Our community

We are a learning community of people from all backgrounds. We are makers and change makers. We are ambassadors for our collective values and each fulfil different roles.

OUR CREW – help us deliver our purpose and aims

Participants and apprentices: folk who are part of a specific programme involving practical skill and personal development
Volunteers in our workshop: currently a wide range of folk who contribute to GalGael by undertaking diverse tasks
Staff: sessional, part-time and full-time folk based in Glasgow and Argyll; responsible for nurturing GalGael’s culture and overseeing day-to-day systems and tasks to ensure smooth running
Governance team: trustees serving in a voluntary capacity on two boards (Trust and Enterprise) to ensure robust governance and overall sustainability of GalGael

WE ALSO LOVE OUR CONNECTIONS WITH…

Those who join us for our regular gatherings especially our Thursday open workshop and meal
Makers: folk who rent workshop space
Kinship Members: folk who contribute to the realisation of GalGael’s vision through regular giving
Friends, Guest and Supporters: People who walk with us and seek to offer encouragement and support; including via social media

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.

Partners and funders

Our partners, allies and funders work locally, nationally and sometimes globally. Our co-collaborators share similar values and have a kindred understanding of the world and the work that is needed.
Who we stand with

We seek to be in solidarity with communities around Scotland and the world. The communities we actively serve are Govan and Glasgow. We particularly want to stand with those most negatively affected by current systems.

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.
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.
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
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.
Colin's passion shared in BBC Alba documentary

BBC Alba documentary Birdman of Pollok, Curaidh na Coille tells the story of Colin Macleod our founder - a power story for our times. "An inspiring insight into a quest for justice, equity & sustainability of people and place" Broadcasting on 30 December