A FLOOD of foreign workers into Crewe over the past couple of years has led to an explosion in the town's Polish population.

It is thought that around 3,000 Polish migrants have moved to the town, sparking 'Polish night' promotions in bars and clubs, and a need for translators at schools and local services.

Chairman of the Polish Parish Community Ignacy Krajewski said that Poland's entry into the European Union last year was the catalyst for the new influx of workers.

A retired electrical engineer, Mr Krajewski, aged 77, said: "We saw the difference immediately, as soon as Poland joined in May last year, things suddenly exploded."

He said they were attracted to Crewe because of the large number of low-paid assembly and packing jobs in the area.

He added: "They are often set on by employment agencies who put out feelers over the Internet. These agencies also provide their own flats for the workers, mostly situated in the West End.

They are very willing workers and often very intelligent. The only reason they come here is because they cannot get work in Poland where unemployment is running at around 18 per cent.

"They are extremely eager to learn English, although college courses are vastly over-subscribed.

"Many see themselves as here temporarily to earn enough money to start a small business back home or to continue their education."

Civil servant Helena Jarecka, of Wistaston, was born in the UK but is of Polish parentage.

She now helps the new immigrants as a volunteer with things such as form filling and translation.

She said: "They are employed to do the jobs that nobody else is prepared to do and the agencies make an awful lot of money.

"They are paid the minimum wage and will have to pay out around £70 a week each for accommodation, with six or seven people sharing a two or three-bedroom flat.

"A lot of them start off going to London, but are steered to this area where they are told there is a lot of work available.

"Conditions in Poland are very poor with average pay of around £150 a month."