An exciting opportunity exists for a well-qualified and creative person to join the team of staff and volunteers at Govanhill Baths Community Trust. We are looking to recruit a Wellbeing Programme Manager to manage the Wellbeing Programme, which is our flagship project. The Wellbeing Programme incorporates activities planned for the new Govanhill Baths Wellbeing Centre (due to open in 2024), our People’s Pantry, the Govanhill Youth Club and our wider wellbeing activities within the community.

Govanhill Baths Community Trust is a grassroots anchor organisation based in Govanhill. Our goal is to re-open the Govanhill Baths as a Wellbeing Centre and at the same time contribute to the wider social, health, cultural and built regeneration of Govanhill.

Click to find out more about this job and how to apply.

Two young women stand outside facing camera and smiling, one rests her arm on the shoulder of the other.

The latest edition of our guide to all that’s going on at Govanhill Baths is now available.

A highlight of March is our celebration of International Women’s Day with a special six-day festival of exhibitions, workshops, talks and more. See the full programme at www.govanhillbaths.com/IWD2023.
Also in March, the official launch of our book Little Donegal: The Irish in the Gorbals and Govanhill takes place. We are delighted the author, Colm Bryce, will be joining us along with other exciting guests. This book has proved so popular the first edition is sold out but we are now printing a second!

Staying with history, we have two new arts groups to help you explore the past – and future – of Govanhill. Our introductory photography project adds to that with the chance to capture the spirit of our community on film. No need to have a camera as we supply that, along with all the tips you need to get snapping.

If you would like to get into woodworking, join our club and get access to all the tools you need along with support from our friendly trained staff.

Along with all this, we have workshops in upcycling, ceramics, gardening and cooking! And as ever, our popular wellbeing programme keeps you healthy in mind and body.

Click to view our What’s On guide now!

A group of women holding a banner, flags and placards celebrating International Women's Day.

For the second year Govanhill Baths Community Trust is marking International’s Women’s Day. We will be running a week-long programme from the 6th to the 11th of March, including events such as workshops, talks, walks and exhibitions. For information on all individual events please click to learn more. 

International Women’s Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. Historically it has been tightly linked with women’s activism and labour. The event was born from the belief in the revolutionary potential of working women, and the importance of improving their lives. International Women’s Day is the perfect occasion to reflect on women’s labour, activism and collective power.

Our celebration will culminate with a march so join us on the 11th March at Govanhill Park at 12pm. We’ll be taking to the streets with other activists who are challenging stigmas in their communities, their workplaces and in their everyday lives. We are marching for a more equal world; a world free of bias, stereotypes and discrimination. Together we can celebrate women’s achievements and take action for equality. Join us!

(Our use of the word ‘women’ is inclusive of Trans and Intersex women, as well as any non-binary people who are comfortable in a space that centres the experience of women.)

‘Our Rights, Our Communities’ was a partnership project between Govanhill Baths Community Trust, Unity Sisters and Milk Café.

This project was delivered at a time where New Scots are suffering severe institutional racism, discourses on refugee rights are moving further to the right, and government policy continues to strip refugees of their human rights. Our project was a peer-led project piloted for the first time with New Scots women. The aim of the project was to provide a unique model of community-based New Scots Women-led advocacy, as well as peer support services.

By exploring, acknowledging and developing an understanding of intersectional oppression, we have created collective and accessible resources to tackle these issues from a grassroots perspective. Our innovative approach empowers New Scots women-led grassroots groups to address the gap in service provision currently available to them; while also providing the tools and practices required to deliver change and support their organisations in the long-term.

The project aimed to:

  • To further equality and human rights of New Scots Women, following the principles of redistribution of power
  • To increase knowledge and skills for organisational development and capacity
  • To promote alliance building between organisations working with New Scots Women
  • To create an understanding of inequalities and human rights issues pertinent and specific to New Scots
  • To develop tools and skills to influence and fulfil their rights

Click to view the report

Click to find out more about the project and useful resources

Our new book “Little Donegal – The Irish in the Gorbals and Govanhill” by Colm Bryce is available now to buy in our online shop. This book traces the influence of Irish migrants to the southside of Glasgow, especially from the North West of Ireland, and how their lives affected the area they settled in. Irish people have been part of the history of Scotland since the Dál Riada tribe (the original ‘Scoti’) settled the West coast from 400AD onwards. They were there as places like Glasgow began to grow in the 17th and 18th centuries. And they were a part of all the stages of development of cities like Glasgow and the towns and villages surrounding it, including Govanhill.

Click to find out more

Click to buy a copy

The latest edition of What’s On is available, your guide to all the events run by Govanhill Baths through winter 2022/23.

We are very excited to launch our new book Little Donegal, which traces the history of Irish people in the Gorbals and in Govanhill. It outlines the different periods of migration, their backdrop in Ireland, and aims to challenge some of the myths that still exist about the Irish in Scotland, many of which are repeated about more recent immigrants.

Staying with the historical theme, running from January to March, we have new arts workshops focused on the history of Govanhill that will include walks and museum visits.

Our Health and Wellbeing programme continues with its range of free activities to improve your physical and mental wellbeing.

Finally, we are looking for new members to join the Govanhill Baths Community Trust board as we move towards reopening our beloved building. Applications close at the end of January 2023.

Click to view or download What’s On guide now (PDF) 

(PLEASE NOTE: Some events are listed as taking place at 21 Nithsdale Road. This should actually be 21 Nithsdale Street. We apologise for the error and any inconvenience caused.)

Govanhill Baths Community Trust are looking for new Board members and that could be you!

Govanhill Baths Community Trust has reached a very exciting time in its 20 year campaign to open the Baths as a wellbeing centre for the community of Govanhill. We are now looking for committed individuals to join our Board for the next part of the amazing journey of opening the Baths after over 20 years of campaigning and fundraising.

We have been awarded significant funding to help make this happen and we want to do the best we can for the community. The refurbishment will bring the Ladies’ pool, Learners’ pool, Turkish Suite and Sauna into service as well as providing a gym, community kitchen/cafe and multi-purpose community spaces. With the refurbishment of the building underway, we are looking forward to opening the Baths and how we make that a success.

Throughout the refurbishment, Govanhill Baths continues to develop a diverse programme of arts and wellbeing activities in the community, developing an outreach programme to keep people informed about the redevelopment and doing the groundwork to put systems and procedures in place for when the building reopens. Govanhill Baths now has a base in the Deep End in Nithsdale Street, where many of our activities take place, as well as small offices in Calder Street and Alison Street.

What do we expect of board members?

Our Board members are committed to helping the Trust re-open the Baths as a Wellbeing Centre and contribute to the social, cultural and built regeneration of Govanhill as a community on the southside of Glasgow.

We meet the first Tuesday of the month and expect regular attendance at meetings alongside reading reports, draft policies and proposals in advance of meetings. We have development days at least twice a year for more in-depth strategic planning.

What skills, experience and expertise are we looking for?

To support our growth and development, we want to bring additional expertise to the Board and are looking for people with experience in operations including facilities management, health and safety and IT. We also need skills in fundraising, charity law and marketing and we always value local knowledge of our community.

What will I get out of it?

You will learn all about our different projects and how they work, get in-depth access to the construction project, input into what the building is going to feel like and how it will operate. There will be opportunities for training and to represent the organisation at events. You will get priority access to some of our activities, copies of our publications and meet new people as we are a friendly and welcoming organisation.

What are the requirements?

Board members are required to live within a mile of Govanhill Baths, which extends to Pollokshields, Mount Florida and Shawlands. Applicants from further afield can be considered if they have particular skills we need.

We support and encourage diversity on the Board and especially welcome applications from the many community groups and individuals within the Govanhill area who have helped to shape Govanhill Baths Community Trust activities up to now.

How do I apply?

If you are interested in becoming a Board member and have some of the skills we are looking for, simply complete an application form and return it to info@govanhillbaths.com. We encourage applications from all who believe they can contribute effectively regardless of age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, belief or race.

Applications to be a Board member must be received by Tuesday 31 January 2023. Interviews will take place during February with appointments to the Board at the beginning of March.

If you want to know more before applying

If you are interested and want to learn more, we plan to hold an online information session on the 17th January at 7pm, or you can join us in person on Tuesday 24th of January at 7pm in the Deep End, 21 Nithsdale Street, to hear more about what the Board does and what might be expected in the role as a Board member. If you would like to join either session please email info@govanhillbaths.com to register.

If you can’t make either of these sessions you can contact Alex Wilde, the Board Chair, at Alex@govanhillbaths.com with your questions.

Application Form

Click to download now.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Govanhill Baths is proud to announce the publication of Little Donegal – The Irish in the Gorbals and Govanhill by Colm Bryce.

The book traces the influence of Irish migrants to the southside of Glasgow, especially from the North West of Ireland, and how their lives affected the area they settled in. Migration follows patterns, family members, relatives and neighbours follow established paths and often settle close to familiar faces in the place they arrive. In this way, Govanhill and the Gorbals came to be known as ‘Little Donegal’, with a high concentration of people from the west of Donegal, many of them Gaeilge speakers, with a vibrant community life and a regular connection back to their home place.

Colm has used the history of his own ancestors, who arrived in the Gorbals from Gweedore at the end of the 19th century, eventually moving back and becoming an integral part of the regular migrant route via the Scotch Boat which travelled between Derry and Glasgow three times a week. It aims to challenge some of the myths that still exist about the Irish in Scotland, many of which are repeated about more recent immigrants. Rather than a definitive history, the aim is to stimulate others to do the same with their own family histories and capture some of the richness of Irish life in the southside.

The book also contains contributions from Govanhill Baths Archives & Heritage’s Irish History Group where people shared their unique stories, memories and photographs. From the Derry Boat to buttermilk in Clonglash, from the Bridge of Tears in Donegal to Donegal Hill in Glasgow, a recurrent theme is the constant ebb and flow of people between Glasgow and Donegal over many generations.

Click to listen to podcasts from the Irish History Group

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This project has been supported by the Year of Stories 2022 Community Stories Fund. This fund is being delivered in partnership between VisitScotland and Museums Galleries Scotland with support from National Lottery Heritage Fund thanks to National Lottery players.

We gratefully acknowledge support from the Society of Authors Foundation & K Blundell Trust.

The book will shortly be available to purchase.

The Society of Authors K Blundell Trust

Join us as we celebrate everything we have achieved in the first phase of the Our Rights, Our Communities project this year with ‘Our Stories’ exhibition: from 11th to 16th November in The Deep End, 21 Nithsdale St.

Refugees, asylum seeking and migrant women used painting, crocheting, crafting and other creative skills to express themselves, whilst discussing issues of advocacy they face on a daily basis and developing peer-advocacy skills.

Join us during this week to hear their stories of strength, and how New Scots women are bringing this to Scotland as they rebuild their lives, contributing towards making Scotland stronger.

These and future artworks will also be shared on social media, disseminating New Scots women’s voices and stories as they develop confidence and a sense of belonging, and search for community solidarity for their Human Rights.

Download poster below or check out the Our Rights Our Communities Instagram page here.

This autumn, try something new and meet new people.

October is Mental Health Awareness Month. As part of her role with Govanhill Baths as Culture Collective Sound Artist, Ros has been researching how sound impacts our health. She’s been asking – can listening to particular sounds, and listening collectively, offer us better mental health?

There’s been a summer series of workshops and events open to people in and around Govanhill. It involved creating sound pieces as a group, active listening in nature and sonic experiments in occupying the streets of Govanhill.

Are you interested in taking part in Ros’s autumn workshops?

All workshops are free to join, involve a free group lunch each session and will help you develop new skills in podcast and sound making. Your feedback on the sessions will also support research on how listening can support our mental health.

Workshops will take place:
● Thursday 10th November / 13:00 – 16:00
● Thursday 17th November / 13:00 – 16:00
● Thursday 24th November / 13:00 – 16:00
● Thursday 1st December / 13:00 – 16:00
● Thursday 8th December / 13:00 – 16:00

If you would like to sign-up, click here & fill in your details to book a slot on these free, sound making workshops.

Childcare support, support for travel and interpreter support all available to support people attending, please email – roscc@govanhillbaths.com for more details.

If you’re trying to work out if these autumn sessions are for you, take a look at some reflections and thoughts from people who participated in the summer series of workshops and events below.

Photography by Erika Stevenson

This workshop group made their own sound pieces. Take a listen to this excerpt of a piece made by participant Alys in the summer workshops, it features her and her family singing a Welsh lullaby:

The Sounds of Machynlleth by Alys

Alys is a musician and you can find more of her work here: Facebook and Soundcloud – the workshops are open to people of all levels of familiarity with working with sound!

Photography by Bircan Birol

Workshop participants got taken for a day trip to the beach, where they did nature listening experiments and made their own mini podcast recordings using their phones.

 

Dreamlands: The Audio Cinema event. Photography by Erika Stevenson

Elsewhere, in collaboration with fellow Culture Collective artist Mina Heydari-Waite, Ros and Mina produced; Dreamlands: The Audio Cinema featuring immersive sound pieces and audio stories exploring the potential of dream states.

Attendees were asked; what did this experience of collective listening feel like?

“I felt so weightless, my eyes were heavy, like I was dreaming”

Photography by Erika Stevenson

Photos from ‘Dance Makes the Floor’, developed by the dancer and fellow Culture Collective artist at Govanhill Baths; Mark Bleakley, in collaboration with digital artist Cameron Howard. Ros developed a composition for ‘Dance Makes the Floor’ where members of the public lay on the dancefloor. Their heart rate was monitored, and the speed of their heartbeats controlled the speed of the music, broadcast out onto Victoria Road in Govanhill.

Where Victoria Road traffic noises would normally impact inside our bodies (rising cortisol and increased heart rates) now people’s inner worlds occupy the sounds on the street.

If you’d like to be involved in sound experiments like this, get involved with Ros’s sound workshops. Sign-up for the Autumn Sound Workshops!

Learn new skills, feed into research around community mental health, and have the chance to come away from a 5-week workshop session with your own unique sound art or podcast piece. Follow this link to sign-up to the workshops.

And if you’d like more information, or would like to stay up to date with future events planned, feel free to email the facilitator Ros: roscc@govanhillbaths.com

Culture Collective is a national network of artists and organisations engaging with their communities. Govanhill Baths Community Trust is a member of that network and has employed a team of artists to engage with the people of Govanhill. The over-arching theme of OCCUPY! reflects the recent history of the Baths and the artists will interpret it within their own practice and with the community.

Culture Collective was created by Creative Scotland and the Scottish Government to provide support for the creative sector post-COVID and a new foundation for participation with the communities