City FC show 6 appeal in Hibs defeat

by Laura Montgomery photos; Lorraine Hill

It was business as usual on Sunday 24 October at Glasgow Green, in the Scottish Women’s Premier League, when Glasgow City crushed Hibernian 6-0, to move 3 points clear at the top of the table with just 2 weeks of the season remaining.
Within the first minute of the match the home team scored,  Katharina Lindner smashing a goal home at the back post.
 20 minutes later  Sue Lappin sent a header across the face of the goal and Lindner was first to react in the crowded box, sweeping in her and City’s 2nd.
The second half was more of the same from City who increased their lead on 51 minutes. This time it was Ruesha Littlejohn’s goal, meeting Emma Fernon’s cross with a fantastic glancing header across into the bottom corner of the net.
8 minutes later and Littlejohn doubled her tally with an unstoppable shot from the edge of the box following samba-esque trickery from.
The fifth goal came from Rachel Corsie who had remained up the park following a corner and when a ball found Sue Lappin in the box she squared for the centre back to slot home with ease.
With 6 minutes left, the scoring was complete, after Emma McCulley upended Ruesha Littlejohn in the box. Up stepped Leanne Ross to fire home the resultant penalty for her 52nd goal of this campaign and round off a great day for the home team.
Manager Peter Caulfield was full of praise for the team after the game and said:“ We were quick to move the ball and set a very high tempo for the match right from kick off. There was a real incisiveness about our play today and we saw the real quality of Glasgow City in this match.”

Co-op “Good With Food” champions

by Lynsay Keough

The Co-operative Food store in Crown Street, Gorbals, has been named the best of its kind in Scotland and will now compete for the coveted title of Co-operative Food “Store of the Year” in a UK-wide competition.
The store came top of the large size category (any store above 8,000sq ft.), beating off competition from across Scotland. The overall UK winner will be announced at The Co-operative’s “Good With Food” Awards on November 18.
Stores are judged on strict criteria, including the ability to demonstrate a high standard of store presentation, produce quality, customer service and team engagement, as well as being able to show exceptional commitment to the community, and an impressive business performance over the last twelve months.
David Macdonald, Store Manager said: ‘My team works really hard all year to make sure we deliver a top-class service for shoppers, so it is fantastic that their efforts are being recognised by such a prestigious award.
‘I’m already really proud of what we have achieved by getting shortlisted but if we win the overall title then that will certainly be cause for a big celebration.’
All shortlisted stores will now be visited by a panel of judges before winners are announced at an awards ceremony in Manchester.

Hear to Help launched in Glasgow

A pioneering new service for the deaf community in Glasgow was launched in October, aimed at supporting people and helping them adjust to the reality of depending on hearing aids.

‘Hear to Help’ was officially launched by The Royal Institute for Deaf People (RNID) on Friday 22 October and will help deaf people maintain hearing equipment and make sure those who depend on NHS hearing aids are well integrated with friends, family and work colleagues.

To achieve this, RNID will be running drop-in sessions across the city taken by trained volunteers. At Linthouse Housing Association on Friday 22 staff from RNID gave an example of the great work they do with hearing aid equipment and Delia Henry, RNID Director for Scotland, explained a little of what ‘Hear to Help’ will offer:

Said Delia:’Getting used to a hearing aid can be difficult and takes time. Our committed team of volunteers is looking forward to running community drop-in sessions and making home visits to build the confidence of hearing aid users. It’s amazing to see the tremendous impact a hearing aid can have in transforming a person’s ability to hear and live a full and active life.’

Nicola Sturgeon was at Linthouse to see the new service launched and believes it will prove invaluable. Said Nicola: ‘I wish everyone involved with Hear to Help well and am delighted that a number of drop- in sessions will be operating in my constituency.

‘Hearing loss can create barriers for people and leave them feeling isolated, a project like Hear to Help will breakdown those barriers and make life better for hearing aid users.’

The launch of ‘Hear to Help’ comes after the Co-Operative Group raised £3.7 million so that RNID could expand its services throughout the Glasgow region. The service is also being funded by the Scottish Government.

Think this service could help you or someone you know? Visit: www.rnid.org.uk/HearToHelp and find out when and where the drop-in sessions will be.

Cause to Run

Some of the team at Thompson’s Solicitors gave of their free time and energy recently to raise funds for Clydeside Action on Asbestos. Those taking part in the Great Scottish Run were: Donna Reilly; Tom Marshall; Laura Blane; Laura McGee; Amanda McKenzie; Jane Harrison; Stacey Adamson; Tony Paterson; Anne Marie Harbison; Hannah Jordan; Jacqueline Donnelly; Jennifer St. Clair; Sarah Hislop; Joe McCluskey; Julie Brown; Lindsey Gordon; Kirsty Evans; Caitlyn MacCabe; Greg Whyte; Debbie Morton
Clydeside Action On Asbestos (CAA) is a registered charity which was formed in 1984 to provide advice and assistance to those who suffer from asbestos related disease and their families.Mesothelioma is a devastating disease.This incurable condition affects both men and women who came into contact with asbestos many years ago. CAA provides a comprehensive welfare rights service, advising on benefit and compensation entitlement and support groups around the country for those diagnosed with mesothelioma. It actively campaigns for amendments to the law and social policy to promote positive changes for sufferers, which assist them in increasing their quality of life, provides specialist advice on claiming industrial injuries benefits and state compensation as well as all other state benefits and advises clients of their legal right to pursue a civil case for compensation; as the majority of cases of asbestos disease continue to be caused by negligence on behalf of their current or former employer.

To Be Frank

Frank Maguire, of Thompsons solicitors, won the prestigious Solicitor of the Year category recently at the Scottish Law Awards in Glasgow.

The award signals a rare double success – Mr Maguire led Thompsons to the Law Firm of the Year title at last year’s ceremony.

Mr Maguire is a tireless campaigner on behalf of asbestos victims and NHS patients who contracted Hepatitis C and HIV from infected NHS blood transfusions and products.

The judges at last night’s glittering ceremony also recognised his professional skills and praised his political convictions and his impact in changing the law.

Mr Maguire said: “This is a tremendous honour which reflects the professionalism of my colleagues whose support has made it possible.

“The Law is currently going through a period of change and uncertainty, which means we have to be more vigilant than ever that our rights are not eroded.

“I am working with the STUC on their Access to Justice campaign against rising court costs which threaten to price the man in the street out of our courts.

“I am also supporting MSP Bill Butler in his efforts to get the Scottish Parliament to pass the Wrongful Deaths bill which would eliminate the need for details of victims lives to be the subject of courtroom wrangling and give them a legal right to fair and just compensation.”

Having a wall of time

Work equals reward, and so it was at Battlefield Primary, when kids scaled a towering, climbing wall- a surprise extra for a sterling show at the 2010 Scottish Learning Festival in September.

At the Learning Festival, Kingswood Educational Activity Centre offered a 2-day adventure activity break and Mrs Doyle from Battlefield Primary couldn’t believe her luck when she scooped the prize. So,who’s Mrs Doyle going with? Well, her whole class are tagging along for their trip and if they thought things could not get better, they thought wrong.

On the morning of Thursday of October 22, staff from Kingswood arrived at Battlefield Primary to present Mrs Doyle with her prize. They also brought part of the activity centre with them- a 7m climbing wall that soared into the blue skies! Surely Mrs Doyle’s P7 class have been the focus of a little envy with their trip to come. Nothing that to scaling a vertical wall didn’t sort out and all kids from Battlefield had a cracker-jack of a time!

Irene Mazor, from Kingswood,

 presented Mrs Doyle with the trip. Said Irene:’The kids had a great time climbing the wall, and their sense of achievement when they got to the top of the climbing was fabulous to see.’ Did any of the kids discover vertigo? None that were reported.

Mrs Doyle has never been so popular with her class and was delighted that Kingswood brought along the wall so all children could get in on the action. Said Mrs Doyle: ‘Thank so much to Kingswood. Our children had a ball.’

Mrs Doyle and her class will set off for the activity centre, situated in Northumberland, after Easter next year

The Harvest hits Queens Park

By Alieu Ceesay

 

Queens Park, in Glasgow’s Govanhill, hosted a harvest special Farmers Market on Saturday 16 October, attracting over 30 stalls with farmers from across Scotland selling organic and processed food.

The event attracted huge crowds and witnessed a cook-off competition between Chef Jacqueline O’Donnell from Sisters restaurant and Domenico del Priore from Cookies Restaurant- both were excellent and resulted in a tie. Speaking to LOCAL NEWS Dominic said: ‘Its great to do things like this, it makes the market livley and entertain people and it gives stall owners the chance to showcase their produce and gets people buying from the markets rather than supermarkets’. Jacqueline described the competition as fantastic as it allowed them to cook using Scottish produce. Said Jacqueline:’Its fantastic we are using Scottish produce to cook and it’s good for people to watch the demostration on how to cook the dishes and what items to buy.’ The market was visited by the City’s famous dray horses who gave free rides to lucky riders. Other celebrites included the champion of the Highland Cattle Show.

Dominic Smith of Sunny Side Meat and Free Range, a stall owner, described the market as ‘very busy’ with good sales and said we was ‘hopeful for an increase in the next farmers market.’

Graham Wallace Managing Director City Market Glasgow LLP said the market was a ‘brilliant suceess with farmers passionate about their produce.’

The Pride of the Clyde upheld

By Lynsay Keough, photos Stuart Maxwell

A huge sigh of relief could be heard on the banks of the Clyde on Wednesday 20 October, as the announcement that the £5.4 billion contract for the 2 aircraft carriers being built at The BAE yard was safe. The building of HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales secures thousands of jobs in both Govan and Rosyth, as the government was forced to admit that it would be far too expensive to cancel the programme. However there is still speculation that the Prince of Wales, when launched in 2018, will either be mothballed or sold while the Queen Elizabeth will operate without any jets for several years.

Jamie Webster, GMB convener at BAE in Govan said that the last few weeks of speculation had been “horrific” He added: “There is relief for the families that we represent, we are happy today. This will give us stability for a period of time. I will be very interested to see what Liam Fox says in total about future procurement. I think that might throw up other cause for conjecture.”
Scottish Secretary Michael Moore commented: “Over the last few months, we have been grappling with the nation’s security needs. As part of that, we have been considering how we shape our armed forces for the future. I am delighted that we are able to confirm that both aircraft carriers will proceed and that will mean work in Rosyth and in Govan will continue for a long time to come.”

Alan Johnston, Managing Director at BAE Systems’ Surface Ships division, said: “We warmly welcome the UK Government’s confirmed commitment to the outstanding capabilities of the Type 45 destroyers, two Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers, development of the Type 26 Global Combat Ship and the long-term support of the surface fleet at Portsmouth Naval Base.
“We remain committed to working with the Ministry of Defence to drive substantial efficiencies across maritime naval procurement, whilst continuing to deliver world-class capability to the Royal Navy and sustaining the skills to build and support complex warships in the UK.”

Fit for a Queen

by Lynsay Keough

The newly restored Mary Queen of Scots monument in Court Knowe has been unveiled after a local resident won funding following fighting off 200 other sites in a nationwide competition for a share of £100,000.
Mary Theresa Johnson secured £20,000 of funding from Bovril last year to give the local monument a make over. Mary Theresa, who works part-time as an outreach assistant for the Open museum was researching the history of Bovril, when she came across Bovril’s Great Outdoors Revival. She applied with the hope of restoring the monument which had been affected by the weather and general neglect.
The 20,000 allowed for a new base, 3 planters with all year round flowering heather, an accessible path leading up to a bench overlooking the city. There are also 2 information boards detailing the history of the site, which is said to be where Mary, Queen of Scots watched her army being defeated in the Battle of Langside in 1568.
Secretary of Cathcart Community Council, Patricia Cockburn, opened the monument and praised local designer Stuart Robinson from S.I.R Contracts Ltd who designed the rebuild and Mary Theresa herself. Simshill and Old Cathcart Community council organised the launch with funding from Glasgow City Council.
Mary Theresa commented, “It’s great to see the Mary Queen of Scots monument fully restored for the community to enjoy and I can’t thank the local residents and businesses enough for giving up their time to revive one of Glasgow’s hidden gems. Funding from Bovril’s Great Outdoor Revival campaign has allowed significant improvements to the monument and the surrounding area: I still can’t believe we won!”

Glasgow Lloyds Occupied

A day after crippling cuts were announced in Westminister, a protest group of local people occupied a Lloyds TSB bank in Glasgow city centre, forcing the branch to close for an hour.

At around 11.30 am on Thursday 21 October a group of 16 people from across Glasgow, banners in hand, walked into Lloyds on St Vincent Street and announced they were occupying the bank in protest of the cuts. Staff quickly closed the doors and called police after protesters refused an invitation to leave.

The protest- Citizens United Against Cuts to Public Services- was led by Glasgow’s Sean Clerkin. Said Sean, inside the bank: ‘We are opposed to the cutting of Public Services in Glasgow. The banks are the cause of these troubles yet it is the poor people of the city that have to foot the £200 billion they got from taxpayers.

‘We are saying to all political parties- No Cuts!’ All protesters joined to chant ‘No Cuts, No to Cuts!’

Sean continued: ‘The Public Sector is being robbed blind by casino capitalism that banks like Lloyds support. It is torrid and sick.’

Cuts announced by Chancellor George Osborne on Wednesday 20 October pulled £7 billion from the welfare state. Glasgow’s MSPs have told the LOCAL NEWS that these cuts will particularly hit Glasgow.

Said Green MSP Patrick Harvie:’ For Glasgow in particular, taking away the welfare state is stealing from the poor to fund the lifestyle of the wealthy.’

The Police arrived in Lloyds just after 12 noon and asked the group to leave. This request was refused and Police relayed to Sean Clerkin that the group may be arrested if they did not comply.

Ainsley O’ Reilly, 36 from Glasgow, was part of the protest. Ainsley, an unemployed hairdresser, speaking inside the bank: ‘I’m here today because the cuts are going to effect those on benefits, people who do not matter to the elite of society, people who to many are invisible.’

A spokesperson for Lloyds, in response to the occupation, said: ‘We understand the potential difficulties our customers and the communities in which we operate may face. We are actively playing our part in Scotland’s economic recovery and we are proud of our record in supporting customers throughout our relationship with them’

Dominic Ferry, a member of Fight Racism Fight Imperialism, also joined the protest. Said Dominic, from Govanhill:’ This is only the beginning. We need action against these cuts in Glasgow. So far reaction has excluded the poor and been all about public service workers- a middle class minority. We need the people from Castlemilk, from Govan, from Govanhill and from all over Glasgow to get involved. These people are the heart of resistance.’

The heart of the resistance on Thursday 21 October was 16 people who occupied Lloyds bank. They left at around 12.30, of their own volition. ‘We support the police’, Said Sean, ‘after all- it’s their jobs on the line as well.’

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