From the council:
Nithsdale Road will be closed between the roundabout at Moray Place and Pollokshaws Road for environmental works on Tuesday 21st July. All vehicles should be removed from this area prior to 8am on Tuesday 21st July.
Neighbourhood Coordinator (Ward 6 – Pollokshields)
Neighbourhoods Regeneration & Sustainability
Glasgow City Council
Eastgate
727 London Road
Glasgow
G40 3AQ
Dumping refuse in back lanes isn’t just unsightly — it attracts pests, creates health hazards, and impacts everyone in the community. What might seem like a quick solution can quickly turn into a bigger problem for your neighbours and the environment.
We understand that not everyone has access to transport to take bulky items to the tip — but there’s still a better option. Use Glasgow Council’s bulk uplift service to dispose of items safely and responsibly. It’s quick to arrange and helps keep our streets clean and safe for everyone.
Let’s all do our part:
✔️ Dispose of waste properly
✔️ Respect shared spaces
✔️ Contact the council bulk uplift
A cleaner neighbourhood starts with all of us 🌍
Take a seat. To the dump, preferably.
Big changes are coming to Strathbungo! Have your say!
We have got wind of an upcoming council proposal, due in late August, that will likely propose major changes to the roads, and the bins, in the area. The aim is to tackle three problems:
1. How to introduce the pavement parking ban (our exemption is only temporary)
2. How to introduce a residents’ parking permit scheme
3. How to improve bin collection, possibly by using on-road communal collection points
The Society hopes to influence any plans for the better when they come, but we realise opinions vary.
Note: The survey has now closed. Results will appear on bungoblog.com in due course. Thanks for all the responses.
With planning permission in place we reviewed our budget in the light of rapidly increasing costs. The full extent of works is beyond our available funds, and so we have elected to repair the Vennard Gardens lane entrance at Moray Place, and the central section of the Marywood & Queen Square lane that is most prone to flooding. The Vennard Gardens lane entrance at Pollokshaws Road is beyond our budget unless further funds become available.
That said, as soon as we agreed to proceed, our contractor, Richard Birch Gardens, got to work. They have already cleared blocked gulleys and have commenced work in Vennard Gardens. Access to the lane here will be impossible for the next week or so. Once this is complete, work will begin in the other lane, probably week commencing May 29th.
Work should be complete before Bungo in the Back Lanes.
Meanwhile local resident Christine Gibson has nicely documented the growth of the puddle from the early 1960s to the present day:
A lively chess scene has emerged in the Queens Park area.
On Sunday mornings throughout the summer, Queens Park Chess Club have been supporting “bring your own board” meetups on picnic benches by the Park’s boating pond on Sunday mornings from 10am to 1pm.
The sessions have proved highly popular, and will now be continuing on Sundays throughout September and October 2022. In the event of bad weather, two cafes in Shawlands have hosted the 14-20 players that typically attend each week. A busy WhatsApp group is used to coordinate meetings. Information is available on the Chess Club website:
Queens Park Chess Club, who were known as Govanhill Chess Club until a name change was agreed at their AGM this month, have been doing additional outreach work in the local area and through social media.
They are accepting an influx of new members for their 2022/23 season, which starts on Tuesday 30 August in Wellcroft Bowling Club in Queens Park. On the first night, they are offering a free introductory class on over-the-board classical chess, covering rules, etiquette and advice on strategy. They will continue meeting on Tuesday evenings until the end of May 2023, and newcomers are warmly welcomed.
Chess Scotland historian Alan McGowan has been providing the Queens Park Committee with archive materials on a remarkably successful historic club of the same name, which formed in 1873 and was active for 60 years.
These materials have been used to inform a summary article that elaborates on the history of the historic club and the development of the current incarnation, which began in 2019, and which includes members from Strathbungo and Shawlands:
Separately to Queens Park Chess Club, a group of local enthusiasts get together weekly for casual chess meetups in Brodies Bar on 777 Pollokshaws Road, at the north corner of Queens Park. The group is particularly welcoming to beginners and newcomers.
Several tables are reserved exclusively for chess on Thursday evenings from 6pm to late. Players are encouraged to bring a board if they have one, although this is not required. A location map is available on the Bar’s website: https://www.brodies.bar/
It is clear that we need to get Strathbungo off gas heating sooner rather than later, but onto what? Improving energy efficiency and insulation comes first, but we need to replace the boilers. One option is air source heat pumps where each property has their own independent system. Another is a district heating system where hot water is delivered directly to properties rather than gas. District heating needs a heat source, Central Glasgow will get a network drawing heat from the Clyde, parts of Southside might be able to run a network off the White Cart, and in some areas (regrettably probably not ours) minewater heat can be used. Strathbungo does not have an obvious heat source but there are still options.
Ground Source Heat Pumps which draw energy from under the ground (1.5-250m) can work better than Air Source Heat Pumps as underground is at a pretty constant temperature year round. They can use pipes laid in trenches if you have lots of space (we do not) or boreholes otherwise. However, the cost of drilling a borehole can be high, partly due to the cost of bringing in the equipment. Drilling lots of boreholes in one go is much cheaper per borehole than drilling them one off. Therefore a network of boreholes in Strathbungo’s back lanes might supply the needs of Strathbungo’s heating.
There are other advantages: such heat pumps can be run in reverse to provide cooling. While Glasgow has historically not had much need of cooling, we don’t live in that world any more. Heatwaves can kill large numbers of people. Consequently ensuring that at least some properties have cooling is an essential matter of life and death as well as increased comfort. We can invite neighbours round to lie next to cold radiators and wait for the weather to turn, as it surely will. Running the pumps in reverse also helps recharge the boreholes, increasing their capacity and efficiency in the winter.
One of the key constraints is the rate at which the ground cooled by the boreholes warms up again as heat moves in from the centre of the earth and surrounding ground. Draw energy out too fast and the ground will slowly cool over the years and the system become less efficient. Charging the boreholes in the summer from cooling radiators/solar thermal panels etc. can enable more homes to be heated off the same borehole network.
The main difficulty is likely to be organisational and financial rather than technical as there is a significant capital cost, complexities around running costs, title deeds etc. and it would only work financially if enough households made a firm commitment.
Kensa has a video of how ground source district heating systems can work.
Strathbungo Eco Group and Loco Home Retrofit are talking to one manufacturer about the possibility of a Bungo Borehole Network. We hope that developing this idea and assessing feasibility can form part of future back lane funding proposals. Loco Home Retrofit will also apply to the new Heat Networks Development Fund to develop this idea. We are looking for people to help manage this project, do get in touch: strathbungoecogroup@gmail.com
The Boundary Commission for Scotland began its 2023 Review of UK Parliament constituencies in Scotland in January 2021 and published its initial proposals in October 2021. These were open for comment for two months. One proposal directly affects Strathbungo, proposing to redraw the boundary through the middle of the Squares. In their map below, the red lines show their proposed boundary, while the blue represents the existing boundary.
You can find the details at https://www.bcs2023review.com/ – just put in your postcode to go to the relevant part of the map. You will need to use “Boundaries” tab to select the layers you want to see, e.g. old boundaries and constituency names.
The Commission is now inviting further comments (you can comment on the previous comments, for example) and is holding public meetings in its second consultation, which runs to 23rd March 2022.
You can see the previous comments made here (use the search term “strathbungo” to find the 9 comments made) and add to them. You can attend a public meeting and ask to speak. The Glasgow meeting is at Doubletree by Hilton, 36 Cambridge Street, Glasgow G2 3HN on 23rd February 2022. Their press release says:
“Each hearing will begin at 10am and include three sessions depending on demand. These sessions will run from 10am – 12pm, 2pm – 4pm and 6pm – 8pm.
The public are asked to email bcs@scottishboundaries.gov.uk to book a speaking slot. Please note that the Commission cannot guarantee you a speaking slot at your preferred time and you may be asked to choose a different slot or submit your representation in writing.”
If you would like to add your voice to views on the splitting of the ‘Bungo, do please contribute comments or book a slot at one of the hearings.
The Strathbungo Society and its events are run entirely by volunteers and we always welcome new people who want to help in any way they can. It’s important that volunteers are able to move on, so we are always looking for people to take on roles, from the small to the not-so-small, but also to develop new initiatives. Our Committee Meetings are open to all and advertised under the events sections of the bungoblog and Strathbungo Facebook page, so if you have ideas or want to know more do come along.
Current volunteering opportunities include:
The Strathbungo Society
January 2019
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