There were people...
2025
Artist Janetka Platun was commissioned to develop a public artwork celebrating diversity and memorialising the Hiltingbury Polish Dependants’ Hostel Camp.
Janetka spent time meeting with residents of the camp, their children and the wider Polish community to design a meaningful contemporary tribute to their experiences of displacement and resettlement in the UK.
The artwork consists of three elements: a neon sign, a Silver Birch tree transported from Poland, and an accompanying plaque about the project and history of the camp.
The neon presents the words,
‘There were people at Hiltingbury who had experienced these events’.
The phrase is taken from Marian Sobieraj’s book ‘The Story of the Polish Dependants’ Hostel Hiltingbury’ and formatted in the handwritten script of a camp resident; representative of the Polish children who learnt to read and write within the camp, where Hiltingbury Junior School also now stands.
Current pupils at the school also learnt about the history of the camp and had a creative workshop with the artist.
This project has been funded by Developer’s Contributions and supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England, and grants from the Polish Cultural Institute and Chandler’s Ford Parish Council.
There are both English and Polish subtitles for this video. Turn subtitles on then click the settings button to change the language.
Do tego filmu dostępne są napisy w języku angielskim i polskim. Włącz napisy, a następnie kliknij przycisk ustawień, aby zmienić język.
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The history
Prior to becoming the Recreation Ground, the site south of Hiltingbury Road was used by the military as a temporary accommodation camp for Southampton residents displaced by the blitz in 1940 and 1941; for Prisoners of War in 1945; and from 1946 – 1957 for almost 1000 Polish refugees.
Accommodation comprised mainly of Nissen Huts and during its use by Polish civilians the camp included a church; a nursery, kindergarten and primary school; and Sick Quarters staffed by Polish doctors. Residents worked for a range of local employers including Foster Wheeler’s, Chandler’s Ford Laundry, Price’s Confectionary Bakery, British Rail and Pirelli Cables.
Although Polish traditions and connections were actively maintained throughout the camp, a number of initiatives supported integration with the wider community of the Eastleigh Borough. The S.P.K Ex-combatant Association and the Anglo-Polish Society were active at the camp, children joined cubs, brownies and scout groups, and English families would visit the site to make friends and attend dances and shows.
The Artist…
Janetka Platun makes art about our collective search for belonging, transient concepts of home and how we deal with loss. She works closely with communities to create public art shaped by their experiences.
“I’m particularly interested in this commission because both my parents are Polish. My father was a Polish soldier who resided at Witley Camp as part of the Polish Resettlement Corps between 1946 and 1949. For this project my approach will be shaped by the stories of the surviving residents of the Polish Dependants' Camp in Hiltingbury. The work will draw on the philosophical concept of ‘Saeculum’; the expanse of time during which something is in living memory. I want to create an exceptional way to honour the Polish people who were uprooted and resettled, and who will be remembered through this public artwork.”
Janetka is an Artist Fellow at Queen Mary University of London. She has exhibited extensively and received awards from the Arts and Humanities Research Council, British Council, Leverhulme Trust and Arts Council England. Other recent public art commissions include projects for Ashford Borough Council and D-P-Q; and Cambridge City Council. In 2023 Janetka was LGBTQ+ Artist in Residence with SpudWORKS in the New Forest.
