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Glasgow Live
Glasgow Live
National
Holly Lennon

Campaigners vow to protest outside Glasgow community centre every weekend until it reopens

Campaigners have vowed to protest outside their local community centre until it finally reopens.

Ruchill Community Centre was listed as one of the Glasgow Life venues not planned for reopening back in May 2021.

A £100 million funding guarantee from Glasgow City Council has allowed 90 venues across the city to be reopen, while others remain out of action.

Karen Love, one of those taking action outside the centre, told Glasgow Live: "We’ve been fighting to save Maryhill library which eventually successfully opened at the end of January.

"Ruchill Community Centre is much needed and much used by all local families. We fought to save it in February 2020 and were reassured by MSP Bob Doris and Councillor Gary Gray that the community centre was safe, yet in March 2020 they closed it.

"A few of the locals will be protesting every Saturday until the council and community leaders get together and tell us what's happening.

"The community centre is an important part of the area. My granddaughters have planted seeds there, gone to the pantomime and there are loads of toddler and kids groups that people from the community attended most days and weekends.

"It’s not the same area since they closed it."

Operator Glasgow Life said back in May 2021 that an 'expression of interest' had been received for Ruchill Community Centre under the People Make Glasgow Programme.

We reported back in April how local organisations were being called on to take over facilities that Glasgow Life couldn't afford to operate within their current budget.

The idea was for a number of venues to be handed over 'as soon as possible' to allow services to return to normality.

A spokesperson for Glasgow Life said: "The £100 million funding guarantee Glasgow Life received from Glasgow City Council in March 2021 has been fully allocated reopening more than 90 venues across the city in the wake of the pandemic.

"Additional funding from the Scottish Government Public Library Covid Recovery Fund, administered by the Scottish Library and Information Council, has also enabled Glasgow Life to reopen a further five libraries, meaning that more than 95 venues have now reopened across the city.

"In May 2021, Glasgow City Council passed a motion resolving that all Glasgow Life venues should reopen as soon as funding allows, but Glasgow Life’s ability to open more venues is entirely dependent on more funding becoming available. We recognise the strength of feeling there is about venues without reopening dates and continue to make the case for further income which would allow us to open more facilities.

“Glasgow Life is also continuing to work with Glasgow City Council to explore alternative operating models for some Glasgow Life facilities, including Ruchill Community Centre, through the People Make Glasgow Communities (PMGC) programme. An expression of interest regarding Ruchill Community Centre has been received by the PMGC programme.”

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