Town Twinning

Origins

Barking and Dagenham's town twinning link with Witten in Germany dates back to 1948. Members of Kingsley Hall, a community church organisation in Dagenham, befriended German prisoners of war who were based nearby. They invited them into their homes, gave them food and clothing and offered friendship and sympathy.

The Home Office came to hear of these activities and asked Kingsley Hall if they would like to 'adopt' a town in Germany, as their activities fitted in with the government's policy to work towards reconciliation with Germany. Kingsley Hall agreed and eventually received a letter informing them that they had been linked with Witten.

First reaction - Witten? - never heard of it! Eventually Witten was located in Germany's industrial heartland in the Ruhr Valley. It had and still has much in common with Dagenham with a heavy industrial base.

The first visit took place by a group of 6 young people from Witten in November 1948 who attended school and stayed with local families. A return visit took place the following year which developed into an annual youth exchange. This formed the basis of the twinning link for many years.