistic success!

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🌍 Więcej informacji oraz katalog laureatów (Further information and the catalogue):
https://posk.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/polska-sztuka-na-wyspach-2026.pdf

02/10/2026

🇵🇱 Wczoraj mieliśmy okazję uczestniczyć w spotkaniu zorganizowanym przez 🏛 Wydział Konsularny i Polonii Ambasady RP w Londynie, odnośnie aktualnych problemów dotyczących polskiej diaspory - w tym bezdomności i wydalania Polaków po ich skazaniach za popełnienie przestępstw w Wielkiej Brytanii.

💬 Spotkanie dotyczyło również opracowaniu strategii działania w tym zakresie między organizacjami pozarządowymi i instytucjami publicznymi.

👉 Cieszy nas fakt, że wśród zaproszonych gości znaleźli się przedstawiciele nowych organizacji polonijnych, które z sukcesem włączają się w działalność polskich organizacji pozarządowych (NGO) w Wielkiej Brytanii.

🌍 Aktualna mapa polskich organizacji polonijnych znajduje się pod adresem: https://polskieorganizacje.uk/

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🇬🇧 Yesterday, we attended a meeting organised by the Consular and Polish Diaspora Section of the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in London. 💬 The discussion focused on key challenges affecting the Polish community in the UK, including homelessness and deportation following criminal convictions, as well as improving cooperation between NGOs and public institutions. 👏 It was also great to meet representatives of new Polish community organisations becoming increasingly active across the UK.

🌍 An up-to-date map of Polish community organisations in the UK is available at: https://polskieorganizacje.uk/

28/09/2026

👇 The polka is not originally 🇵🇱 a Polish dance. 👇

The polka is not Polish. It never was.

It started in Bohemia, which is the Czech half of what is now Czechia, sometime in the 1830s. The name most likely comes from the Czech word for half, because of the half step in the dance, though there is an old story that it was named after Poland out of sympathy for a Polish uprising. Either way, it did not come from Poland.

From Prague it swept Europe. There was a genuine polka craze in Paris and London in the 1840s, of the sort that sells sheet music by the ton.

Then it came to America with central European immigrants of every kind, Czech, German, Slovene, Polish, and here it changed. What Americans now call Polish polka, the Chicago style and the eastern style, was built in this country by Polish American bands in the mid twentieth century. It is genuinely ours. It just is not an import.

So your grandparents were not playing an old country song. They were playing an American one, in Polish.

Who played it in your family?

26/09/2026

🇵🇱 Zapraszamy ponownie na spotkanie z 🧎‍➡️ Anya Yoga (Anna Konefal). Tym razem Anya poprowadzi zajęcia jogi skupione na oddechu, pracy z ciałem i redukcji napięcia, które mogą wspierać osoby chcące ograniczyć lub rzucić palenie oraz zadbać o swoje zdrowie i dobre samopoczucie.

🇬🇧 Join us again for a session with 🧘 Anya Yoga. This time, Anya will lead a yoga session focusing on breathing, body awareness and relaxation, supporting people who would like to reduce or quit smoking, as well as anyone who wants to take better care of their health and wellbeing.

👉 24.10.2026, 18:00
🏠 West Earlham Community Centre, Wilberforce Rd, Norwich NR5 8ND
🚀 Spotkanie darmowe / Free Entry
☕️ Zapewniamy przekąski i ciepłe napoje / Refreshments and hot drinks will be provided

📢 Supported by Norfolk Community Foundation through Norfolk Smokefree Generation to raise awareness of the health risks associated with ni****ne products, particularly among Poles living in Norfolk.

23/09/2026

There’s always something happening at West Earlham Community Centre! 👋

Our regular weekly groups include: 🤸‍♀️fitness 🏓table tennis 🥋Norwich Choi Kwang Do ☕️bingo ⚔️Knights Academy Norwich (soft sword fighting) ⛪ New Covenant Apostolic Ministries International Uk 🎗️ community and support groups, as well as 🎓 IntoUniversity Norwich

📢 Check our website 👉 https://wecc.uk/ for the latest timetable and contact details for each group.

🎉 Looking for a venue for your own event? We also have Saturday availability for private hire — perfect for birthdays, family celebrations, workshops and community events.

📩 Get in touch with us! 📲 07492012200 | [email protected]

West Earlham Community Centre – a space for everyone. 💙

A local community centre in the West Earlham area of Norwich.

16/09/2026

🇵🇱 Jest taka książka Allena Carra, która mimo że została wydana w 1985, została sprzedana w milionach egzemplarzy i pomogła wielu osobom w zrozumieniu procesu palenia papierosów i ich odstawienia. 👉 Warto ją przeczytać. I nie tylko powinny sięgnąć po nią osoby uzależnione od nikotyny, ale również i współuzależnione. 💬 Coś w niej jest, że budzi refleksje…

📖 Książkę 'Prosta metoda jak skutecznie rzucić palenie' można nabyć na Amazon w języku polskim: https://amoz.onl/6R1

📌 Chcemy również dodać, że Norfolk County Council wraz z Allen Carr organizują bezpłatne seminarium 'Allen Carr Easyway' po polsku dla mieszkańców Norfolk. Zachecamy do skorzystania!

📅 Sobota, 17 października
⏰ 8:00–14:00 BST
💻 Online
💷 Udział bezpłatny

ℹ LINK do rejestracji: https://www.allencarr.com/location/norfolk-council-polish/

👉 Informacje i wsparcie po polsku: https://strefaoddechu.org.uk

📣 This campaign is supported by Norfolk Community Foundation through the Norfolk Smokefree Generation programme and aims to raise awareness of the health risks associated with ni****ne products, particularly among Polish people living in Norfolk.

13/09/2026

🏰 Yesterday, we held our Medieval Fair at West Earlham Community Centre! 🏰

📣 From calligraphy and living history to 🍞 medieval food, medieval armour displays and the children’s knights’ tournament, West Earlham Community Centre was filled with a truly medieval atmosphere.

👏 A huge thank you to everyone who took part, including Tom Francis, Tony Wilk and Agnieszka Zięba to our wonderful volunteer Basia for all her help.

Congratulations to ⚔️ Hugo, the winner of the tournament, for his courage and brave fighting! 🏆

❤️ Thank you to everyone who joined us and made the day so special — especially all the children and their families!

⚔️🛡️ Why not join the structured soft-kit sword-fighting group run by Knights Academy Norwich (https://knightsacademy.uk/)? Sessions take place every Friday from 5 pm at West Earlham Community Centre!

ℹ The event was supported by Norfolk Community Foundation through the Love Norfolk Fund 2026.

12/09/2026

🏰 The Medieval Fair is taking place at the West Earlham Community Centre. 🎭 Everyone is welcome! ☀️

04/09/2026