My parents Bronisław and Józefa Leduchowicz married in Cirencester in 1948 and had their reception at Daglinworth Resettlement Camp. Most of my father's family were living there following the end of the Second World War. After the wedding they decided to move nearer to London where opportunities to find work were better than in the Cotswolds.

They found temporary accommodation at Iver Grove Manor House which had been subdivided into a number of flats for Polish families. The house was managed by a Mrs. King and was in need of refurbishment. My parents could only stay there for nine months and moved to a succession of lodgings in nearby Uxbridge and it was during this time that I was born (November 1949). The lodgings were small and not particularly conducive to bringing up a child. My father learned that the Orawiec family, who were living in hut 41 at Grove Park, were emigrating to the U.S.A. and was able to secure the accommodation. We moved in in November 1951 and lived there for five years until November 1956.

I spent my early childhood in Grove Park, until the age of six years old. The camp was in a pleasant location with Wingrove Farm on the opposite side of the adjacent road, Iver Village shops a short walk away, extensive cherry orchards in the direction of Langley, a canal nearby and the Red Lion Public House next to the camp for the adults!

The residents had organised various community facilities including a laundry, club and church. Vendors would regularly arrive at the camp selling their produce and I particularly remember the ice cream vans and a grocer announcing at the top of his voice ovely apples.

There were over 250 residents accommodated in the basic nissen huts. These are some of the families my parents or others mentioned.

Several of the camp's mothers took it in turn to transport a group of children by bus, via Langley to Slough, to attend St. Ethelbert's R.C. Primary School, which at the time was located near to Upton Hospital in the centre of Slough. This was typical of the cooperation that existed in the camp to make the best of quite difficult living conditions.

Our hut, number 41, occupied the corner plot on the left hand side when coming into the camp from the main entrance. The plot was quite large. It had on the road side a substantial tall brick wall, a vegetable patch, several trees, low wire fencing and a chicken coop, my favourite hideout place. My brother, Rysio, was born in 1953 and when he was older, together with other friends we would have an idyllic time as there was so much to explore. However, one not so pleasant occasion for my parents was when I fell down an unused well that had lain uncovered except for overgrown vegetation. Although the well was fairly deep, I somehow managed to scramble out before my friend returned with my apprehensive mum. The well was duly blocked up and I was ticked off for going where I should not have!

The War Office had requisitioned the land at Grove Park as a resettlement camp and the residents knew that at some point the camp would have to close down. However, when my father received an eviction notice it caused understandable worry. Fortunately he had worked hard for several years, undertaking as much overtime as he could and managed to save enough as a deposit for a house. Having secured a mortgage he purchased a house in Cippenham on the outskirts of Slough and we moved in in November 1956. Some families were not so fortunate and were evicted with no accommodation to move into, spending days outside the camp wall under makeshift covers. Eventually they were found accommodation by the local council. Many of the residents settled in the local area in Slough, Cippenham, Langley, Burnham, Iver.

The camp was cleared, the grounds were restored and the Manor House was extensively refurbished. Later well-known owners included Tom and Miriam Stoppard and the house was used as a film location many times because of its proximity to Pinewood Studios. Films that were shot on location included hell Drivers (1957), Man In A Suitcase (1967), Strange Report (1968), The New Avengers (1977) and Carry On Again Doctor.

April 2019    

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