We have soo many updates to share...
Desks available in our newsroom, new issue out soon, and all the latest from our website!
New issue out soon!
The latest issue of the magazine is currently with the printers. And will be hitting places and spaces all around Govanhill next week. The latest edition of focuses on the the community initiatives that make the most our outdoor space. From guerrilla gardening to the campaign to save the skate park, from growing food to transforming your street, our new edition will be hopefully get you excited for summer.
It’s the very first of our new bi-monthly print run, bringing you the magazine even more regularly. It takes a lot of effort from so many people to put together, and it costs a lot to design and print it. But we still want to give it away for free so that everyone can enjoy it.
Can you help? If you can afford as little as £3 a month, you can help the magazine to become sustainable. Become a member here.
Looking for a desk to rent?
We currently have some spaces available for desks to rent in our Community Newsroom. To find out more and enquire about a space, please do so here.
Mind the Health Gap
Here at our community newsroom we're investigating "the health gap" - that's the stark difference between health outcomes for people who come from wealthier areas with those who do not. We're particularly interested in hearing from people who are experiencing the sharp end of that health gap, especially in the midst of the cost of living crisis. We want to know what works, what challenges remain and what you think Scotland could do differently to make the health gap a distant memory! If you'd be willing to contribute get in touch with karin@theferret.scot. Expenses and a thank-you payment are available for those taking part.
Latest from our website…
Southside Death Cafe: The Last Taboo?
Talking about death has never been easy. The death cafe initiative aims to challenge that. Melanie Goldberg went along to find out more from those who attend and run the death cafes in the Southside.
By Melanie Goldberg
Kick the bucket. Pop your clogs. Do not pass go. Euphemisms are an almost inevitable invention for matters considered too sensitive for casual conversation. Death seems to be one of the hardest subjects for us to talk about. Continue reading...
Young Women Struggling to Access the Healthcare They Need
The Status of Young Women in Scotland Report 2022-2023 provides much needed research on issues affecting women and people of marginalised genders in the healthcare system. It shows the barriers that people from ethnic minority backgrounds and those with long term conditions face.
By Samar Jamal
A new report on The Status of Young Women in Scotland 2022-2023 produced by the Young Women’s Movement has revealed that women are struggling to access healthcare and 17 percent felt that their experiences were primarily negative. Continue reading...
Chatty Cafe: The Difference a Cuppa Can Make
Loneliness and social isolation can affect so many people in Govanhill, but sometimes just talking to others can make a big difference. The Chatty Cafe scheme which has been adopted by local cafes is one small initiative aiming to support people.
By Michael McCandlish | Photos by Niall Miller
For many people, taking a seat in a busy coffee shop is a chance to catch up with friends or hold a work meeting. The scent of freshly brewed coffee and warm pastries mixes with the clinking of cups. The background hum of conversations is interspersed with the whirring of the coffee machine. There’s a sense of community.
Yet for some, being amidst all this hustle and bustle, only serves to increase feelings of isolation and highlight solitude. Sitting alone can be anxiety-provoking or emotionally challenging. Colin Bell knows this problem all too well. Continue reading...
Street Beats: Meet the Annette Street Drummers
The launch of the Community Newsroom was celebrated alongside Annette Street Drummers, a group of talented young kids who put on an energised performance
By Rhiannon J Davies | Photo by Angela Catlin
“I couldn’t stop smiling. We were nervous before we started playing. But when we finished I wanted to do it all over again.” Awab is reflecting on his part in the performance of the Annette Street Drummers at the opening of The Community Newsroom last year. . Continue reading...
Forging Connections Through Digital Inclusion
What difference does it make to provide free technology and data to those who experience inequality? Community reporter Bonnie Thomson spoke to organisations involved in delivery to find out
By Bonnie Thomson | Illustration by Alistair Quietsch
”It’s freedom to know that I’m not going to run out of data, and I can look at hobbies that I want to take up and stuff like that.” This is how one recipient describes receiving their own device and unlimited data from the Get Digital Scotland programme, run by the Simon Community, a charity that supports people experiencing homelessness. “I save a lot of money not having to top up my phone credit”, explains another. “And I have the opportunity to make long phone-calls to services and research things.” Continue reading…
Tai Chi: The Pursuit of Harmony
Keep our bodies and minds healthy isn’t always easy or cheap but Daniel’s free tai chi classes provide a space for people with various abilities. He shares how the practice is accessible and transformative for our minds and bodies
By Daniel Doherty | Photo by Eoin Carey
As American activist and writer Barbara Erenreich once wrote:
“The pressure to remain fit, slim, and in control of one’s body does not end with old age – in fact, it only grows more insistent. Friends, family members, and doctors start nagging the aging person to join a gym, ‘eat healthy’’ or, at the very least, go for daily walks. The price of survival is endless toil.”
I do share some of Ehrenreich’s scepticism of the unsubstantiated claims of the wellness industry and the illusion that we have agency over our bodies, minds, and even over the manner of our deaths. Yet in our modern world filled with countless inventions designed to prevent us from exerting ourselves, there is really no avoiding the stark choice made clear in the famous line from Shawshank Redemption: ‘get busy living or get busy dying’.
I chose tai chi. Continue reading...
From our newsroom partners….
Sheku Bayoh: The Inquiry Podcast
In the early hours of Sunday, 3 May 2015 Police Scotland officers were called to Kirkcaldy in Fife after a Sheku Bayoh had been seen holding a knife. While restrained by up to six officers, he stops breathing. Many details of what happened that morning are in dispute. His devastated family are still searching for answers. They claim he is Scotland’s George Floyd. Police refute this.
Now a public inquiry – launched in May last year – is trying to find out what really happened. Sheku Bayoh: The Inquiry is a new podcast from our newsroom partners, The Ferret, bringing you up-to-date with the evidence heard so far.