Paul

Paul originally came to Portland via the Royal Navy, working at the naval base as an engineer. While he was working at the naval base he was elected to Weymouth & Portland Borough Council. When the naval base closed, Paul started working for social services, first as a care assistant before moving to the transport side. He later became a trade union official for Unite. Paul is now retired but remains very active through his roles as councillor at Portland Town Council and Dorset Council.

When he started working for the navy, Portland was considered a base that was hard work; it was nicknamed ‘The Thursday War’ due to the number of naval exercises practised from the base! He first came to Portland aboard HMS Undaunted before serving in Malaysia and Singapore. He decided to come back to Portland as he really liked the island and found it easy to make friends here.

Paul separated from his wife in 2002, but they’ve remained close friends. His ex-wife has sadly developed dementia but is supported by Paul, his daughter and her friends from church. Paul enjoys going away on holidays and is fortunate to have found a companion to enjoy this with. He’s looking forward to their next trip, which is to India.

Paul likes to keep fit and goes to classes at the gym in Osprey Quay two to three times per week. He’s made good friends through the gym and enjoys going on social nights out with them.

The gym and swimming pool were originally part of the Royal Navy base but are now run by a not-for-profit charity for the benefit of local people. He’s pleased that this is a positive legacy of the navy leaving Portland. Many of Paul’s afternoons and evenings are taken up with his role as councillor, which includes council meetings and committees.

In his role as councillor, Paul has read many documents about Portland, including a report called ‘Forgotten Towns’, which highlights the impact of the Royal Navy leaving Portland. Paul remembers up to 8,000 jobs were lost, and there was a difficulty in attracting organisations to invest in Weymouth and Portland in the aftermath of the navy leaving. This had a fundamental affect on the people in the area, especially Portland.

Paul was impressed with the reaction of younger people on the island when the refugee barge came to Portland; they created welcome packs that could be shared with people onboard. He is, however, concerned about the reduction of youth services available on the island, which has possibly led to increased instances of antisocial behaviour. He remembers there was a thriving youth club with a full-time youth worker to help guide people. This unfortunately has now gone. Volunteers have come forward to lead groups, but he would like to see an injection of help for youngsters on Portland, especially for those who find it difficult to fit in.

Paul understands there is concern in the local community about services at Portland Hospital. They would like to have the minor injuries unit (MIU) and an x-ray unit relocated back to the hospital as a bare minimum. At a recent council debate the old hospital in Dorchester was being discussed to help people with long term sickness. He wonders whether the old ward and land at Portland Hospital could be used for this type of initiative. He understands there is currently a day centre at Portland Hospital, but there is talk about this closing as it’s not well used. He feels this could be bad for the island as loneliness is a terrible problem, especially for older and vulnerable people.

Paul feels Kim at Island Community Action (ICA) is a catalyst for positive change on Porland. The organisation is connected to many other voluntary groups on the island, and when Covid hit they were able to rise up and help helping with shopping, lonely people, and organising phone calls, amongst many other things.

Paul has undergone cancer surgery in the recent past. While at home he had acute pain and called 111 for help. They requested an ambulance for a non-emergency call and advised him to call 999 if the pain became worse. An ambulance was dispatched from Swanage and arrived three hours later. During this time his pain became worse, but he didn’t call 999 as he thought the ambulance would be there soon. In hindsight he would have called 999 when his symptoms worsened. When he arrived at Dorchester hospital, he had two operations to remove a lump and about a third of his digestive system and was in hospital for 10 days. His consultant later told him if he had arrived more than 15 minutes later, he may not have survived.

He feels the treatment he received in hospital was fantastic, especially by the nurses in the intensive care unit (ICU). He also feels that because he keeps himself fit, he recovered more quickly. When Paul was discharged from hospital he was not offered (or did not ask for) a package of care. He had his companion, friends and neighbours who helped him. The hospital did tell him to return if he felt worse again.

In Paul’s experience, when people on Portland are looking for trusted voices, they tend to contact their local councillor. Word of mouth is also a powerful vehicle for information to be shared. The Free Porland News and Dorset Echo are used by many people along with several Facebook pages for the island. Paul would like to see one dedicated website for people to supply and receive information on Portland.

The friends’ group for Portland Library formed in the last few years and had brought a good social aspect, including a history of the island along with different talking groups. Paul feels there needs to be a revival of community centres and groups in certain areas of the island, especially in Fortuneswell and Castletown.

Paul feels there are several major things affecting the island at the moment including the barge, pollution threats from the proposed incinerator and the prison. He feels Portland has a disproportionate amount of these large-scale issues compared to other towns in the county.

Key takeaway:

The one thing Paul would like for people to take away from the conversation is the need to support people for both medical and social needs on the island. Medical services are stretched beyond the limit, and it can take a long time to get a GP appointment. Ideally, he would like to see the MIU back at Portland Hospital. ICA are well placed to get community hubs going but would need support.