Golfhill school invites you to their fete

Golfhill School at  280 Onslow Drive, Dennistoun, will hold their summer fete on Saturday 5 June from 11am till 1pm. Entry for the joys of  face painting, seeing the fire engine, partaking at the snack bar / tea room, and rooting among the stalls for books, dvds, toys, games and prizes, will be £1 for adults and 50p for children. All proceeds will go to the school funds so everyone is invited along to enjoy the fun!  

Dennistoun welcomes more adventures in play

Youngsters in Dennistoun have welcomed a major play initiative with the release of 500 balloons and a special wall fresco. Through learning to have a good time, their future prospects are improved.
Reidvale Adventure Playground Association (RAPA) and the Scottish Government’s Inspiring Scotland programme has launched ‘Go Play’, a scheme which targets five-to-13-year olds and aims to increase the amount of play time the youngsters have, boosting their mental and physical health.
Reidvale hopes up to 500 children will benefit from Go Play throughout 2010 and 2011, while adults will learn to appreciate the significance of recreation time and activities in a child’s development.
The investment means RAPA has created jobs for three play workers.
RAPA Project Manager, Anne Marie Todd, told LOCAL NEWS: ‘We had a fantastic day. Lots of visitors, new faces and plenty of our regular children, young people and families. A good mix on the day.
‘The aims of the project with the Go Play investment means we’re hoping to bring in hundreds of new children. So, through 2010 and 2011 we’re aiming to engage a minimum of 500 new children in free play. We’re involved in a lot of marketing to make children and families aware of the free play programme and that we’re here to deliver that,’ Ann Marie added.
‘The investment was simple in staff – three full-time play workers for the next two years. Inspiring Scotland and Go Play asked how they could assist and we said we needed the people to deliver than and they’ve invested the staffing costs. It’s brilliant.’

Community green shoots showing

Thankfully, the green shoots of hope are appearing, not only in parks and gardens, but in local communities. It is amazing that one tenacious group at the Heart of Scotstoun has succeeded in their objective to build their own community centre. Cutting the first sod to start the building work was a major celebration. In contrast, almost a dozen community centres around the city have just been closed because of the cuts. Where there are strong enough groups willing to take on the running of the venues themselves, those establishments could remain in community use. But it means that neighbourhood activists will have to shoulder the responsibility of running their own show to a degree not experienced in recent times. Where there are partnership opportunities – such as in Dennistoun where the school’s theatre has been transformed into a community resource – there is also hope.
But it takes someone of the grit and determination of Lyn Ewing of Govanhill Housing Association to lead major campaigns. At 80 she’s hung up her fighting hat to get the wherewithal from Government to enable the Association to wipe out slums in their area (This is the 21st century and we still have 19th century slums!!!) But she’s not going to rest on her laurels. She’s going to take up Open University studies where she had to leave them when she started fighting for decent housing. That kind of righteous anger moves Governments – and mountains – and is needed today to get communities confident in running their own show.

Recognition for East End lads build themselves a career

Two young Eastenders have won awards for their skills and efforts after turning their lives around with the help of a charity.

Mark McAllister, 20, from Dennistoun, and Gary Scott, 18, from Baillieston, won commendations in the Youthbuild Young Builder of the Year awards. The lads were helped into apprenticeships by a Youthbuild programme run by Action for Children Scotland.

from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Mark is in his first year of a joinery apprenticeship with McTaggart Construction and Gary started in January as an apprentice painter and decorator with the Bell Group.

The Action for Children Youthbuild programme involves detailed preparation for working on building sites followed by 26 weeks experience with full pay working for a firm.

How the young person performs will depend on whether or not they are offered an apprenticeship or full-time job.

Two other young people from Inverclyde who have received support from Action for Children were also honoured in a special ceremony at Westminster by Nick Raynsford MP, who sits on a number of housing and construction committees in Parliament.

Kevin Leitch, 19, who is now a third-year apprentice joiner with McTaggart Construction was highly commended, and Kevin O’Donnell, 18, who is employed with WH Malcolm in Inverclyde was commended. Both are from Greenock.

Dennistoun shop becomes artist Emily’s canvas

Artist Emily Chappell is putting her talents to work at one of her favourite charity shops after she decided it needed a facelift.

Emily, 26, an illustrator and Glasgow School of Art graduate, will paint a mural in the Mary’s Meals shop in Duke Street, Dennistoun, using her own colourful designs.

The Mary’s Meals shop raises money to provide school meals for children in some of the world’s poorest countries. Emily thought that it would benefit from a brighter, more up-to-date look – and offered to provide it.

The redesign will cost the charity nothing – Emily’s skills are voluntary, and Impact Arts, a neighbouring social enterprise company, is providing the paint.

Mary’s Meals retail co-ordinator, Sharon Campbell, said: ‘You often hear of artists showing their work in famous department stores or restaurants, but this is the first time, that we know of it, that it has happened in a Scottish charity shop.

‘We hope that Emily’s work will be an attraction and a talking point for customers for a long time to come.’

Mary’s Meals hope Emily’s mural will be completed in time for the Christmas rush.

Emily has an exhibition of her drawings set for March next year at The Tron, and had a solo exhibition at The Drawing Room Gallery in Glasgow.