Maryhill Community Centre and Maryhill Integration Network

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

Why this place is important to the local New Scots: "Maryhill Community Centre is very important to me in the sense that I go there on Thursdays for the women’s group. They have helped me to integrate together with other women, I also learned lots of things there like beading, other arts and crafts, writing poetry etc. They have helped me in so many ways by putting a smile on my face and making me forget my worries. They have really supported my family, giving my son things that are educational to him. I also go there every fortnight on Tuesdays, to join Maryhill Integration Voices, who teach me about my rights, where they stand to speak on our behalves on things that matter to the people in the community, especially we the Refugees and Asylum seekers. Above all, Maryhill Community Centre is where I go with any worries on my mind and I come out with smiles and hope. In short, I see Maryhill Community Centre as my family." / "This community centre is very important to me, because I benefit a lot from different groups in this place such as Maryhill Integration Network’s (MIN) Women’s group and MIN’s Voice."

Images

Maryhill Community Centre

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

The new Burgh Hall building at Gairbraid Avenue was formally opened on Friday 26th April 1878. It came about due to the increasing population growth in the town of Maryhill and the lawlessness this created. The H.M. Inspector of Police for Scotland had insisted that the Maryhill Police Commissioners take steps to provide a more suitable building for police purposes. They allocated a portion of ground at the junction of Gairbraid Avenue and Wyndford Street, (now Maryhill Road) and plans were prepared which included the necessary police accommodation, court room, bathhouse, washhouse, fire station and a public hall to seat 900.

The design work was carried out by Duncan McNaughtan, a local Glasgow based architect. He was born in Rutherglen in 1845. Between 1868 and 1870 he worked in London and in 1871 returned to Glasgow to commence business on his own account at 178 St. Vincent Street.

It would appear that he won a competition in 1876 to design the Maryhill Burgh Halls. It resembles a French hotel, a style that was relatively popular both in Glasgow and internationally in the 1870s.

Maryhill Community Centre is managed by Glasgow Life on behalf of Glasgow City Council as a resource for the local community. It is home to a range of community groups, most notably the Maryhill Integration Network.

Maryhill Integration Network (MIN) was established in 2001 and became a registered charity (SCO37300) in March 2006. They are a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation with a voluntary Board of Trustees.

MIN brings refugee, migrant and local communities together through, art, social, cultural and educational groups and projects, offering people a chance to learn new skills, meet new people, share experiences and take part in worthwhile activities to improve their lives and the life of their communities.

MIN works in partnership to develop projects and services that meet the needs of the local community. These aim to build bonds and links within and between communities to encourage cross-cultural understanding and celebrate diversity. They understand that integration is not possible by working with only a particular group within the community and so encourages participation from people of all backgrounds, ages and abilities living within Greater Maryhill, the North West area of Glasgow and beyond.

Sources

Accessed September 11th 2020. http://www.maryhillintegration.org.uk/.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

Photo taken by members of MIN

Tour of Maryhill, Glasgow: Stories from people

Maryhill Community Centre and Maryhill Integration Network

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Sources

Additional Information