Latest news with #GovanYouthInformationProject
Glasgow Times
01-08-2025
- Politics
- Glasgow Times
Councillor Bell: 'Where Glasgow is leading, others are following'
One thing the break provides is the opportunity for me to see firsthand one of the most successful and trailblazing policies to emerge in this city – Glasgow's Holiday Programme. From Pollok to Easterhouse, Castlemilk to Drumchapel, thousands of youngsters have been taking up the offer of an exciting range of activities across the school holidays. And, of course, enjoy some delicious and nutritious meals along the way. This summer, 59 community and third sector organisations, supported by over £2.2 million of council funding, have been providing meals and activities across all of Glasgow's wards. As well as the ever-popular arts and crafts, day trips, sports sessions, and cooking classes, this summer young Glaswegians can have a try at Brazilian martial arts, go along to an 80s dayglo disco, head out on bike rides, and take part in science and technology lessons. And over these six weeks, an incredible 300,000-plus breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and snacks will be served to the young people attending. This week I got along to a number of organisations delivering meals and activities across the city, including two groups who work closely together in my Govan ward. At the Pearce Institute, on top of dance classes, youngsters were taking up lessons in circus skills, while nearby the Govan Youth Information Project was laying on a whole range of sports for scores of kids. Across the city at COJAC in Castlemilk, it was great to see a programme dedicated to providing summer activities to youngsters with additional needs, while over at the Tollcross YMCA a very busy carnival atmosphere was in full swing, complete with fruit kebabs and pasta. This is now the eighth year of a programme which continues to go from strength to strength, which recognises that one approach doesn't work for everyone, and which guarantees great fun while tackling exclusion. Shortly after it was elected back in 2017, the new SNP City Administration wasn't surprised by the scale of child poverty in Glasgow and the impact this had on families during the summer months. What was surprising was that no previous administrations had made efforts to tackle it. We knew straight away that to address that particular challenge we couldn't stigmatise kids and families. And we recognised that across Glasgow there were groups with much better reach, relationships, and track records in communities than the council. Our job was to build the partnerships and provide the resources which could not only provide nutritious meals for young people and families over the summer without labelling them but also keep the kids occupied (and give parents and carers some much-needed respite). The sheer variety of the offer within the Holiday Programme and the spread across the city shows how successful we've been in achieving that. And just look at the numbers. Last summer alone over 21,000 Glaswegian schoolkids attended our Holiday Programme. Over eight years, that's well in excess of 150,000 young people. It's little wonder that local authorities across these islands are now putting their own similar policies in place or being funded to do so. Where Glasgow is leading, others are following, and that's something we're exceptionally proud of. (It's also worth pointing out that the programme now allows us to make our Financial Inclusion Support Officers available to provide support and guidance over the summer months. Experts in tackling child poverty agree that financial inclusion officers are a really effective way of delivering practical and meaningful support to families and now we're doing so year-round.) Remarkably, for a policy that has been so effective and popular with families, at this year's budget, only the SNP allocated funding to continue the Holiday Programme. Glaswegians can be assured that while the SNP is the City Administration, we will not let up in ensuring our Holiday Programme builds on its pioneering successes.
Glasgow Times
10-06-2025
- Sport
- Glasgow Times
Teams crowned winners at Glasgow's Govan Fair Cup
Youngsters from both Craigton and St Saviour's primary schools were driven through Govan on Friday, lifting their trophies high as crowds lining the streets cheered them on. Craigton Primary School's winning team (Image: Newsquest Staff) Pupils from Craigton had come out on top in the girls' section of the annual football tournament, whilst students from St Saviour's were crowned winners of the boys' section. It came after more than 20 teams – from primary schools in and around Govan – faced off at the Ibrox Community Complex on June 4. St Saviour's Primary School's winning team (Image: Newsquest Staff) The winning teams were then presented with medals and trophies at Edmiston House before celebrating on an open-top bus as part of the Govan Fair parade. The Glasgow Times was invited to chat with players from each team to find out how they were feeling. Left to right: Thomas Rouse and Stephen Barrie (Image: Newsquest Staff) Thomas Rouse, 11, revealed how the St Saviour's team had trained for the tournament. He said: 'We did lots of training and put in lots of dedication. I've been playing football for nearly my whole life. 'I am absolutely buzzing, and our friends said they were proud of us.' READ NEXT: Glasgow Necropolis charity celebrates 20th anniversary Meanwhile, Stephen Barrie explained how he felt as his team lifted the trophy at Edmiston House. The 12-year-old added: 'I've been playing football since I was one year old and this was brilliant, absolutely brilliant. 'We did lots of exercise and lots of running about to get fit.' The youngsters lifted the trophy high in the air (Image: Newsquest Staff) Lynne Neilson, principal teacher at St Saviour's, told of her joy as this was the first time in 'almost a decade' that the school had taken the trophy home. She commented: 'I'm feeling fantastic. We've been training the team, and it's been about nine years since we've won, so the boys are absolutely buzzing. 'The fact that it's a Govan school that has won the boys' tournament is a big deal for us, everyone's delighted.' Ahead of the bus starting to follow the parade route – leaving from Fairley Street and finishing on Arklet Road – members of Craigton PS's winning team expressed their excitement. (Image: Newsquest Staff) READ NEXT: Volunteers clock over 350 hours for Glasgow 850 celebrations Left to right: Emily Penrice, Kayla Abraham, and Hala Al Bweidane (Image: Newsquest Staff) Hala Al Bweidane, 11, explained she was feeling proud. She said: 'I've been playing football for about a year now and competed in the Cup last year. We won in another tournament, and we learned so much from that. 'I am really proud of myself.' Kayla Abraham, 12, added that the team had lots of fun on the day. She added: 'I got a late notice to take part, and I knew I wanted to go. I've been playing football my whole life. 'I am very excited to be on the open-top bus, it's brilliant.' (Image: Govan Youth Information Project) (Image: Govan Youth Information Project) (Image: Govan Youth Information Project) Emily Penrice told of how she has not been playing the sport for long but was excited to be a part of the winning team. She commented: 'I'm just happy to be here. I haven't been playing for that long. We're excited and happy.' The Govan Fair Cup was taken over by the Govan Youth Information Project (GYIP) four years ago. At that time, the group had promised to make the event 'better' each year. (Image: Govan Youth Information Project) (Image: Govan Youth Information Project) (Image: Govan Youth Information Project) READ NEXT: Tiny meerkat pups find their feet in Scottish safari park John Aitken, project worker at GYIP, highlighted the importance of the tournament and how he believes it truly showcases 'what Govan is known for'. GYIP members Ethan, Kelsi, Arran, Ryan, Josh, and John alongside Dougie from Glasgow Life (Image: Newsquest Staff) He stated: 'I feel really good because we've kept our promise that when we took it over, we would make it better each year. 'I think we've done that by adding extra schools, the live cup draw and presentation at Edmiston House. 'I think the full GYIP team deserve a pat on the back. The youngsters might have never had an event like this unless they went to professional football. 'Even taking part in a big football tournament like that, not all kids like organised football, so doing that with their school can be pretty special to them. 'It's really just about them having fun and gaining new experiences. It's about the wider community getting together and pulling together, which is what Govan is known for.' (Image: Govan Youth Information Project) (Image: Govan Youth Information Project)
