ISSUE 1

FOR THE COMMUNITY, BY THE COMMUNITY

GOING FOR GOLD 2

CASHLINE 3

FOSSIL GROVE 3

BIG DEBATE 4

RECOVERY 6

YESTERYEAR 8

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

A local woman was at

the forefront of a Glas-

gow protest last week

demanding the return of

more than 200 girls ab-

ducted from their school

in Nigeria. Olanrewaju

Olaleye, known locally

as Ola and a representa-

tive of the Nigerian com-

munity, was among 200

people who turned up to

show their support and

solidarity for the “Bring

Back Our Girls Glas-

gow” campaign in St

Enoch’s Square.

The students were ab-

ducted by Boko Haram

Islamist militants on the

14th April and Nigerian

born Ola issued a stark

warning. The 39 year old

mum said: “Terrorism is

not just for a nation it

concerns everybody, if

that successfully happens

in Nigeria it could happen

anywhere. We should all

come together because

the fight concerns every-

one. In Kenya they went

in and shot people in a

supermarket and that

could happen anywhere

in the world, even here.”

The actions of the terror-

ist group have caused

such outrage that there

has been a social media

explosion with the

#BringBackOurGirls

worldwide.

Most complaints made

have been against the

mainstream media’s ig-

norance of the kidnap.

More on page 2

NIGERIAN

KIDNAPPING

PROTEST

By Lynn Malone

JUNE 2014

WHITEINCH NEWS NEEDS YOU!

Today sees the launch

of this new community-

based local newsletter,

the Whiteinch News.

Its aim is to give the

people of this area a

voice that will be heard.

For that to work, we

need you to write the

stories or provide our

citizen journalists with

the information to write

on your behalf.

So if you’ve got some-

thing to say or you are

even just curious, pop

along to the Whiteinch

Centre on a Wednesday

at 6.30pm and have a

chat .

This has all came about

thanks to support from

the Lloyds Banking

Group Community

Fund, Esmée Fairbairn

Foundation and the Big

Lottery.

A big thank you to the

Whiteinch Centre for

securing the funding.

We are also backed by

the National Union of

Journalists who is en-

thusiastic about citizen

journalism.

KEEP US POSTED

Check out our new blog:

SCAN WITH YOUR

SMARTPHONE

Or Email:

whiteinchnews@gmail.com

HAVE YOU SPOTTED

THE HERRON YET?

PROTEST: Ola calling for safe return of the girls.

JUNE 2014 NEWS 2

Ola agrees, saying: “On

the 14th April 274 girls

were kidnapped in Nige-

ria by terrorists. They

went to kidnap them in

their school and now no

one knows where they

are. Boko Haram thinks

that Western education

is bad. No one knows

where they are and the

government in Nigeria

were too slow to respond.

“People have to show

they care by taking

action. The UK govern-

ment stepped in when

the plane crashed in Ma-

laysia. All the girls are

teenagers so why did it

take them so long - over

three weeks - to step in

here? These girls are

still alive.”

Ola, who has lived in

Glasgow for eight years

and Scotstoun for five, is

a firm believer in help-

ing women. She said: “I

joined a group, about

four of us came together

to hold this rally in the

city of Glasgow for all

those who are concerned

to say to the world that

we need help to rescue

NIGERIAN

KIDNAPPING

PROTEST

Continued from page 1

these girls. And also to

let them know we care.

The leader came on tele-

vision and said he was

going sell these girls.”

She is also the organis-

er of a Christian charity,

The Esther’s Company

UK, whose aim is to em-

power and encourage

women to realise their

full potential and devel-

op. She said: “I grew up

with my mum who sin-

glehandedly brought me

up and I know the pains

of being a women, espe-

cially a single mother,

I’ve always had this pas-

sion to help women. I’ve

met a lot of women who

can’t share their prob-

lems and they just need

someone to encourage

them and some women

need, what I call, a

push.”

Ola says those who at-

tended the protest came

together and wore red to

show their solidarity to

“Bring Bring Back Our

Girls Glasgow” and to

have one voice. She

said: “People were so

good. A Glasgow printer

kindly printed posters

free of charge and pro-

vided us with massive

placards saying ‘Bring

back our girls’.

The Whiteinch Centre

have been awarded

funding from

the‘Celebrate’ Big Lot-

tery funding that is

available to support

communities across

Scotland as they cele-

brate and are inspired

by the landmark event –

2014 Commonwealth

Games.

‘Go for Gold with White-

inch’ aims to run 12

weeks of activities start-

ing at the end of May

which will allow the

community to get in-

volved in the celebra-

tions exploring a new

activity or taking part in

Commonwealth based

activities within already

established groups.

The project will be deliv-

ered under three

strands:

- 'Exploring Sports'

testers focusing on: Ta-

ble Tennis, Indoor

Bowls, Netball, Cycling

and Badminton ses-

sions

- 'Exploring Arts/

Heritage' - creative arts

and photography pro-

jects exploring the rich

heritage of common-

wealth nations and how

the Commonwealth

Games have changed

Glasgow

- ‘Exploring Music and

Dance’ – exploring dif-

ferent expressive art

forms, develop a

unique piece of music

and performance that

will reflect learning of

the different traditions

around the world and

contribute to the

events programme of

the Glasgow Games

2014.

The community will also

be encouraged to:

- Design a 'Go for Gold

with Whiteinch' Com-

monwealth Celebration

mascot

The learning and cele-

brations will link to ex-

isting events around

Glasgow and will culmi-

nate in an exhibition,

show and an awards cer-

emony for volunteers

and participants as part

of the Victoria Park

‘Commonwealth Connec-

tions’ event on Saturday

16th August 2014.

To get involved or find

out more contact Debs

on 0141 950 4434 ddick-

son@whiteinchcentre.org

.uk

GOING FOR GOLD WITH WHITEINCH

CAMERA: Get involved in a photography project.

JUNE 2014 NEWS 3

By Hugh Rooney

Whiteinch locals can now

use a new 24 hour cash

machine in the area.

The ATM is located at

the shop front of the

Whiteinch General Store

in Dumbarton Road.

After the application was

approved by the council,

plans for the machine

moved very quickly and it

is now ready for use.

The machine was in-

stalled to the shop front

on Wednesday 14th May.

The shop owner said in

response: “This is fantas-

tic news for the people of

NEW CASH

MACHINE TO

BENEFIT THE

AREA

Kirsten

McLaughlan

“I’m not really that

bothered, as my card is

probably not

compatible with the

machine”

Carolanne

McLean

“This is good for the

area. My only

concern is getting

across the road to use

it where it can be re-

ally busy at times”

Olga Tyurina

“It’s a lot more

convenient that having

to go to the garage

which can be very

busy.”

YOUR VIEWS

CASH: New machine is now ready to use

who retired at the end

of last year, the shop

has introduced the

’payment point’ facility

where gas and electric-

ity can now be pur-

chased.

It also has a notice

board to let community

organisations display

their events and infor-

mation for the area.

By Willie Watt

One of Glasgow’s oldest

and most unique tourist

attractions, the Fossil

Grove in Victoria Park, is

at the centre of public

discontent.

Concerns are being

raised over the state of

disrepair of the building

and lack of facilities.

Local residents are being

asked for their views on

this 330million year old

site of special scientific

interest (SSSI).

Jill Ferguson, a former

member of Friends of

Victoria Park, said:

"There should be tourist

buses going to it every

day. It’s crazy that they

don't."

The fossil grove contains

11 tree stumps that

were discovered in 1887

during work at the then

local quarry and have

been housed in a spe-

cially constructed build-

ing since 1903.

Partick West Councillor

Kenny McLean, who is

on the Fossil Grove

board, said: "It has been

neglected in recent years

and there were worries

that it wasn't being

properly maintained.”

A spokesperson for Glas-

gow City council said,

"The consultation on the

future of the fossil grove

will allow people who

love the park to make

their views.

STUMPS: Concern is growing over Fossil Grove

FIX UP

FOSSIL GROVE

Too Shy

Bill Kidd

MSP for Glasgow

Anniesland says:

The reason for the Inde-

pendence Referendum is

democracy, it's about the

people of Scotland getting

the government we vote

for. Look at the Westmin-

ster government run by

Tory Prime Minister, Da-

vid Cameron when

there's only one Tory MP

in the whole of Scotland.

We've produced oil from

the North Sea for 40

years and with at least

40 years worth still

there but what benefit

have the average per-

son seen from it? Well

we've got the bedroom

tax and more austerity

(that's cuts) coming our

way. Meanwhile the

City of London still

sucks wealth away from

us all and whilst Scot-

land contributes more

Should Scotland be an

Independent Country?

than we get back there

are threats to cut the

Scottish Parliament's

budget yet again. No

democracy there.

I've never voted Tory

in my life, nor have

my family and nor

have the majority of

the Scottish people, so

why have I had a

Westminster Tory gov-

ernment for 33 of my

57 years of life?

However it's really all

about what we can do

with a Scottish Gov-

ernment that has full

control and can spend

all of what we raise on

the priorities of the

Scottish people. Jobs,

pensions, benefits, ed-

ucation, no privatisa-

tion in our NHS, a bet-

ter deal for people

with disabilities and

for carers, it should all

be in our hands to de-

cide how we spend our

money on these priorities.

Oh yes, and all of Brit-

ain's nuclear weapons

sitting just 25 miles from

us here in Glasgow? It's

simply not on.

So for me Scotland's inde-

pendence is about democ-

racy and the rights of the

Scottish people to have

the government we vote

for and the kind of poli-

cies we believe in. The

Scottish Government

promised more appren-

ticeships, to keep conces-

sionary fares, get rid of

prescription charges, no

tuition fees for students,

no privatisation in the

NHS, over a thousand

more police officers, and

delivered all of these.

On 18th September I'll be

voting Yes for Independ-

ence and I believe most

people in Scotland will do

so as well."

THE BIG DEBATE

YES

“It should all

be in our

hands to

decide how

we spend our

money.”

The deadline for registra-

tion to vote in the refer-

endum is 2 September

2014.

More than 98,000 people

aged 16 and 17 have reg-

istered to vote in the ref-

erendum.

The figure was recently

published by

the National Records of

Scotland.

It will be the first time

in Scotland that 16 and

17-year-olds have been

able to vote.

The referendum takes place

on 18 September, when

voters will be asked:

"Should Scotland be an in-

dependent country?"

Anyone wishing to register

can go to:

www.aboutmyvote.co.uk

HAVE YOU SIGNED UP TO VOTE?

IT’S NOT TOO LATE...

BALLOT: Scotland will cast their votes on Sept 18th 2014

THE BIG DEBATE

John Robertson

MP for Glasgow

North West says:

There are many reasons

why we should stay part

of the Union, but one that

is particularly important

for my area is the bene-

fits brought by being part

of the UK to the Clyde

shipyards. Being part of

the UK will attract

£200m worth of invest-

ment to Scottish ship-

yards. With that and new

orders for the Type 26

frigates coming to the

yard, we can ensure ship-

building will be main-

tained for at least twenty

years. We will be safe-

guarding the jobs of all

people working in the

Scotstoun and Govan

yards. The fact of the

matter is that the ship-

yard exists to undertake

UK defence orders and if

the separatists were to

get their way, there is no

chance that the orders

and investment would

keep flowing in.

We have the fantastic

opportunity to be able to

move around the country

easily. I see the benefit of

this every week when

travelling down to Par-

liament, but I also see

how important this is to

our young people when

speaking with them in

schools. They are not kid-

ded on by the separatists’

point of view. They know

that it is better for their

education and their em-

ployment to be part of

the UK. They can go to

Newcastle, or Manches-

ter, or London to find

work, safe in the

knowledge that they are

British citizens and face

no barriers. Separate

countries with separate

immigration policies

simply could not allow

free movement in the

same way. Any controls

on the borders would

make nipping over to

Newcastle to do some

shopping too difficult a

day out, or moving

down to Manchester for

the job of your dreams

less likely.

Our young people also

know that the UK is

respected around the

world. They can travel

to Paris or Sydney or

New York and take

with them the values

and history of a forward

-thinking and loved na-

tion, while also retaining

their Scottishness, or

Irishness, Welshness, or

Englishness, that we all

hold important. We must

ask ourselves whether

we want to be a big fish

in a small pool or a

smaller, but valued fish,

in a global pool. We have

influence wherever we

go, and through this au-

thority we can bring the

expertise of Scotland to

the table.

Should Scotland be an

Independent Country?

NO

“Separate

immigration

policies simply

could not allow

free move-

ment in the

same way.”

Can I vote?

You can vote in the referendum if you are

registered to vote in Scotland, and are 16 or over

on 18 September 2014 and are:

• a British citizen living in Scotland

• a European Union citizen living in Scotland, or

• a qualifying* Commonwealth citizen living

in Scotland

* Qualifying Commonwealth citizens are people who

have leave (permission) to enter or remain in the

UK, do not need to have such leave or are treated as

having such leave

REMEMBER TO REGISTER FIRST

If you’re not registered, you won’t be able to vote.

You must be registered by 2 September 2014.

You can fill in a form online at

www.aboutmyvote.co.uk (although you will still

need to print the form, sign it and post it back to

your local electoral registration office).

You can find their details at www.aboutmyvote.co.uk

ANYONE in the process

of overcoming an addic-

tion will tell you it can

be a very tough journey

to endure.

However, a developing

project in North West

Glasgow is offering more

women the chance to

look forward in life

again.

The women’s recovery

network is part of North

West Recovery Commu-

nities , a partnership or-

ganisation of the After-

care Recovery Communi-

ties (ARC) , a free drop-

in service which has been

running at Whiteinch

Centre since late 2012.

According to NWRC’s

recent report, the wom-

en’s recovery network

provides invaluable sup-

port to women only.

In the last year, it cele-

brated

International Women’s

Day, packed out differ-

ent events with conver-

sation cafes and cur-

rently holds Therapeu-

tic Thursday sessions on

a weekly basis.

The main focus is

aimed at allowing wom-

en to be in charge of

their own destiny, and

is led by strong women,

such as recovery volun-

teers, Anne Bell and

Mags Moffat, supported

by North West Commu-

nity Addiction Team

staff, Tracy, Christine,

Debbie and Karen.

Mark Healy, recovery

coordinator of North

West Recovery Commu-

nities, said: “During one

of our core group plan-

ning meetings , we real-

ised women felt they

had nowhere to go, as

most of the services

were male-dominated .”

And according to Mark,

their lives have been

changed, with some se-

curing full-time employ-

ment and others leading

in the recovery work in

the city.

He said: “It’s so reward-

ing to see people coming

through the other side.

You see them getting the

opportunity to live a nor-

mal productive life and

sustain their recovery.

“That has a ripple effect

on immediate family and

local community.

“We see all the bad press

about addiction and some

of the stuff it does , but

we don’t see a fraction of

the good recovery work

going on throughout the

city.”

The women’s recovery

network works together

as a team to make sure it

provides quality opportu-

nities for women and

ensures there are no bar-

riers for women to go

along to one of the North

West hubs to take part.

For more information

on the North West

Women’s Recovery Net-

work contact Anne

Bell on 0783777 7804.

For the ARC, contact

David Mcleod on

0755184 7368.

“It’s so

rewarding

to see

people

coming

through the

other side.”

NWRC’s Anne Bell

NWRC’s Mags Moffat

6

Wisdom WORDS OF

Welcome to the first

edition of your local

community newspaper.

I am delighted that the

funding from Lloyds

Banking Group Commu-

nity Fund, Esmée Fair-

bairn Foundation and

the Big Lottery allowed

this project to become a

reality. I am full of ad-

miration for our volun-

teers for whom this is a

first stab at journalism.

This first issue was an

exciting rollercoaster for

most of them and a

huge learning curve. In

a short space of time

they learned about writ-

ing, interviewing, pub-

lishing, investigating

newsworthy stories and

working as a team.

Their dream was to of-

fer our community a

voice and this is ex-

actly what they have

done.

You will find exciting

news, stories and de-

bates in this issue,

and in all that follow.

More importantly you

will be able to contrib-

ute as well.

If you have time on

your hands and think

you might wish to

learn a bit about jour-

nalism, why don’t

you join the group?

You don’t need prior

knowledge; we have

two fantastic journal-

ists who will guide you

through the wonderful

journey of becoming a

community journalist.

You will have an oppor-

tunity to make known

issues that affect us all

and who knows, you

might just start a new

career.

So here it is, a huge

thank you to all the fun-

ders, to our local Bank of

Scotland branch for

nominating us to Com-

munity Fund and to our

volunteers for doing such

a fantastic job!!!

JULITA HANLON

Business Development

Manager, at the

Whiteinch Centre

VOLUNTEERS IN ACTION!

7

Yesteryear We asked a couple of Whiteinch residents to share some of their most vivid memories of the area.

THE STORIES OF

Margaret

Hamilton, 86

“I was actually born in

Whiteinch on what used

to be known as George

Street and I was the first

of a family of 6.”

CATTLE

“One of my most vivid

memories of Whiteinch as

a child was around 75

years ago.

“Whiteinch Railway Sta-

tion existed at Primrose

Court back then and I

remember a herd of cattle

being taken to it from the

boats.

“They were walking along

South Street (the back

road) one day when they

got spooked by a noise

and darted off in all direc-

tions. There were cows all

over Whiteinch and the

weans were instructed to

get inside the closes while

local men rounded them

all up. No one was hurt

and they got them all on

the train in the end.

WARTIME TOTTIES

“During the war, I re-

member the Corporation

growing vegetables in

the Whiteinch Park -

rows and rows of them.

“Because the land had

never been cultivated,

they were absolutely

lovely and I especially

liked the cabbage and

potatoes. My mum would

have some with ham, if

she could get her hands

on it and that was my

favourite dinner.

“They would sell the

goods where the park

keeper’s huts are now. It

must be hard for people

to imagine now.”

TRAM CRASH

“One day they were

changing a tram’s direc-

tion near the terminus at

Primrose Street so they

had the big hook going

up and pulling the wire.

“I remember that the

tram actually went over

onto its side and crashed

into the window of the

Scotstoun Emporium. It

was shocking!”

TRAM CRASH: With thanks to the Scottish Motor Museum Trust for the photo

“Because the

land had never

been cultivated,

they were

lovely!”

Helen

Stevenson, 76

“I was doing my wash-

ing one day. My mother

-in-law was coming up

so I had to have the

place all tidy.

“I went downstairs to

hang it out and actually

slipped. I grabbed onto

the bars across the

shops. As I tried to hold

on, I lost my finger. I

was expecting a baby at

the time. That was defi-

nitely one of my most

memorable experiences

here!”