Doors Open Day – Introduction

More than 50,000 people walked through the Doors Open at 135 historic and key buildings in Glasgow in September, leading the organisers to propose another week-long festival for next year.

Traditionally, Doors Open has run over a weekend in September. In this, the 19^th year of the event which enables properties to open their doors to visitors, talks, walks and other associated events were programmed over seven days.

Rosie Elliot, Area Co-ordinator with Glasgow Building Preservation Trust said: ‘This year has been a huge success with the numbers of visitors up at all buildings. All the walks were fully booked the week before.’ However, the team of six at Glasgow Building Preservation Trust had their work cut out to cope with the huge demand. But they managed it!

Top of the poll was St Andrew’s in the Square which attracted 2,500 visitors.

Govanhill Baths, closed seven years ago amid local fury, attracted more than 1000 people to see the present state of the magnificent Edwardian Baroque interior and the future plans by a Trust to transform the building into a Community Sports and Wellbeing Centre

 North Doors Closed

Said Rosie: ‘It is a real sadness to me that there were no Doors Open venues this year in the North of the city. I really want some for next year and would welcome suggestions from LOCAL NEWS readers. It involves a lot of commitment and time to the people who are responsible for the venue, but I know there must be some good places that visitors would want to see.’

If you have a suggestion for a building in Glasgow’s Northern sector you’d like to see included in Doors Open next year then email the LOCAL NEWS on : localnews@btconnect.com and tell us where it is.

Doors Open Day – East End Healthy Living Centre

The East End Healthy Living Centre’s Doors Open event celebrated the facility’s third birthday with several hundred people joining the party at Crownpoint Road.

Recently refurbished, the café was well tested, the children’s play areas indoors and out, were busy and there was plenty to see and do. The beautifully equipped gym offered taster sessions for their Lifestyle programme. Computer nerds and geeks congregated in the computer room. Those interested in the arts and crafts side of healthy living, could see the work of the Picture Perfect Photograhic Club, the creative writing class,  the Weaving group and the Cooking Club.

The alternative stress centre based within the G40 building runs relaxation and massage classes among others and provides counselling too. Outside, the professional standard running track is used by Shettleston Harriers and Red Star Athletics Clubs and full sized football pitches, tennis courts and five-aside all-weather sports space are all there for interested individuals. The Centre’s facilities are open to the public with special rates for residents in selected parts of the G40,  G31, G32 and G4 postal code areas covering Shettleston, Baillieston, Calton and the East End. The Centre’s management team are working to secure the future of the community complex in partnership with the exciting developments in the East End where the 2014 Commonwealth Games will be based.

Doors Open Day – Pollok Storytelling Centre

Nestling inside St James’ (Pollok) Parish Church, the Village Story Telling Centre treats school children from 25 primary schools across the city to a variety of educational and fun stories three times a week.

The first-ever story telling centre to be based in a church building when it first opened nine years ago, it is a popular place and attracted around 65 children and adults for Doors Open. The Gothic styled church building was expertly moved brick by brick from Pollokshields in 1947.

Margaret Thompson, church treasurer said: ‘Some children have never been in a church before. By coming to the storytelling it makes them less frightened of being in one.’

A reminiscence group also takes place every Wednesday when senior members of the local communities meet up to socialise and discuss how life used to be for them.

Margaret added: ‘Videos of old Glasgow really get them talking.’

The group are continually on the look out for funding to help them to continue with their projects. Anyone who would like to find out more or offer funds can contact Margaret Paterson, administrator of the centre on 0141 882 3025.

 

Doors Open Day – Hazelwood School

Hazelwood School staff were overwhelmed by the amount of interest shown in the £6.3m state-of-the-art facility near Bellahouston Park, during Doors Open Saturday. In just five hours, the school for pupils with sensory impairment had over 1,000 visitors.

Opened last August, Hazelwood brought together pupils from Kelvin School and Carnbooth Residential School for the Deaf Blind which are both now closed.

Currently 46 children and young people from age 2 to 19 are educated at Hazelwood.

Head teacher Monica McGeever was involved with the architects in the design of the building. She said: ‘There is a lack of the kind of displayed materials you’d expect to see in a school. We know from research that pupils with sensory impairment prefer a clutter free environment.’

Running around the classrooms is a sensory wall – wooden panels with raised lines which cleverly double as storage space.  Mrs McGeever said: ‘It wouldn’t be appropriate to take our older pupils by the hand. The sensory wall allows them to navigate their own way around.’

All class rooms are north facing allowing for maximum light without glare. The rooms are acoustically designed to reduce noise from the nearby M77. The school takes pupils from eight local authorities with one pupil travelling daily from Lockerbie. The school also features a therapy pool where pupils learn to swim and enjoy recreation time.

Mrs McGeever concluded: ‘The weekend was very positive and we will be opening our doors again next year.’

Doors Open Day – Easterhouse Bridge Arts Centre

The Bridge Arts Centre is a new building created to literally ‘bridge the gap’ between a 1960’s swimming pool and the new John Wheatley college in Easterhouse. The venue includes a 210 seat theatre and workshop space, a recording studio, a café, a library and meeting rooms. The space which the building now occupies was long used as a shortcut by local people, so the architects developed the idea of a ‘covered street’ to permit the free flow of pedestrians through the space, but with enough facilities to tempt them to linger and find out what is going on. The results have been impressive. The library has gone from being one of the bottom five in Glasgow to being one of the top two in the city. 

 

Doors Open Day – Provan Hall

Easterhouse’s hidden 15^th century gems at Provan Hall attracted the Doors Open day crowds with special buses bring visitors direct from George’s Square. Jordan McGlinchey and Linda Cameron from the Friends of Provan Hall dressed up in period costume to highlight what life would have been like in the Hall in days gone by. The group has 37 members and meets regularly to plan fund-raising activities to maintain the place. They organise scary Hallowe’en nights as the Hall is said to be one of the most haunted buildings in Glasgow.

The A listed buildings were constructed around the same time as the Provand’s Lordship, and was a Prebendary – a subsidiary church – to Glasgow Cathedral.

Around 5000 acres of land were worked as an estate and provided substantial revenues for the holder of the prebendary. It’s fascinating history was outlined including the fact that it was the centre of a working farm until 1934.