Mike McCarron

Mike has been involved with Galgael since 2000 when he helped coordinate multi-agency approaches to address drug problems in Greater Glasgow. GalGael was becoming known for the inclusive and non-stigmatizing way it welcomed recovering drug users to join its work of boat-building and community development.

He joined as a trustee in 2013 and served as our Chair for ten years until February 2024. He has worked in local government and the NHS, and continues to be involved as a trustee in a variety of voluntary organisations. He was a local councillor for eight years and has contributed to the development of Scotland-wide alcohol and drugs strategy. What he most values are local communities that prevent social problems developing in the first place and being part of communities and networks committed to eradicating social and economic injustice.

Latest

Past MJF Events

Here's a look at some of the events and projects we've had on this year as part of Making Just Futures.
Dr Elaine Cooper - Chair
Dr Jennifer McLean
GalGael Garden and Ibrox Commons

We created our garden in 2022, and started work on Ibrox Commons in 2023. These are new spaces for us to grow and learn, and give us the opportunity to reconnect with the land.

Timber and firewood

We produce a number of Scottish hardwoods - often by working with partners within Historic Environment Scotland and Glasgow City Council to bring locally produced timber for sale to the public and for use in our products.
How to participate

There are many ways to get involved in our work. Find out how to become part of what we're doing, visit us or stay connected.
Why we need volunteers

GalGael offers activities that help people reclaim skills, agency and sense of worth. Without our crew of dedicated volunteers, these activities wouldn't happen nor would the many other adventures we have.
Community Meals

We have two community meals on each week - lunch on a Wednesday from 12:30pm, and an evening meal on Thursdays from around 6pm.
About our social enterprise

Our range of products and services - activities that generate meaning and income to help us become self-sustaining.
GalGael Next?

Big changes at GalGael
Making Just Futures

Making Just Futures is a big new piece of work for GalGael. Over two years, Making Just Futures will empower communities to imagine, determine and ultimately make just futures that meet their needs for living well and sustainably in an increasingly uncertain world.
A new state

Govan Free State: living in the early days of a better nation. So COP26 is coming to town, about the same time as GalGael enter our 25th year. And so we thought what more appropriate way to mark all this than to declare a new free state - returning to our roots in Pollok Free State - an anti motorway camp. A playful, creative exploration of power and legitimacy in the face of climate emergency. An act of solidarity with those communities struggling for recognition of their territories.
Where we are

This is where you'll find us. We work and gather around tables and workbenches, at events, at cultural sites and in the great outdoors.
Our story

Our story is crafted by many people. It starts in one of the most deprived areas of Glasgow, where the GalGael grew from an environmental campaign. We created GalGael as a vehicle to take forward what we’d learned and to move from being about what we didn’t want to what we did want.