270 March 2017 - Gryffe Advertizer

March 2017 No.270 

Iain Stewart PCPC - Paisley Classic Monte Carlo Rally 

FREE 

COPY 

1 

Distributed to: 

• Bishopton 

• Bridge of Weir 

• Brookfield 

• Elderslie 

• Houston 

• Howwood 

• Kilbarchan 

• Kilmacolm 

• Langbank 

• Lochwinnoch 

• Quarriers 

FOLLOW US 

GryffeAds 

Muirshiel Country Park by Diaporama 

your LOCAL community magazine March 2017 No. 270 

PLEASE TAKE A FREE COPY OF YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY MAGAZINE

2 the advertizer t: 01505 613340 07731 923970 e: info@advertizer.co.uk 

EXPERT JET-WASHING 

With Spring fast approaching, this is the time of year for cleaning driveways, 

patios etc., ready for the Summer. If you are thinking of having your driveway 

cleaned then it is crucial it’s done correctly to prevent problems in future. 

If there are a lot of weeds these should be treated before jet-washing and 

after a high-pressure industrial clean that removes dirt, moss and a little 

sand, it is critical to re-sand with kiln-dried sand, a Biocidal treatment will 

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@GryffeAds www.advertizer.co.uk march 2017 

3 3


This Month 

contact us 

The Gryffe Advertizer, 1st floor, Neva Place, Bridge of Weir PA11 3PN 

t: 01505 613340 e: info@advertizer.co.uk w: www.advertizer.co.uk 

All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is strictly prohibited. 

The Gryffe Advertizer cannot be held responsible for unsolicited materials. The views and opinions by 

contributors in this magazine may not represent the views of the publishers. The Gryffe Advertizer takes no 

responsibility for claims made by advertisements in this publication. 

contents 

local news....................8-13 

optical blog .......................9 

legal blog .......................10 

dental blog.........................13 

what’s on........................14-22 

finance & tech.................24-28 

financial blog.........................24 

it blog ...............................24 

on the road......................31 

local history.....................29 

village news....................34-43 

pet news.....................44-45 

pet blog ............................44 

outdoors........................46-49 

school news.................50-55 

photography blog..............54 

sport news....................56-59 

sporting blog.....................59 

business classified..............60 

church listings....................61 

deadlines dates...................61 

property classified.................60 

sales & wants......................62 

advertizer directory................63 

I love March! Not just because it’s my birthday, but the spring bulbs are showing 

their faces, there are lambs in the fi elds, and the clocks go 

forward. Yes, we still get snow just to keep us on our toes, 

but it is the start of longer and hopefully warmer days. 

I’ve heard that the Birkmyre Cafe, run by Alessia Nardini, 

has had a huge amount of support with a petition of over 

1,000 names being handed in to Inverclyde Leisure. It 

was mooted that Inverclyde Leisure was thinking of using 

the space currently occupied by the cafe to house more spin 

bike classes. Birkmyre Park suffered many years of neglect with semi-derelict 

facilities. The developments, in partnership with Inverclyde Council and 

Inverclyde Leisure, have made wonderful improvements to a great asset gifted 

to Kilmacolm Village by the Birkmyre Family. The loss of the Cafe would be a 

retrograde step and a sad loss to the users of Birkmyre and the community as 

a whole. Hopefully the Gym and the Cafe will continue to work in harmony and 

an alternative location can be found for the additional spin classes. 

The talk on the street and the internet is the new Council rates assessments. 

There are big changes with household and business rates, and not everyone 

is pleased. 

Household rates are going up, whether we like it or not, at the highest bands 

by around £500 per year. Each Council also has leeway to increase further by 

up to 3% on these assessments, but both Renfrewshire and Inverclyde have 

decided to stick with the statutory rise only. While these increases seem high, 

and to some may stretch already thin budgets, if the local councils had been 

able to increase their rates on a year by year basis, we would probably not be 

far off the proposed costs. But it would certainly have been less of a shock! We 

are all quick to complain about the roads, schools, health service, etc, but all 

these need funding. 

And on that note, I have heard that some businesses in the local area have 

already received revaluation notices for their business rates which are much 

higher than anticipated. More on this on p26. 

On the roads, there is major disruption in the Linwood area. Work began on 20 

February with roadworks at Stirling Drive/Clippens Road which will last around 

6 weeks. At the same time, the works at the Deafhillock roundabout junction 

began on the same date and will run for 14 weeks. The major engineering 

project will be carried out by Scotland Gas Networks. Drivers are warned to 

expect disruption as the roundabout connects the main arterial routes from 

Johnstone, Linwood, Houston and Bridge of Weir, connecting to the M8 

motorway via the A737. Four-way temporary traffi c lights will be operational full 

time, but will be manned at peak times to ease the fl ow of vehicles. A number 

of repairs have been carried out on the gas main in recent years but experts 

say it is now reaching the end of its useful life. Around 1.5km of cast iron main 

will be replaced with modern polyethylene pipe. Our advice would be - fi nd an 

alternative route if possible! 

On a fi nal note, it was pleasing this month to increase the number of pages we 

dedicate to the “What’s On” events locally. The annual lull following Christmas 

has now ended and everyone is gearing up for Spring events - see p14-23 to 

fi nd out more! 

Next Issue: Deadline: 

No.271 Friday 17 

April 2017 March 2017 

Call or email in your news! 

Rona


Has Your Double 

Glazing Steamed Up? 

Established for over a decade Cloudy2Clear windows have 

become a leading company for glass replacement. Issues 

with double glazing can often be gradual and may only be 

noticed during a clear sunny day or during the winter. Why 

not spend a few minutes checking your home to see if you 

have any failed double glazing? 

Now, you may think you need to replace the whole window 

including the frames and all the hardware, however 

Cloudy2Clear have come up with a simple and cost saving 

solution … Just replace the glass!! 

We will send out our highly experienced engineers for a free 

no obligation quote. Once the quote is completed, we will sit 

down with you and explain the problem and tell you how we can fi x it. 

Cloudy2Clear have a wealth of knowledge and are recognised as a Which 

Trusted Trader, plus our work is backed by an industry leading 25 year 

guarantee. Cloudy2Clear also replace faulty locks handles and hinges on all 

windows and doors. 

Your friendly local Cloudy2Clear specialist is Peter Brummitt and he services 

the Wider Gryffe area. So, if your windows are steamed up, broken or damaged 

give Peter a call for a free quotation on 0800 61 21 118. 

5 5


Wedding Fayre - 

Gleddoch 

Gleddoch House Hotel, Langbank 

Sunday 5th March - 12 noon - 4pm 

Join Wedding Services Scotland for their 

Wedding Fayre at Gleddoch House Hotel. 

Gleddoch House Hotel has been undergoing a 

fabulous renovation which will be completed 

in time for this wedding fayre. Come along 

and see this beautiful wedding venue and 

meet some fantastic local wedding suppliers. 

There will also be a stunning catwalk and live 

music. It’s Free Entry, so we hope to see you 

there.


7 7 

Phil Steven Poolball Challenge 

At 5.30am on Saturday 10th 

December, Phil Steven made an 

incredible effort of potting 5,000 pool 

balls in just 24 hours. 

Phil chose to support St Vincent’s 

Hospice as he knew of a few people 

whose family and friends received 

great care and support at St Vincent’s. 

Phil mentioned “They do amazing 

work there and I wanted to help.” 

Phil originally hoped to raise £1,000 

for the hospice, but ended up raising an incredible £2,500. 

“On behalf of everyone at the hospice, we would like to thank Phil very much for 

all the effort he put in to organising this challenge. To raise such a magnifi cent 

sum of money for St Vincent’s Hospice is greatly appreciated.” 

“If you are interested in holding your own fundraising event in aid of St Vincent’s 

Hospice please contact the fundraising team on 01505 705635 or email info@ 

svh.co.uk” Quote from Carol-Anne Lamont, Senior Fundraiser 

Houston and Renfrewshire 

Food Bank Donation Bin 

The Co-Op Houston now has a permanent 

Renfrewshire Food bank donation bin thanks to 

the hugely generous £2,700 raised during the 

‘Renfrewshire Food bank 24hrs in the Co-Op 

Houston’ Christmas weekend held in the fi rst 

weekend in December 2016. 

The donation bin is situated at the front of the 

store to the right of the tills. A list of essential, 

non-perishable goods is positioned at the 

donation bin. The donations will be taken to 

Renfrewshire Food bank’s warehouse every 

Monday. 

1 ton of food is distributed by Renfrewshire Food 

bank every week in the Renfrewshire area. 

People requiring the services of the Food bank 

are referred by health professionals and social 

services and a voucher is issued for food. A three day, dietician approved food 

parcel can then be collected from a local distribution site in Renfrewshire. 

Many thanks for your generosity.


in Memory of 

William Campbell 

Just before Christmas, the day after his 52nd birthday, William Campbell 

passed away suddenly and unexpectedly to a heart attack. 

William had been an active member of Strathgryffe 

gym and he was also a keen fishing enthusiast 

at Bridge of Weir Angling Club. 

Some of William’s family members, 

including his children Rachel and Erin, 

are fundraising in his memory by taking 

part in the Glasgow Kiltwalk on 30th 

April which involves a 23 mile walk 

from Glasgow to Balloch. All money 

raised will be donated to the British 

Heart Foundation to help fund their 

research into cardiovascular disease. 

If anyone wishes to make a donation 

towards our fundraising, the website is: 

http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/ 

WilliamCampbell 

Any donation, no matter how big or small, is greatly appreciated by his family. 

Heats - 4 th and 11 th March 

The final 6 th May @ The Wynd 

Centre


9 9 

Preparation of the next Local Development Plan 

The adopted Renfrewshire Local Development Plan (August 2014) sets out the 

policies and proposals for the next ten years but is required to be revised every 

five years. Renfrewshire Council is consulting on its Main Issues Report and 

accompanying Environmental Report as the first stage in preparing the next 

Local Development Plan for the area. 

The Main Issues Report sets out the main changes and issues that have 

emerged since the adoption of the current Renfrewshire Local Development 

Plan, as well as setting out the Council's preferred options and alternatives for 

development across Renfrewshire. 

We would like your views on any of the issues and options presented in the Main 

Issues Report and Environmental Report. All comments received by the Council 

during this consultation will be taken into consideration in the preparation of 

the Renfrewshire Proposed Local Development Plan and the update of the 

Strategic Environmental Assessment Environmental Report. Representations 

must be made by 5pm Monday 1st May 2017. 

Any person who wishes to make comments should return a completed response 

form (available online) to localplanconsultation@renfrewshire.gov.uk or by post 

to: Development & Housing Services, Renfrewshire House, Cotton Street, 

Paisley PA1 1JD. 

Renfrewshire Council's Development Plan Scheme 2016 provides more 

information on timescales for the preparation of the next Renfrewshire Local 

Development Plan and sets out: 

• the proposed timing for the preparation of the Local Development Plan; 

• details of what is likely to be involved at each stage of the preparation 

process; and 

• a participation statement indicating when and with whom consultation is 

likely to take place. 

We have established a mailing list to ensure that interested parties are kept 

informed of progress on the Local Development Plan. If you would like to be 

informed of progress then please get in touch with your full contact details at 

the email address below. 

Development Planning - Local Development Plan 

t: 0300 300 0144 e: localplanconsultation@renfrewshire.gov.uk 

Optical Blog 

by Kerry Taher, New Vision Opticians 

How to take care of your eyes 

“You can eat with false teeth, but you can’t see with false eyes” highlights 

just how important our eyes are. As a population, we are living longer than 

ever before so we need to keep ourselves in the best condition possible, 

including our eyes. 

Of course, some things we can’t do much about e.g., inherited genes, but we 

can make things better or worse depending on how we live our lives. 

By doing the things we all know we should be doing (healthy lifestyle, 

balanced diet, regular exercise), we will be delaying or preventing some of 

the serious eye conditions related to high blood pressure, cholesterol and 

diabetes. Simple things such as wearing UV-protecting sunglasses will also 

reduce the damage done to the eyes such as cataracts, eyelid disease and 

macular degeneration. 

Protecting the eyes makes sense regarding DIY & gardening tasks, but 

should also be considered for sports. Cycling, to protect from loose stones or 

insects hitting the eyes. Squash, rugby, football etc to prevent direct impact 

(e.g., a squash ball is just small enough to fit between the protective bones 

surrounding the eye and can cause particularly serious injuries). 

Helping the eyes when there is visual stress e.g., dyslexia – precision-tinted 

overlays can make a huge difference to someone’s life. 

When glasses don’t help: options include prescription swimming goggles, 

contact lenses for gymnastics or golfing in the rain, or taking supplements to 

help those with dry macular degeneration. 

Having regular eye tests is therefore essential. Not just to discuss the best 

options, but also to test for any potentially sight-threatening diseases – alot 

of them don’t affect your sight until it’s too late. As always, prevention is 

better than cure. 

For further information, please call us at the practice: 01505 614 700.


Legal Blog 

by Isabella McKerrow, Affinity Family Law 

Orders that Court can 

make on Financial Provision 

on Divorce 

As discussed in last month’s edition, the court will apply the various principles 

set out in section 9 of the Family Law (Scotland) Act 1985 to determine 

how matrimonial property is to be shared fairly between the parties. When 

applying to the court for financial provision on divorce, the parties’ solicitors 

should have obtained valuations of all the matrimonial assets and liabilities. 

This enables them to provide a valuation for the court of the parties’ net 

matrimonial property. 

When applying to the court each party’s solicitor sets out in the court pleadings 

the orders their client wants the court to make to effect their client’s share 

of the matrimonial property. The court is given a wide range of powers under 

the 1985 Act and may make one or more of the following orders: 

1. An order for payment of a capital sum; a fixed sum of money payable in a 

one off payment or by instalments. 

2. An order for the transfer of property; i.e. The matrimonial home or any 

other property, heritable or moveable. 

3. A pension order. 

4. A pension sharing order; one party gets a percentage share of the others 

party’s pension transferred into a pension of their own. 

5. An order for payment of a periodical allowance; a regular weekly or 

monthly payment for the loss of financial support following divorce. 

6. One or more incidental orders; two of these orders may be made only on 

or after divorce such as occupancy of the matrimonial home and use of 

furnishings and liability for outgoings. 

The orders granted must be fair and reasonable in accordance with the 

principles of section 9 of the 1985 Act. Furthermore, they must be reasonable 

having regard to the resources of the parties. 

Hirsuites You Sir? 

A big thank you to all of the people who supported us in our month long beard 

growing initiative. Very generous indeed. We raised over £1,760 for Bowel 

Cancer through the Decembeard Charity. Donations came from everywhere; 

as far afield as Australia and Jordan and closer to home from the Johnstone 

Business Community and from local people, who all astounded us with their 

generosity and words of support. 

Not everyone liked the bearded look however and we were reminded in no sugar 

coated terms, that they may have aged us somewhat, as the grey, or in my case 

white, came in with a vengeance. 

Les, whose beard came in red, was compared to George Michael, Jeremy Beadle 

and even a fat Chuck Norris. Luckily he’s shaved it off now and that nightmare 

creature no longer exists. 

My wife in particular disapproved. She made me shave it off at the first available 

opportunity, watching me at all stages of the process, to make sure that the 

deed was completed in full. 

One of our ranks, Craig, has decided to keep his. I think, a bit like myself, that 

he just likes the feeling of being able to grow some hair again, albeit in the wrong 

place. 

It was Craig’s idea to grow them in the first place to raise money for Bowel 

Cancer Research. It seemed the obvious choice as both mine and Craig’s 

mother-in–law, Margaret had succumbed to the disease in 1991. Prevention of 

bowel cancer has come a long way since then. When Margaret first presented 

symptoms, she was wrongly diagnosed on several occasions. Unfortunately her 

treatment came too late. These days, the bowel screening programme catches 

the disease at an earlier stage and the money raised can focus on the more 

severe and invasive stages of bowel cancer. 

To be able to raise money and remember our mother-in-law has been a source of 

pride and even her youngest daughter, Audrey eventually, reluctantly, accepted 

the beard. 

John


Thousands set off from Paisley 

on Monte Carlo Classic Rally 

Thousands turned out in the centre 

of Paisley to wave off classic cars 

from through the decades, during 

the only UK start leg of the Monte 

Carlo Classic Rally. 

Around 80 cars mingled with crowds 

in front of the striking backdrop of 

Paisley Abbey before heading over the 

start ramp greeted by pyrotechnics. 

This was the fourth time the 

Renfrewshire town – bidding to be 

UK City of Culture 2021 – had hosted 

the event, one of the most glamorous 

in world motorsport. Paisley was the 

only British start point for the race out 

of seven European cities including 

Stockholm, Lisbon and Barcelona. 

Around 20 cars set off on the 

challenging 1,300-mile trek to Monte 

Carlo, with others taking part in a 

series of Monte heritage runs to various destinations around Scotland. The 

event was supported by Renfrewshire Council, who laid on a programme of 

entertainment during the afternoon in the town centre. The cars included a 

Paisley 2021-branded Sunbeam being driven by local man Jim Meggat, which 

was going all the way to Monte Carlo as a support car to the main rally. 

Renfrewshire’s Provost Anne Hall flagged the cars off and said: “Once again, the 

people of Renfrewshire supported the Monte in their numbers and the presence 

of the cars made it such a colourful and lively atmosphere.” 

“For Paisley to be joining various European capitals in hosting a start leg of this 

prestigious event really raises our profile ahead of the UK City of Culture 2021 

bid going in later this year. It was a pleasure to be able to flag the cars off.” 

At the wheel of one of the cars, an MG Midget, the official opening car for 

the Scottish start, was Douglas Anderson, the UK co-ordinator and the man 

responsible for bringing the 

Monte back to Scotland again 

in 2011. 

Douglas said: “This year’s Monte 

start had all the ingredients to 

make it a unique mid-winter 

festival which lifted the spirits 

of all the folk from Paisley and 

beyond who come along each 

year to enjoy the wonderful 

carnival atmosphere.” 

Having recently relocated to 

Kilmacolm I’d like to introduce 

Wellcentred, offering a 

holistic approach towards 

health and wellbeing through 

complementary therapies: 

Biodynamic Craniosacral 

Craniosacral Therapy 

Remedial & 

Sports Massage 

Reflexology 

Therapy supports the existing 

health and vitality within the 

body to encourage natural 

healing and self-repair, effectively treating pain and symptoms arising 

from physical and emotional injuries, stress or trauma. 

Remedial and Sports Massage is proven for treatment of 

musculoskeletal conditions by 

restoring structural alignment and 

increasing range of movement. 

Reflexology stimulates energy flow 

through pressure points on the feet, 

targeting areas of tension and pain, 

inducing relaxation and rebalancing 

the whole system. 

For appointments please contact: 

Nicki King 

07958 566596 

wellcentred@gmail.com 

@nickiking18 

WellcentredUK 

11 11


Second Chances 

Preloved women’s clothing sale in aid of Women V Cancer. 

Join us on Friday 24th March 7pm - 10pm 

in Bernie’s Deli Cafe in Bridge of Weir, 

to drink wine with friends, restock your 

wardrobe and support a great cause. 

Tickets are £10, this includes a glass of 

wine on arrival and nibbles. In addition 

to the clothes, there will be jewellery 

from Stella and Dot, and an introduction 

to Lose it and Love it, plus a raffle with 

very generous prizes donated by local 

businesses. 

Please attend this event and support 5 Bridge of Weir mums 

who are raising funds for Women V Cancer through the work 

of three charities; Breast Cancer Care, Jo’s Cervical Cancer 

Trust; and Ovarian Cancer Action. All money raised will go 

directly to the charities. 

We would still welcome donations of good quality women’s 

clothing – contact us via our Facebook page ‘Bridge of Weir 

Biker Belles’ to arrange collection or drop off at Laura’s Nail 

& Beauty Lounge, Bridge of Weir. 

Tickets may be bought at Bernies, via Facebook ‘Bridge of 

Weir Biker Belles’, or from Lorna Cox, Helena Blessing, Jayne Johnson (Selway), Cath 

Jones or Caroline Pitcairn, please book early to guarantee your place. 

It’s that fabulous time of year when we begin 

preparations for the RAMH Annual Dinner 

& Quiz - this year hosted by the wonderful 

broadcaster & writer Vanessa Collingridge, 

with headline sponsors University of the 

West of Scotland. 

It’s on Friday 19th May at the Normandy Hotel Renfrew and guests will enjoy a fizz 

reception, 3 course meal with coffee and 8 rounds of celeb-hosted quiz. 

Teams of maximum 10 people will compete to win the much coveted RAMH Quiz 

Trophy, sponsored by Linstone Housing. And the best bit is that we are aiming to raise 

£15,000, all for local mental health services. 

Tickets are just £29.95 each with our early bird discount; 

book before Friday March 10th and save £50 per table. 

Bookings after this date will be charged at £35 per person. 

Email enquiries@ramh.org to reserve your table/tickets. 

The evening is perfect for corporate hospitality, team 

building, or just socialising with friends. Dress is smart/ 

casual (no demin, no trainers). It kicks off at 7pm, the 

trophy is presented at midnight and the dancing finishes 

at 1am. 

Please join us for a fun filled evening. We look forward to 

seeing you there!


Dental Blog 

by Sheila Macintyre, Practice Owner, 

Kilbarchan Dental Practice 

How Dental-smart are you? 

Take our quick quiz and test your knowledge… 

Q: What causes tooth decay? 

A: 

Q: How many times a day should you brush your teeth? 

A: 

Q: How long should you brush your teeth for? 

A: 

Q: Should I rinse my teeth after brushing? 

A: . 

Acid produced by bacteria from food and drink 

You should brush your teeth at least twice a day with fluoride toothpaste 

You should brush your teeth for 2 minutes 

No as it will wash away the concentrated fluoride in the remaining 

toothpaste, diluting it and reducing its preventative effects 

Q: How long after eating should you wait until you brush your teeth? 

A: 

Q: How often should you visit the dentist? 

A: 

Q: What is better - an electric or manual toothbrush? 

A: 

Q: How often should you replace your toothbrush or brush head? 

A: 

Q: Can poor dental health can lead to other health 

problems? 

A: 

You should wait for an hour as your enamel softens immediately after eating 

We recommend you visit your dentist every 6 months 

We always recommend electric that brush at more than 8000 rotations per min. 

Every 3 months 

Yes, it has been linked to heart disease, stroke, diabetes and 

osteoporosis amongst others. 

Q: Why is chewing sugar-free gum a good habit to get 

into? 

A: 

Chewing sugar-free gum stimulates the production of saliva and 

lessens the effect of harmful bacteria 

Q: Name a type of snack that is actually good for your 

teeth. 

A: 

Plain Popcorn! Which acts as a natural toothbrush 

13 13 

For more free oral health advice and tips nip in to the 

practice or call 01505 704969 or visit the website: 

www.kilbarchandental.co.uk 

The Bionic Bash 

Finding Your Feet are hosting ‘The Bionic Bash’ on Thursday 25th May at 

Doubletree by Hilton in Glasgow. Finding Your Feet is a registered Scottish charity 

who support people affected by amputation and limb difference. This annual 

fundraising event will be a celebration of Finding Your Feet’s very own ‘Super 

Humans’ hosted by John Beattie. 

Local businesswoman and quadruple amputee ‘Super Human’ Corinne Hutton, the 

charity’s Patron said “I am so proud of how much Finding Your Feet has achieved 

in its first three years. Through the funding and donations we receive we are able 

to offer amputees and people with limb difference a wide range of support. Last 

year we launched accessible clubs including skiing, climbing, swimming, cycling 

and football. We see long term amputees, who haven’t pushed themselves in 

many years, doing some tough and exciting and sometimes hilarious challenges 

for the first time. In doing so, they are finding themselves and their confidence 

again; it’s really quite humbling. In addition to sporting initiatives we also host a 

twice-monthly drop-in club at our office for our members to get together and benefit 

from guest visitors who provide information and advice. Our latest initiative is 

our ‘Foot Patrol’ where 

volunteers go out to visit 

those not able to, or 

ready to meet in a group 

environment, often 

this includes those still 

recovering in hospital. 

The FYF Bionic Bash 

is guaranteed to be a 

fun and inspirational 

evening and we are very 

grateful for support from 

the local community.” 

Tickets are on sale from 

£65+vat per person, 

tables of 10 from 

£600+vat. Tickets 

include a 3-course meal 

with half a bottle of wine 

per person. For details 

please contact connie@ 

findingyourfeet.net. 

Introducing Jason Cullen of jcullenstudio.co.uk. 

With a spectacular portfolio 

online, view designs, or browse for 

inspiration for your next project. 

For more information visit 

the website 

www.jcullenstudio.co.uk 

A designer and maker of wood furniture, wood 

turner and specialist carpenter, Jason has worked 

on residential and commercial projects and for 

film, tv and theatre. He creates high end custom 

furniture and specialist carpentry projects with 

distinctive character. 

Originally from Canada, Jason has made his home 

in the area with his Scottish wife and young family. 

He has been in the woodworking business for over 

25 years. 

Marie Curie Daffodil Appeal 

Every March, thousands of people across the country join together and pull out 

all the stops to get behind the Great Daffodil Appeal. 

Why not join us for just two hours to collect 

donations and give out daffodil pins? Every 

£20 pays for an hour of nursing care – giving 

peace of mind to people living with terminal 

illness and a chance for their family to rest. 

You’ll see daffodils everywhere in March – from 

your local high street to national TV – and we 

want you to be part of it. 

Sign up with a friend if you like at https://www. 

mariecurie.org.uk/get-involved/daffodil-appeal 

and get involved!


March events 

Wed 1 March 

Embroiderers’ Guild 

The Bridge, Main Street, BoW 7.30pm 

Rebecca Quinton, Research Manager of the 

Burrell Gallery will be our Speaker, with an 

illustrated lecture on “Costume and Colour 1800 

- 1899”. Members and visitors very welcome. 

Evening Talk: The African 

Experience by Joe Knapman 

RSPB, Largs Road, Lochwinnoch 

7.30pm to 9pm 

Joe has much experience of Africa’s wildlife, from 

Ethiopia and Kenya in the east to South Africa and 

Namibia in the south. Places are limited. Cost: 

Adults: £5; Children: £3 (RSPB members: £3/£2). 

Tel. 01505 842663. 

Thu 2 March 

An Evening of Acoustic Music 

and Blues 

The Old Library, 9 High Barholm, 

Kilbarchan 7.30pm 

Port Glasgow singer/songwriter John Morgan and 

local acoustic band Tin Biscuit perform a selection 

of acoustic & blues. To book phone the Old Library 

on 01505 706070. £5. BYOB. 

Creative Communities Event 

St Columba’s School, Duchal Road, 

Kilmacolm 7.30pm to 8.30pm 

Join author John Moore as he takes us on a unique 

tour of Glasgow from its pre-industrial beginnings 

to the modern day via its old maps. Email 

vfinnigan@st-columbas.org to reserve a place. 

Outlook 

Kidston Hall, High Street, Kilmacolm 

2pm to 4pm 

Keep fit with David, plus laughter with Mr Bean. 

Thu 2 - Sun 5 March 

Hobbycraft, Stitching & Sewing & 

The Quilting Show 

SEC, Exhibition Way, Glasgow 

3 shows form the price of 1!! Adults: £8.50, 

Seniors: £7.50. http://www.hobbycraftshows. 

co.uk/glasgow/spring/ 

Fri 3 March 

World Day Of Prayer 

St Columba Church Hall, Kilmacolm 1.30pm 

Kilmacolm Primary School will join us with their 

singing and music. There will be refreshments 

after the Service. Everyone welcome! Call 

Maureen for further details on 01505 872905. 

RSPB Local Group 

McMaster Centre, Donaldson Drive, 

Renfrew 7.30pm 

There will be an illustrated talk by Chris McInerny 

entitled The Reptiles of Loch Lomond. All 

welcome. 

Sat 4 March 

MND Coffee Morning 

Kilmacolm Community Centre, 

Lochwinnoch Road 10am to 12noon 

Please come to our coffee morning to raise funds 

for MND (motor neurone disease). Ticket £3. 

Keep Britain Tidy Clean Up 

Lunderston Bay, Cloch Road, near 

Gourock 10.30am to 12.30pm 

Enjoy some company and give back to your local 

area by helping to keep it clean and tidy. www. 

keepbritaintidy.org/home/481 

Sun 5 March 

Wedding Fayre 

Gleddoch House Hotel, Old Greenock 

Road, Langbank 12noon to 4pm 

Meet some fantastic local wedding suppliers. 

There will also be a stunning catwalk and live 

music - hope to see you there. Free. 

Salvation Army Paisley Citadel - 

Afternoon Tea 

Mill Street, Paisley 2pm to 4pm 

Deyna Bartlett - Mezzo-Soprano – Boscombe 

Corps & Linda Gibson - Piano Soloist. Tickets 

£5 per person. Contact Pauline for further 

information at paulinesalexander@gmail.com 

Bridge of Weir Messy Church 

Freeland Church, Main Street 4pm - 6pm 

Come along to our Lent and Easter themed 

session. The activities and games will be from 

4pm to 5pm followed by a short celebration with 

songs and a talk. Contact Catherine Daly on 

07980 649377 - hope to see you there! Free 

Football Without Limbits 

Petershill Sports Complex, 28 - 30 

Adamswell Street, Glasgow G21 4DD 

Join our Junior & Senior open training in a 

fun, friendly & safe environment. Open to all 

upper and lower limb amputee and those with 

congenital limb differences. For more info 

contact: 07885 262341 or email: Ashley@ 

amputeefootballscotland.co.uk 

Night Kirk 

Kilmacolm Old Kirk, High Street, 

Kilmacolm 6pm 

A reflective service. 

Concert - Paisley Abbey Choir 

Paisley Abbey, Abbey Close 7.30pm 

Music for the Beginning of Lent - Director George 

McPhee. Tickets available from the Abbey Shop 

or at the door. Contact: 0141 889 7654 or info@ 

paisleyabbey.org.uk www.paisleyabbey.org.uk. 

£15 - £5 (student) 

Keep Britain Tidy Clean Up 

Castle Semple Visitor Centre, Lochlip 

Road, Lochwinnoch 10am to 12noon 

Enjoy some company and give back to your local 

area by helping to keep it clean and tidy. www. 

keepbritaintidy.org/home/481 

Mon 6 March 

Stargazing Evening 

Muirshiel Visitor Centre, Calder Glen 

Road near Lochwinnoch 7pm to 9pm 

Join us for an evening of galactic exploration at 

Renfrewshire’s darkest sky. Special deal £2.50 

drink & cake. Tel 01505 842882.


15 15 


Howwood Curling Club Come & Try 

Bowfield Road, Howwood 8.30pm 

No experience is necessary. All equipment 

provided. The cost on the night for ice is £6. 

Please contact Lachie Carmichael (see below) if 

you wish to attend - lachiedcarmichael@hotmail. 

com or 01294 823643. 

Bishopton Art Group Exhibition 

Ingliston Country Club, Old Greenock 

Road, Bishopton 11.30am to 8pm 

There will be a variety of paintings on display, 

some by new members of Bishopton Art Group. 


Sòlas Bereavement Group 


6.30pm to 8.30pm 

All welcome. 

Creative Communities Talk 


Kilmacolm 7.30pm to 8.30pm 

Writing on the Road: Camper Van Tales. Join 

author Sue Reid-Sexton for a glass of wine as she 

talks about her adventures travelling and writing 

in her camper van. Email vfinnigan@st-columbas. 

org to reserve a place. Creative Communities is 

an outreach programme of St Columba’s School, 

Kilmacolm Free. 

Thu 9 - Thu 16 March 

Glasgow Comedy Festival 

Various 

Top comedy stars from around the UK and 

beyond will be coming just to entertain you. www. 

glasgowcomedyfestival.com 

Fri 10 - Sun 12 Mar 

Scottish Cycling, Running and 

Outdoor Pursuits Show 


10am to 5pm 

Live demonstrations, coaching and training advice. 

www.scottishcyclingrunningoutdoorpursuitsshow. 

co.uk 


Family volunteering with your 

children or grandchildren 


1pm to 3.30pm 

Families can do something practical together in 

the great outdoors, and to help us Give Nature 

a Home. It’s a chance to spend some quality 

time with the children in your life, and it’s free. 

Please book. 

Hessilhead Wildlife Hospital at 

RSPB Lochwinnoch 


12noon to 3pm 

Come and learn about the wonderful work 

done by the local Hessilhead Wildlife Hospital. 

Meet some of their patients and hear about the 

different things the staff deal with at the hospital. 

Cost: FREE 

Scout Quiz and Curry Night 

Scout Hall, Kilmacolm 7pm 

Tickets £10 includes your curry and quiz. Bar 

available. For tickets call Maureen Todd on 01505 

872094 or ask one of the Section Leaders. 

Fairtrade Fortnight 

Houston & Killellan Kirk, Main Street, 

Houston 10am to 12noon 

Fairtrade tea, coffee, baking; stalls selling 

Fairtrade food and crafts from Rainbow Turtle 

shop in Paisley; food from Just Trading Scotland 

(Malawi and Swaziland); crafts from Peru; 

Palestinian crafts from OliveTree. Music from 

Gryffe High Pupils. 

Fairtrade Mid Morning Break 

McKillop Hall, Main Street, Lochwinnoch 

10.30 am to 12.30 pm 

Come along and treat yourself to some tea, coffee, 

homecooking. Fairtrade goods for sale. 


Coffee Morning 

Kilbarchan Parish Church Hall, Steeple 

Street 10am to 12noon 

Hosted by The Kilbarchan Singers. There will be 

stalls selling home baking, books, jewellery and 

candles, plus a tombola. Tickets cost £2.50 and 

are available on the door, or from choir members. 

www.thekilbarchansingers.co.uk 

Sat 11 - Sun 12 Mar 

Allergy and Free From Show 


10am to 4pm 

Free entry from www.allergyshowscotland/ 


Gateway Garden Drop in Session 

Cartside Terrace, Kilbarchan 1pm to 3pm 

Meet volunteers and find out how you can get 

involved in the community garden. Bring the 

family and help with weeding or make a bird 

feeder, plant summer bulbs or create your very 

own vegetable patch. 

Den Building 

Finlaystone Country Estate - Langbank 

1pm to 3pm 

Join the Rangers and see who is a budding Bear 

Grylls. All events in March free for members, 

normal entry fee applies to non-members. 

Swan Chat 


Road, Lochwinnoch 1pm to 2pm 

Drop in sessions discussing our most popular 

residents. Tel 01505 842882. 

Wildlife Photography Workshop – 

Beginner Level 


1pm to 4.30pm 

The workshop will be led by wildlife photographer 

David Palmar (www.photoscot.co.uk), who has 

over 30 years of experience and is a volunteer 

photographer with the RSPB at their Loch Lomond 

& Inner Forth reserves. Cost: £25 – 20% discount 

for RSPB members. 

Mothers Day Gift and Craft Fayre 

Kilbarchan Guide Centre, Barn Green, 

Kilbarchan 1pm to 4pm 

More than 20 to choose from; jewellery, soaps, 

art work, sweets, cards, books and much more...... 

Something for everyone! All funds raised will go 

towards World Challenge Tanzania. We would love 

to see you there! Adults £1.50 Children £0.50 

Bread & Cheese Lunch 


12.30pm 

Held by Kilmacolm and Quarriers Christian Aid 

Committee - everyone welcome - homemade 

soups, delicious bread and cheeses, shortbread 

with coffee/tea. A suggested donation following 

lunch is the replacement of your traditional 

Sunday meal. 

Wedding Fair 

Erskine Bridge Hotel, Erskine 11am to 3pm 

Free Entry & Free goodie bags will be given to 

all brides-to-be attending. Free parking and 

refreshments will also be available. Free 


Kilmacolm Horticultural Society 


Lochwinnoch Road, Kilmacolm 7.30pm 

Louise Bustard, senior lecturer at Glasgow Botanic 

Gardens, lecture ‘The weird and wonderful world 

of tropical plants’. Also the Annual Spring Bulb 

Competition - please bring along your exhibits. 



Local stitch expert Kim Main will be our Speaker, 

on the unique textile traditions of Bhutan 

(rescheduled from 18th January). Members and 

visitors very welcome.



St Columba’s School Former 

Pupils’ AGM 


Kilmacolm 7.30pm 

Former pupils and former staff welcome. 


Outlook 


2pm to 4pm 

Inverclyde Tourism – ‘Tearing the Tartan’ – A 

history of Scottish Clans, plus clan connections. 

Request – Wear Something Tartan!!. 


Astronomy Evening 


7.30pm to 9pm 

Come and hear about the stars and galaxies up 

in the night sky! The speakers will be from the 

Astronomical Society of Glasgow. Please pay when 

booking as places are limited (refunds available if 

cancelled over 48hrs before). Cost: Adults: £6; 

Children: £3 (RSPB members: £3/£2). 

Advertizer April Issue Deadline 

The Advertizer - Neva Place, Bridge of Weir 

If you would like anything published in our April 

issue, please email info@advertizer.co.uk or call 

the office on 01505 613340. Don’t miss out! 


Kilbarchan Messy Church 

Kilbarchan Parish Church Hall, Steeple 

Street 4pm to 6pm 

Children must be accompanied by an adult. 

Lochwinnoch Explorer Group: Life 

along the riverbank! 


10am to 12noon 

Please wear suitable outdoor clothing. Ages: 5 

to 14 years. All children aged 8 and under must 

be accompanied by an adult. Booking essential. 

Cost: £5 (£3 RSPB members) (adults go free). 


BCU 3 Star Sea Kayak 

Largs Yacht Haven 9.30am to 4pm 

The award is aimed at intermediate paddlers who 

wish to paddle as part of a led group. £120. Tel: 

01505 842882 for info and bookings. 


Brookfield Art Club Exhibition 

Brookfield Village Hall, Woodside Road, 

Brookfield 12noon to 4.30pm 

Admission £1. Tea room and home baking. 

March Bike Swap 


Road, Lochwinnoch 1pm to 3pm 

Get ready for the next BIKE SWAP! Come along 

and get cycling information, learn how to do a 

simple Cycle Check, swap your bike or donate 

one you no longer use. Bikes of all sizes and 

conditions welcome! Look out on our website at 

www.myleapproject.org/news and facebook www. 

facebook.com/myleapproject for event updates. 

every Monday 

Lochwinnoch Community Walk 

The Cross, Lochwinnoch 10.30am 

This event will not take place on public 

holidays. 

every Tuesday 

Bishopton Belles Line Dancing 

Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Hall 6.30 - 8.30pm 

Beginner/Improver class. All welcome. Call David 

or Mair 07886 034037. 

Postnatal Support Group 

Paisley Abbey 10.30am - 12noon 

Crèche facilities available along with access to 

free counselling services if required. 

every Wednesday 

Knitting Group 

Three Sisters Bake, Quarriers 10am - 12noon 

Knitters of all levels welcome! 

Skinny Minnies 

Cargill Hall, Bridge of Weir 7pm - 8pm 

For a healthier, slimmer, more energetic you! 

every Thursday 

Weekly Volunteer Group 

Castle Semple, Lochwinnoch 12.30pm - 3.30pm 

Conservation Volunteers - adult group. 

Newcomers always welcome. 

every Saturday 


Greenock Cut Visitor Centre 10.30am - 2.30pm 

Conservation Volunteers, adult group. Newcomers 

always welcome. 

every Sunday 


Castle Semple, Lochwinnoch 10am - 12noon 

Youth volunteer Group - age 12 - 18 years. 

Newcomers always welcome. 

Houston Litter Crew 

Co-op Car Park 10am – 11.45am 

All volunteers welcome and all equipment 

supplied. 


Junior Cross Country 


1pm to 3pm 

Try our Finlaystone 1k Kids cross country. Age 4 

- 6, 7 - 9, 10 and over. Prize in each category for 

best time. All events in March free for members, 

normal entry fee applies to non-members. 

“Step Up for St Vincent’s” 

Sponsored Walk 


Road, Lochwinnoch 11am 

Join fellow supporters on this leisurely 10k walk 

or our shorter family friendly 5k route which is 

suitable for all abilities. To register please follow 

the link below to complete a registration form 

http://bit.ly/2izZvuC or go to www.svh.co.uk 

Paisley Abbey Recitals 

Paisley Abbey, Abbey Close 12.30pm 

With Ralph McDonald (baritone). Cloister Café 

with baking from 10am. £5. 

Gloria - Thomas Coats Memorial 

Choral Society 

Paisley Abbey, Abbey Close 

7.30pm (doors 6.45pm) 

Tickets £12, students £5, accompanied children 

free. Tickets available from choir members 01505 

816110 or 612874, or pay at the door. 

2nd & 4th Wednesday 

BoW Senior Citizens Club 

Cargill Hall 7 - 9pm 

Tea, biscuits & a raffle each meeting along with 

entertainment. Contact Sheila Patterson for 

further information on 01505 690521. 

1st & 3rd Thurs monthly 

‘Outlook’ 

Kidston Hall, Kilmacolm 2pm - 4pm 

Social activities group for the community in 

Kilmacolm. Guest speakers, afternoon tea, local 

issues of interest. Everyone welcome. 

Crafty Hobbies 

Carrick Centre, Main Street, Houston 7.30pm 

No previous craft experience necessary. Call 

Lorna on 01505 612844 for further details. 

2nd Wednesday monthly 

Inverclyde Carers Outreach 

Cargill Centre, Kilmacolm 11am - 2pm 

Email enquiries@inverclydecarerscentre.org.uk 

or call: 01475 735180. 

2nd Thursday monthly 

Sòlas Bereavement Support Group 

The group meets in the Kidston Hall. 6.30pm - 

8.30pm. Everyone welcome. 

3rd Friday monthly 

Hearing Aid Clinic 

The Bridge, Bridge of Weir 1 - 2pm 

Personnel are at The Bridge for the issue of 

hearing aid batteries and hearing aid checks. 

2nd Saturday monthly 

‘Brunch & Browse’ 

St Fillan’s Hall, Kilmacolm 10am - 2pm 

Home made soups, home baking, tea, coffee, 

books & lots of stalls. Great value! Disabled 

access. £4. 

last Friday monthly 

TheTerrace 

St Machar’s Ranfurly Church Hall 

Homemade soups, sandwiches, tea/coffee, 

biscuits. £4. Good food and company. 

last Saturday monthly 

Table Top Sale 

Linwood Parish Church, Blackwood Ave 11am - 1pm 

This is a free event. Call 01505 328802 for 

details. 

regular updates @GryffeAds 

1st SAT 

Cargill Centre, Kilmacolm 

10am - 2pm 

1st & 3rd SUN 

Loch Lomond Shores 

10am - 3pm Tel: 07977 179 861 

2nd THU & last SAT 

Paisley Cross 

10am - 2pm Tel: 01655 770217 

2nd SUN 

Kip Marina, Inverkip 

11am - 4pm www.kipmarina.co.uk


17 17 


Evening Talk: Bears, whales & 

glaciers by Gordon Holm 


7pm to 8.30pm 

Fantastic photography from Alaska! Hear about 

and see evidence of Gordon’s travels in Alaska 

with his trusty camera. Cost: Adults: £5; Children: 

£3 (RSPB members: £3/£2) 


Preloved Women’s Clothing Sale 

Bernie’s Cafe Deli, Neva Place, Bridge of 

Weir 7pm to 10pm 

Tickets £10 inc a glass of wine on arrival and 

nibbles available at Bernies, via Facebook ‘Bridge 

of Weir Biker Belles’, or from Lorna Cox, Helena 

Blessing, Jayne Johnson (Selway), Cath Jones or 

Caroline Pitcairn, please book early to guarantee 

your place. 

St Vincent’s Hospice Golf 

Challenge 

Ranfurly Castle Golf Club, Golf Road, 

Bridge of Weir 

Tee up and show your support for local hospice 

care by taking part in our Annual Golf Day. See 

more at: http://www.svh.co.uk/items/SVH- 

Events/golf-day-rescheduled-from-Friday-9thseptember#sthash.BkHsXiGZ.dpuf 

Red Nose Day 

You can pretty much fundraise however you want 

for Red Nose Day, but there are a few tried and 

tested ways that are good fun and raise lots of 

money. http://www.rednoseday.com/fundraise 

Fri 24 - Sat 25 Mar 

Kilmacolm Art Annual Exhibition 


Lochwinnoch Road, Kilmacolm 

Fri 24th (10am - 5.30pm) and Sat 25th (10am 

- 4pm). Over 100 framed pictures for sale in all 

mediums at very attractive prices. Entrance - 

Adults £1, children free. 

Fri 24 - Sun 26 Mar 

OKFest - Kilmacolm Community 

Festival of Sound 


Something for all tastes and ages - Rock Bands, 

Choirs, Poetry & Literature, Singalong Musicals & 

Gospel Singing, Organ Recitals, Contemporary & 

Easy Listening Music. 

The Scottish Golf Show 


With driving ranges, golf simulators, putting 

greens, as well as one of the country’s largest 

purpose-built golf shops. Book at http://www. 

thescottishgolfshow.co.uk/ 


St Columba’s School Former 

Pupils & School Hockey/Rugby 

Matches 

Hockey 9.15am at Astro Turf, Gryffe Road, 

Kilmacolm. Rugby 10.30am at Birkmyre Park, 

Kilmacolm. Please come along to support the 

teams for this annual event and join us afterwards 

for the presentation of awards and refreshments 

in Junior School. All welcome. 

Spring Coffee Morning 

Kilmacolm Primary School, Churchill 

Road, Kilmacolm 10am to 12noon 

A bonnet parade from the children, a raffle, 

tombola, home baking, pocket money, tuck 

shop and the golf tees game. £8 for a family 

ticket (2 adults & 3 children), adult £2.50 and 

children £1.50. This includes a tea/coffee/ 

juice and cake. 

Girl Guiding Daffodil Spring Fair 

St Columba Church Hall, Kilmacolm 

10am to 12.30pm 

Teas, Coffees and home-baking. Come along 

and support our local Rainbows, Brownies and 

Guides as we celebrate 100 years of Guides in 

the village. 

Charity Car 

Wash 

Saturday 25th March 

Beaton Bros of Bridge of Weir 

have kindly offered to host 

a Charity Car Wash at their 

premises on Saturday 25th 

March 9am - 4pm. 

This is your opportunity to give 

your car a quality hand wash as 

good as normally reserved for 

Beaton Bros beautiful limos! 

Proceeds will be used to support 

local charities and good causes. 

Charity Car Wash 

Saturday 25th March 

BEATON BROS 

INDEPENDENT FUNERAL DIRECTORS 

9am - 4pm


BOOK REVIEW 

‘From The Heart’ by Margaret McLean 

‘Food from the Heart’ is a book of reminiscences and 

recipes by local author Margaret McLean, who 

found her tales of growing up and learning to 

cook were most popular with her friends in 

Johnstone Writers’ Group. People found they 

could relate to her stories of student fare, 

home baking, adventures in foreign food and 

domestic science classes in the sixties. 

This encouraged Margaret, who previously 

taught and lectured in Renfrewshire for thirty 

years, to compile a book of her ‘wee bits’ 

and include recipes she loves and knows 

others will enjoy making. After all, food and 

cooking form some of our strongest childhood 

memories, whether it’s fond recollections such 

as weddings and birthday parties, or simple family 

suppers around the kitchen table. 

In her book she shares favourite recipes from her past, from tablet to tray 

bakes, and rather than illustrate it as usual with photos of plates of scones 

and bowls of soup, Margaret sought out old pictures from the archives of the 

National Museums of Scotland. These appear with quirky captions, making this 

an original and often amusing change from the usual cookbook. It should, she 

feels, appeal to a range of readers: from older people with a love of nostalgia to 

younger folk who are just venturing into cooking by themselves. 

There’s also quite a local ‘flavour’ to Margaret’s book: brought up in Paisley, she 

studied English at the University of Aberdeen and returned to her home town to 

teach ..... not cookery, she says. ‘I was flung out of the cookery class in fourth 

year for talking too much!’ 

Nonetheless, she retained a passion for home cooking and baking. The recipes 

are mainly vegetarian but can easily be adapted. All are easy to follow and well 

tested. 

There are spaces left at intervals throughout ‘Food from the Heart’ so that 

readers can record their own memories and culinary favourites, allowing the 

potential to create an heirloom for future family members. 


Saturday Afternoon Tea 

Salvation Army, Mill Street, Paisley 

2pm to 4pm 

Deyna Bartlett Mezzo-Soprano – Boscombe Corps, 

Linda Gibson Piano Soloist. Tickets £5 per person 

Contact: - paulinesalexander@gmail.com 

Paul Livingston & Ian Watt 

Carrick Centre, Main Street, Houston 8pm 

A well respected duo, performing a wide ranging 

repertoire from Baroque to Modern, German to 

Argentinean including works by Bach, Corelli, 

Schubert, Paganini and Piazzola. 

Visit LEAP and Remode for a 

Crafty Afternoon 

McKillop Hall, Main Street, Lochwinnoch 

12noon to 4pm 

Why not join us for LEAP and ReModes workshops 

and film screenings at the Festival’s Craft 

Fair. Check the timings and activity details on 

our website at www.myleapproject.org/news 

or join us on facebook at www.facebook.com/ 

myleapproject. 

SWI Federation Show 

Cargill Hall, Lintwhite Crescent, Bridge 

of Weir 10am to 3pm 

The show will include entries from a wide 

area and should be colourful and imaginative. 

Refreshments will be available and there will be 

stalls for baking and haberdashery plus a raffle 

and tombola. 

Charity Car Wash 

Beaton Brothers, 1 Station Road, Bridge 

of Weir 9am to 4pm 

This is your opportunity to give your car a quality 

hand wash as good as normally reserved for 

Beaton Bros beautiful limos! Proceeds will be 

used to support local charities and good causes. 


RYA Level 1 Dingy Course 


Road, Lochwinnoch 9.30am to 4pm 

Adults can learn basic skills in light winds on this 

2 day course. £135. Tel: 01505 842882 for 

info and bookings. 


Wildlife Nature Detectives 

The Cut Visitor Centre, Cornalees Bridge, 

Greenock 1pm to 3pm 

Crimes have been committed. Solve the clues on 

the Shielhill Glen Nature Trail and see if you can 

detect which animal did it. Call 01475 521458 

- booking essential. 

Open Day 


11am to 3pm 

Sample everything the reserve has to offer! Try 

out some pond dipping (if it’s not covered in ice!), 

go for a walk, play in the natural play area, listen 

to some stories, watch some wildlife or do the 

treasure hunt. Cost: All free! 


British Summertime Begins 

In the UK the clocks go forward 1 hour at 1am on 

the last Sunday in March. 

Spring Walk / Mothers Day 


1pm to 3pm 

Join the Rangers for a gentle stroll through the 

forest with moderate slopes. Bring boots and 

coats. Bring mum for a garden stroll followed by 

a cream tea in the tea room. All events in March 

free for members, normal entry fee applies to 

non-members. 


Kilmacolm Civic Trust Annual 

General Meeting 


Lochwinnoch Road, Kilmacolm 7pm 

Featuring a fascinating talk by Mrs Kitty Walker. 

Kitty will be bringing to life the amazing story of the 

Britannia Panopticon, one of Glasgow’s best-kept 

secrets, and the world’s oldest functioning music 

hall. Refreshments will be served. 


Kilmacolm Playgroup and 

Toddlers Easter Eggstravaganza 

St Columba Church Hall, Kilmacolm 

11.30am to 2pm 

Join us in your smartest Easter bonnet for Easter 

egg hunt, games, crafts, dancing and lots of 

fun! Contact victoria.finnigan@hotmail.com to 

reserve a place. Age: Under 5s (all welcome). 

Entry £5 for one child, plus an extra £2 for each 

additional sibling. 

Sat 1 April 

St James Orchestra and Glasgow 

Lyric Choir Concert 

Paisley Town Hall, Abbey Close, 7.30pm 

St James Orchestra are joining forces with the 

Glasgow Lyric Choir for a joint spring concert. 

The concert will also include excerpts from 

Mendelsohn’s Symphony No.2., co-conducted 

by Leon Reimer and Julian Evans. For more 

information please visit the St. James Orchestra 

website at www.stjamesorchestra.org.uk 

£10 / £5. 

Wildlife Photography Workshop – 

Intermediate Level 


10am to 4pm 

The workshop will be led by wildlife photographer 

David Palmar (www.photoscot.co.uk), who has 

over 30 years of experience and is a volunteer 

photographer with the RSPB at their Loch Lomond 

& Inner Forth reserves. Advice, encouragement 

and ideas will be freely given! Cost: £40 – 20% 

discount for RSPB members. 

Book Launch : Black Cart by Jim 

Carruth 

Freeland Church, Main Street, Bridge of 

Weir 7pm 

Local poet and current Glasgow poet laureate Jim 

Carruth will launch his new poetry collection. He 

will read a number of poems and talk about his 

rural Renfrewshire upbringing. Free. 

Wed 5 April 



Renowned textile artist, Alison King will outline 

her recent projects, commemorating World War 

I. Members and visitors very welcome. 

Thu 6 - Fri 7 April 


Freeland Church, Main Street, Bridge of 

Weir 10am to 4pm 

A two-day class with Alison King. Participants will 

work on the theme of ‘Landmarks’. Some places 

are still available for members and non-members. 

Please contact egallaher@btinternet.com for 

further information.


19 19 

THUR 

2 

MAR 

Hell’s Hunner Acres 

Paisley Arts Centre @ 7.30pm 

Suitable for ages 14+ 

£12 (£10 conc) + bkg fee* 

Flit back in time as the “Cairns” family close the door on 

tenement strife and catch a ‘lift’ to the heaven of high rise life at Queen 

Elizabeth Square. 

SAT 

4 

MAR 

Breabach 


£14 (£12 conc) + bkg fee* 

Scottish five-piece Breabach deliver a thrilling and unique 

brand of contemporary folk music earning them international 

recognition on the world and roots music scene as one of the UK’s most 

dynamic and exciting bands. 

TUE 

7 

MAR 

If I Had A Girl... 



£10 (£6 conc) + bkg fee* 

A ground-breaking verbatim production providing a startling 

insight into honour-based violence in ethnic minority communities 

around Scotland. 

THUR 

9 

MAR 

The Cause of Thunder 

Paisley Arts Centre @ 7.30 pm 

£12 (£10 conc) + bkg fee* 

Bob has stuff on his mind: whether or not to take early 

retirement; politics and what to do about the No vote, Brexit, 

Corbyn… and that weird thing about rising into the heavens. 

TUE 

14 

MAR 

Expensive S**t 


Suitable for 14+ 


One toilet attendant. Two sets of toilets. One night. Worlds apart. The 

story of a Nigerian nightclub toilet attendant, working in the toilets of a 

fictional club based on the Shimmy Club in Glasgow. 

THUR 

16 

MAR 

“There’s Been A Life” with Alex Norton 


£15 (£13 conc) + bkg fee* 

Alex Norton’s career has been both highly colourful and 

eventful. His journey from the streets of Glasgow’s notorious 

Gorbals to blockbuster Hollywood movies has rarely been smooth. 

TUE 

21 

MAR 

Citizen 



Citizen is a darkly humorous look at how we bring our identity 

with us wherever we go created with four dynamic dancers 

by Glasgow-based Irish-born choreographer Chrissie Ardill and an 

electronic music score mixed live. 

SUN 

26 

MAR 

Foster and Allen 

Paisley Town Hall @ 7.30pm 

£20 (£18.50 conc) + bkg fee* 

Celebrating 40 years together they will be performing a string of 

their hits including ‘Bunch of Thyme’, ‘Maggie’, ‘After All These 

Years’, ‘I Will Love You All My Life’ and ‘Old Flames’. 

TUE 

28 

MAR 

Moonbeam On A Cat’s Ear 

Paisley Arts Centre @ 2pm 


£3 + bkg fee* 

Based on the book by Marie-Louise Gay, this is a visual journey 

that captures the beauty and detail of Marie-Louise’s illustrations. 

WED 

29 

MAR 

Meeting Ronnie 



£12.50 + bkg fee* 

From his autobiography ‘Ronnie Browne That guy fae the Corries’ 

Ronnie will tell you of his associations with showbiz luminaries like Chic 

Murray, Ricki Fulton, Morecambe & Wise and Lonnie Donegan. 

FRI 

31 

MAR 

Fraser John Lindsay 



The local guitarist from Elderslie returns with his latest blues 

line-up, featuring Charlotte Marshall (vocals & bass guitar), 

Gordon Dickson (Saxophone), Kenny Robertson (drums), and Tim 

Brough (Keyboards). 

The Erskine Bridge Hotel 

Wedding Fayre 

Sunday 12th March 

11am - 3pm 

The Holy Bridal are delighted to be 

jointly hosting a wedding fayre at the 

Erskine Bridge Hotel situated on the 

outskirts of Glasgow along the River 

Clyde. 

This lovely venue is available for both ceremonies and receptions 

all year round and the events team will be one of over 40+ exhibitors 

available to meet with on the day. 

Free Entry & Free goodie bags will be given to all brides-to-be attending. 

Free parking and refreshments will also be available. 

Call us on 0300 300 1210 or visit https://boxoffice.renfrewshire.gov.uk/ to book


15 th - 26 th March 

Wed 15th - 25th Mar Arts Festival Art 

Exhibition Official Opening by Rev Archie 

Ford 

7pm│Library (invite only) 

Thurs 16th Mar Tannahill International 

Poetry Competition and music by Witches 

Brew 

7.30pm│McKillop│£5.50/£3 

Friday 17th March Rose Room and 

Factory Street Quartet (Jazz) 

7.30pm│McKillop│£10/£8 Bar 

Calder Church - Performance of ‘Pilgrims 

Progress’ 

7.30pm│Calder Church│Donation to charity 

Clamjamfrie in Brown Bull 

9pm│free 

Sat 18th Mar Author Event with Sir 

Kenneth Calman Chaired by Prof Rowena 

Murray 

10.30am│McKillop Hall│£5.50/£3 

Craft Fair McKillop Hall 

1pm - 4pm│Free entry + teas and coffees 

Come and Try Trace mono printing 

1pm - 3pm│McKillop│£3 

Come and Try Crafts 


Susie Lamonts Pupil Concert 

4pm - 6pm│Parish Church│Donation to 

charity 

Karine Polwart and Fara 

7.30pm│McKillop Hall│£10 

Sean Middleton Hosts Fiddle and 

Accordion session 

8pm│Corner Bar│free 

Sun 19th Mar Come and Try The Great 

Lochwinnoch Pottery Throwdown 

10am - 4pm│McKillop│£3 

Singing Workshop Karine Polwart 

10.30am - 11.30am│McKillop│£5 

Come and Try Felting 

10am - 12noon│McKillop│£3 

Fiddle Workshop Alastair McCulloch 

12noon - 2pm│McKillop│£5 

Accordion Workshop Iain Muir 

12noon - 2pm│McKillop Hall│£5 

Classical Celtic 

7.30pm│Parish Church│£5.50/£3 

Billy Hamson Bluegrass Session 

8pm│Corner Bar│free 

Mon 20th Mar Author Event Lochwinnoch 

writers and Louise Turner Chaired by Prof 

Rowena Murray 

7.30pm│McKillop Hall│£5.50/£3 

Dinner & Dance 

Every Saturday night from 8pm - 11pm 

at Willow Bank Hotel, 96 Greenock 

Road, Largs. Booking essential. 

Call 01475 675435 for further 

information. 

Tues 21nd Mar Drop in Tea Bar Witches’ 

Brew All welcome 

11am│McKillop Hall│free 

Glasgow Theatre Guild 


Wed 22rd Mar Songs and Music from 

Scottish Islands Alastair McCulloch, Fara 

and Witches Brew 


Thurs 23rd Mar Calder Drama Society 

Production 

7.30pm│McKillop Hall│£6/£4 

Jamming at The Junction Claude Bourbon 

7.30pm│£20.95 2 courses, £24.95 3 

courses, BYOB 

Fri 24th Mar Calder Drama Society 

Production 

7.30pm│McKillop Hall│£6/£4 

“Rewired”: Visual Artist Dominic Snyder 

and Contact Improviser Nina Ravnholdt 

Enemark 

7.30pm│Masonic Hall│£5.50/£3 

Willie Gamble and Friends 

9pm│Three Churches Inn│free 

Sat 25th Mar Author Event with Tony 

Roper Chaired by Prof Rowena Murray 

10.30am│McKillop Hall│£5.50/£3 

Krafty Kids 


LEAP 

1pm - 4pm│McKillop 

Craft Fair 

1pm - 4pm│McKillop│free entry + teas 

and coffees 

The Caledonian Strathspey and Reel 

Orchestra and Govan Gaelic Choir 

7.30pm│McKillop│£5.50/£3 

Sun 26th Mar Come and Try Penny 

Whistle 

10am - 12noon│McKillop│£3 

Mixed Instrument Workshop Nigel 

Gatherer 


Bodran Workshop Chris Wait 


Festival Finale Concert Betty McKellar 

Family Poetry competition results and 

Lochwinnoch Choral Society, Fran 

Shoppler, ‘Folk it’, and ‘Heritage Soundz’ 

7.30pm│Parish Church│£6/£4 

29th Mar till 22nd Apr Photography 

Exhibition Official opening Wed 29th 

Library 7pm (invite only) 

Library hours│free 

Tickets available from 

The Junction Café & Now and Then 

www.lochwinnochartsfestival.co.uk


21 21 

the 

arts centre 

Luke Danskin – Psychic Medium 

Thursday 2nd March - 7:30 pm - Tickets £ 17.50 

Luke’s live shows are full of emotion, his natural warmth and endearing 

personality makes audiences feel completely at ease. Passionate in 

encouraging people to celebrate the lives of loved ones, laughter is a 

common theme at his shows. 

The Cause Of Thunder 

Friday 3rd March - 7:30 pm – Tickets From £ 14 to £16 

It’s two years after the Referendum and Bob Cunningham has stuff on 

his mind: whether or not to take early retirement; politics, of course, 

and what to do about the No vote, Brexit, Corbyn, refugees; that weird 

thing about rising into the heavens; and the letter from Ethel, his ex. 

Dead Sheep Comedy 

Friday 3rd March – 8pm – Tickets From £ 10 to £12 

Previous acts have included Tom Stade, Frankie Boyle, Gary Little, Jo 

Caulfield, Raymond Mearns, Phil Kay, Des Clarke and Michael Redmond 

to name a few. 

Francie & Josie 

Saturday 4th March – 2.30 pm & 7.30pm – Tickets from £16 - £18 

Liam Dolan & Jonny Mac have scoured the archives for some more 

classic Francie & Josie routines, songs and sketches. They have added 

them to a few belly laughing fantastic routines. 

A Life With The Beatles 

Saturday 4th March - 7:30 pm- Tickets From £ 8 to £10 

In 1961, 19 year-old Neil Aspinall joined The Beatles as their driver. He 

served the Fab Four for forty six years before stepping down as CEO of 

Apple Corps, their corporate conglomerate. 

If I Had A Girl 

Wednesday 8th March – 7.30 pm – Tickets From £ 8 to £10 

A groundbreaking verbatim production that provides a startling insight 

into the lived experience of honour-based violence in ethnic minority 

communities around Scotland. 

Songwriters Uncovered Series 2017 

Thursday 9th March – 7pm - Tickets from £6 to £8 

Homegrown talented singer/songwriters take centre stage at the 

Beacon in a series of four concerts performed over the course of the year. Come and 

experience a range of styles to suit all musical tastes. 

The Wizard of Oz 

March 9th, 10th, & 11th - 2.30pm & 7:30 pm 

Tickets from, £16 - £18 

Always a success when they visit the Beacon, Inverclyde Musical Youth 

Theatre return with The Wizard of Oz. Join Kansas farm-girl Dorothy and 

her pet dog Toto on this magical adventure suitable for all ages. 

Roddy Woomble 

Saturday 11th March -7:30 pm – Tickets From £ 10 to £12 

Roddy Woomble is a celebrated solo songwriter & performer. His 

naturally poetic writing and consistent touring have won him many 

thousands of fans all over the world and he is widely regarded as ‘one 

of Scotland ‘s finest songwriters.’ 

Noel & Gertie 

Wednesday 15th March – 7.30 pm – Tickets from £18 – £20 

This is a telegram exchange between Noel Coward and Gertrude 

Lawrence sent in 1930: A warm and witty musical comedy, Noël & 

Gertie is a love story devised by Sheridan Morley from the letters and 

diaries of two of the best-loved performers of the 20th Century; Noël 

Coward and Gertrude Lawrence. 

An Evening With Dean Park 

Saturday 18th March – 7.30 pm – Tickets £15 

Enjoy an evening with Scotland’s top entertainer Dean Park as he 

celebrates more than forty years in show business. 

most of it. 

Wolves 

There’s Been A Life: An Evening With Alex 

Norton 

Friday 24th March - 7:30 pm – Tickets - £15 

Alex Norton’s journey from the streets of Glasgow’s notorious Gorbals 

to blockbuster Hollywood movies has rarely been smooth, but in a 

career spanning six decades he has pretty much seen it all – and done 

Saturday 25th March – 7pm – Tickets from £5 - £7 

How dangerous is it to stray from the path, and who is it dangerous for? 

The nurtur-ing family and community of the wolf pack is set against the 

dangers of the big bad wolf, in a world that sways between littered and 

tidied, wild and domesticated. 

Jane Eyre: An Autobiography 

Friday 31st March – 7.30 pm – Tickets from £10 - £12 

Struggling to think, live and love beyond the stifling expectations of 

duty, class and convention, governess Jane Eyre and Master Edward 

Rochester take a dark journey towards sensual and intellectual 

liberation. 

Twist & Shout 

Friday 31st March – 7.30 pm – Tickets from £18 - £20 

Sing and dance along with an all-star West End cast to the music of 

The Beatles, Hermans Hermits, Gerry & The Pacemakers, The Rolling 

Stones. Cilla Black, Manfred Mann, Dusty Springfield, Lulu, Sandy Shaw 

and many more… 

BEACON ARTS CENTRE, CUSTOM HOUSE QUAY, GREENOCK, PA15 1HJ INFO@BEACONARTSCENTRE.CO.UK TELEPHONE: 01475 723723


Orchard Flooring 

Recitals 

Sunday 19th March - 12.30pm 

Cloister Café with baking from 10am. 

Ralph McDonald (baritone). 

Tickets £5 at the door. 

Choir Concert 

Sunday 5th March - 7.30pm. 

Director George McPhee 

Music for the Beginning of Lent: ALLEGRI Miserere; J.S.BACH Jesu, Meine 

Freude BMV 227; HOWELLS Requiem; J.S.BACH Singet dem Herrn BMV 225. 

Tickets £15, students £5 - available from the Abbey Shop or at the door. 

0141 889 7654 info@paisleyabbey.org.uk www.paisleyabbey.org.uk 

Paisley Abbey (Church of Scotland) – Registered Charity No. – SC007633 

Stylish, Durable: A Floor for Life 

When choosing a new floor for your home, there are a few things to take into consideration. For a 

lot of our clients, having a floor that isn’t going to be ruined by mucky feet, paw prints or spills is a 

top priority. For this reason, light cream carpets can be problematic for many busy households. 

Karndean and Amtico flooring are perfect for any room or situation in the home. They are both 

waterproof, slip resistant and warm underfoot, as well as being a beautiful and luxurious floor 

to be proud of. 

Both are easy to clean and 

without the porous qualities of 

wood and some stone. They 

bring the ageless beauty of 

natural flooring to your home without the hassle. 

Be it a rustic wood effect in the living room or a sleek and modern stone effect in the kitchen, 

Orchard Flooring can provide expert advice to find the perfect floor for a room. 

With a home sampling service why not give us a call and be on your way to a stunning floor from 

Orchard Flooring. 

You can contact Scott on 01505 22 9584 or 07563 633 432 

E: sjmproducts@hotmail.com website- www.orchard-flooring.com


23 23


IT Blog 

with Colin Fyfe of Colcom 

I will frequently send folk to PC World; it being relatively nearby and 

having a large selection of computers to choose from. I also would 

recommend John Lewis for their extra warranty and quality of sales. On 

the occasions that I sell computer hardware, it might be because people 

have an aversion to these places. 

Anyway, recently a customer required a new PC, but did not need a new 

screen, they had a perfectly good 22” monitor about two years old. On 

swithering this way, and that on the PC of their choice and having been 

assured all connectivity issues will be OK, they got the machine home to 

fi nd that it only had two HDMI sockets on the back and nothing that would 

connect to their relatively recent monitor. 

This brings me to describe the various connections and to ask you not to 

fall into the same trap that I confess, has happened to me before when 

ordering online. 

Modern monitors, around the £100 price range should have two or three 

connectivity options. The dated, but beloved, analogue VGA connection 

with the 15 pin lead with the blue head. The DVI socket, this digital 

connection usually has a white connector. Hopefully for about £100 you 

will also get an HDMI socket, this is the same connection as most TVs and 

it can carry sound and video. Another more recent connection is called 

Display Port. This faster connection is currently more high end than most 

budget monitors but will become more popular. 

The trouble is that, infuriatingly, monitors will have a random selection of 

the ports mentioned above, and computers often will take a punt at one 

type, making the odds of connectivity harmony quite reduced. 

Margins are squeezed to a minimum in this kind of computer technology, 

to the point that by forsaking a 20 pence VGA connection manufacturers 

can eek a profit and consumers can be driven to rage. 

Looking for someone local? 

www.advertizer.co.uk/clients 

Financial Blog 

by Carl Melvin, Affluent Financial Planning Ltd 

End of Tax Year Planning 

The Tax Year end is upon us and this presents opportunities to make 

the most of tax breaks and allowances. Generally, if you don’t use 

allowances they are lost. So, what things should you consider before 

the 5th April 2017? 

1. Tax Free Investing - The ISA allowance is £15,240 (£4,080 for 

Junior ISA) for each person this tax year, so a couple could invest 

over £30,000 tax free in cash or investments. It rises to £20,000 per 

person next tax year (£4,128 for JISA) 

2. Capital Gains - each person can make a capital gain on the sale of an 

asset and keep the fi rst £11,100 tax free. 

3. Reduce your Income Tax - If your income is above 50K+pa/ £100K - 

£122K/ £150K+ consider making pension contributions to reduce your 

tax bill and restore allowances – but take care not to break the rules! 

4. Pension protection – last chance to claim Individual Protection 2014 

if your pension value for Lifetime Allowance was above £1.25Million 

on 05/04/2014. 

5. Pension Funding – Government is reducing how much high earners can 

put into pension. Use Carry forward of unused pension allowances to 

boost your retirement funds and reduce your income tax. 

6. Inheritance Tax – make a gift of £3,000 per person free from Inheritance 

Tax 

7. State Pension Top up – last chance to pay Class 3A contributions to 

increase your State Pension if you received this before 06/04/2016 

8. Don’t leave planning to the last minute - Why not use your allowances/ 

take action at the start of the tax year and avoid the panic? 

This information is not financial advice. If you require advice you should 

consult a professional adviser. The first meeting is normally free and 

there is no obligation. 

Call us for a FREE financial review on 01505 59 50 60 or info@affluentfp.co.uk. 

Alternatively, pop into the Affluent office opposite Amaretto restaurant on Main Street, 

Bridge of Weir. www.affluentfp.co.uk


25 25


Changes to Business Rates 

Changes to Council Tax 

The basis on which properties are assessed for council tax has been changed 

and this will increase the charge for properties banded E to H. Local Councils 

have no discretion in this matter and are legally required to apply these 

increases from 1st April 2017. Households living in properties in bands A to D 

are not affected by the increases. 

The change means that residents of Band E properties will pay at least 

£106.76 per year more in council tax, which equates to an extra £8.90 per 

calendar month or an additional £2.05 per week. 

At the top end, residents of Band H properties will pay at least £524.11 

per year more than they do at present, which is an increase of £43.68 per 

calendar month or £10.08 per week. Council tax bills for 2017-18 confi rming 

payments will be issued to all households mid March. 

Households with income that does not exceed £321 per week for single 

households, or £479 per week for couples, lone parents and families, are 

eligible to apply for a full exemption from the increased charge through the 

Council Tax Reduction scheme. 

People can apply for Council Tax Reduction through the MyAccount service at 

www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/MyAccount. Paper application forms are available 

by visiting a Renfrewshire Council a Customer Service Centre or by calling 

0300 300 0288. Low income households already in receipt of Council Tax 

Reduction do not need to re-apply. 

Anyone having difficulty paying their Council Tax, or who falls behind with 

their payments, should call Renfrewshire Council on 0300 300 0300 (Monday 

to Thursday 8.45am-4.45pm, Friday 8.45am-3.55pm) for help and advice. 

Questions about polymer 

banknotes & the new £5 note 

Which banknotes are changing? 

The Bank of England issued a new polymer £5 note on 13th September 2016. 

A new polymer £10 note will be issued in Summer 2017, and a new polymer 

£20 note by 2020. The current £50 note was issued in 2011 and there are no 

plans to replace it in the near future. 

How quickly will the paper £5 note be replaced by the new £5 note? 

The paper £5 notes are being withdrawn from circulation as the polymer £5 

notes are introduced. By now, more than half the £5 notes in circulation will 

have been switched for polymer notes. 

You can continue to use the paper £5 note until its legal tender status is 

withdrawn on 5th May 2017. 

What happens if I still have paper £5 notes after 5th May 2017? 

All Bank of England notes retain their face value for all time. If your Bank, 

Building Society or Post Office is not willing to accept these notes they can be 

exchanged with the Bank of England in London by post or in person. 

If you’re the owner, tenant or occupier of a non-domestic building, or use 

part of a building for business purposes, then you’ll probably have to pay 

business rates. These include shops, offices, pubs, restaurants and hotels, 

warehouses and factories. 

A number of businesses in the local area have already received their 

revaluation notices for business rates. These revaluations are currently 

being sent out so if you haven’t received yours already, it will be on its way. 

The Government’s thinking is to help small businesses by increasing the 

Small Business Bonus Scheme (SBBS) qualifying Rateable Value (RV) from 

£10,000 to £15,000. Previously, up to £10,000 RV qualifi ed for 100% rate 

relief, £10,001 - £12,000 for 50% relief and £12,001 - £18,000 for 25% relief. 

This is changing to up to £15,000 RV qualifying for 100% rate relief and 

£15,001 - £18,000 at 25% rate relief. 

But at the same time, they have reassessed the RV of many businesses, 

some of which locally are reporting an increase of more than double. 

Companies across the country are complaining of these large increases and 

have called for Derek Mackay, the Finance Minister, to introduce a transitional 

relief fund. 

While the SBBS discounts still apply, they are only applicable on an RV up to 

£18,000, and even then it is only 25% discount. With local businesses being 

the backbone of communities, it is important that we do not lose them. 

There is an appeals process so if you think the current rateable value for your 

business is wrong, you can ask the assessor to check the details. You can 

submit a business rates appeal online, or you can appeal by writing to your 

local assessor. Details are available at the following websites: 

http://www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/article/2225/Appealing-business-rates 

https://www.inverclyde.gov.uk/council-and-government/non-domestic-rates 

The New 12-sided £1 Coin 

The most secure coin in the world ...... 

The new coin has a number of 

features that make it much more 

difficult to counterfeit. 

• 12-sided – its distinctive shape 

makes it instantly recognisable, 

even by touch. 

• Bimetallic – it is made of two 

metals. The outer ring is gold 

coloured (nickel-brass) and the 

inner ring is silver coloured (nickel-plated alloy). 

• Latent image – it has an image like a hologram that changes from a ‘£’ 

symbol to the number ‘1’ when the coin is seen from different angles. 

• Micro-lettering – it has very small lettering on the lower inside rim on 

both sides of the coin. One pound on the obverse “heads” side and 

the year of production on the reverse “tails” side, for example 2016 or 

2017. 

• Milled edges – it has grooves on alternate sides. 

• Hidden high security feature – a high security feature is built into the 

coin to protect it from counterfeiting in the future. 

The current £1 coin is being replaced for the fi rst time in over thirty years 

because of its vulnerability to sophisticated counterfeiters. 

Approximately one in thirty £1 coins in circulation is a counterfeit. 

That is why we are introducing a new, highly secure coin on 28th March 2017 

to reduce the costs of counterfeits to businesses and the taxpayer. 

For more information on how to identify counterfeits of the current round 

£1 coin please click here http://www.royalmint.com/discover/uk-coins/ 

counterfeit-one-pound-coins 

The old pound coins will remain legal tender until 15th October 2017.


27 27


SPEAKER MEETINGS 

On 18th January, Ahmad Mourhad presented “Tales 

of a Syrian Weegie” and on 25th January Rev Donald 

Campbell presented “Tales of a Parish Minister”. 

Ahmad Mourhad is a refugee from Syria, who came to 

Glasgow 15 

months ago. He is now settled 

in Glasgow where he has been 

joined by his wife and two children. 

The family lost everything due 

to the war and came to Britain 

penniless and without a word 

of English. Ahmad has worked 

very hard (and successfully) to 

learn the language and works 

as a volunteer with the Scottish 

Refugee Council, where he has also been involved in making a film about 

refugees in Glasgow. He now has a working visa and hopes in due course 

to gain citizenship. 

British Telecom. Donald’s talk 

was both serious and humorous – 

with memories of being a prison 

chaplain, the amazing funerals 

of Travelling People, and - at 

weddings - lost rings, late brides, 

rude bridesmaids and annoying 

photographers! 

Rev Donald Campbell retired from his 

position as Minister at Houston and 

Killellan Kirk at the end of 2016 having 

served there since 1997. He was 

previously Minister at Almondbank 

in Perthshire and before being called 

as a minister was an engineer with 

Looking forward, three of the next fi ve 

speaker meetings feature club members 

themselves: 

Wed 8th March at 7pm 

Jim Watson will tell a “Historical Tale” 


Ron Aitchison presenting ‘Tales from the 

Back Green’ 

Wed 22nd March at 7pm 

Bob Hanna a guest of Ross Anderson on 

“Birdwatching” 


Mike Farley on the topic “Rocks and 

Dinosaurs” 

Gryffe Camera Club News 

Members have been showing 

some outstanding work again in 

competitions. 

League Competition Round 3b 

gave wins for Malcolm Martin with 

Spiral Stair in the A section and 

Chris Kyle with Kilmarnock train 

in the B section. 

We were treated to some 

outstanding photography from 

Peter Ribbick, who specialises in 

night landscapes. 

Jillian Craig, speaker on 8th February 

2017, had applied to Gryffe Valley Rotary 

for help raising the money required to 

participate in a gap year with Project Trust, 

a Coll-based charity which organises 

opportunities to serve in the developing 

world for around 300 17-19 year olds 

annually. 

She gave a report on her resulting year in Cambodia, working at Honour 

Village, a community project near Siem Reap. The village provides a home, 

education and care, with local house-parents, for a small group of children 

unable to stay with their relatives and offers free education to around 300 from 

the surrounding 

area. Jillian taught 

English to up to six 

classes a day… 

ages ranging from 

the youngest to 

teenagers (and 

including a 20- 

year-old). During 

the school holidays, 

she travelled to 

Vietnam and around 

Cambodia, visiting 

sights including 

the spectacular 

Angkor Wat temple 

and at the opposite 

extreme, the 

S-21 prison (now 

a museum) and 

the killing fields. 

She enjoyed the 

culture, including a 

traditional wedding 

(as a guest!) and 

learning some 

of the Khmer 

language. As for 

the food, rice twice a day became rather monotonous but she sampled 

some local fare, fried noodles and some delicacies including beetles, fi sh 

eyes and deep fried tarantula! 

Jillian finished by thanking Rotary for the support in what was a fantastic 

experience. 

STAN MOORE – FOUNDER PRESIDENT 

In memory of the founder President of Gryffe Valley Rotary Club – Stan 

Moore – who passed away on 16th January the club made donations to 

two charities – The PSP Association and Marie Curie. Stan was the driving 

force behind the formation of the club 22 years ago. He was a stalwart 

for many years and renowned for his speeches and humour. It has been 

difficult to see him struggling with his health in recent times. Progressive 

Supranuclear Palsy (PSP) is a Parkinson’s-like neurological condition 

caused by the premature loss of nerve cells in certain parts of the brain. 

Over time this leads to difficulties with balance, movement, vision, speech 

and swallowing. Research suggests around 4,000 people are living with 

PSP in the UK at any one time. 

League Competition Round 4 

gave wins for Bill Crookston with 

Interiors in the A section and 

Ronnie Logan with Spikes in the 

B section. 

Coming soon we have various 

competitions with other clubs in 

the Glasgow region and a couple 

of techniques nights for members 

to learn new skills. 

Further details can be found on 

the club website. 

Stan’s initiative in creating the Rotary Club of Gryffe Valley has brought a 

great deal of fun and pleasure to members and friends and benefi tted many 

good causes with well over £200,000 raised to date. The photo shows the 

twenty-four founding members in 1995 with President Stan Moore in the 

centre of the front row.


29 29 

LOCAL 

history 

Black Cart Mills 7 

Johnstone to Linwood 

A short distance downstream from Johnstone, the Old Patrick Water enters 

the Cart. This burn powered Elderslie Cotton Mill, two grain mills (Elderslie 

and Mackies Mill), a paper mill, printworks (Patrickbank), and a distillery at 

Glenpatrick. 

On the Black Cart itself, one of the oldest mills on the river was the Mill of 

Cart, a medieval grain mill. Its rubble dam still survives just downstream of 

where the cycle path crosses the Cart. The dam was later, via an extended 

lade, used to power Linwood Cotton Mill. 

Mill of Cart Dam 

Linwood Cotton Mill was built in 1792 by James Dunlop, who already 

owned Gateside Cotton Mill in Neilston Parish. Linwood Mill was, for 

a time, the largest mill in Britain. From the 1790s, the parish records 

document children born to the mill workers. Apart from the cotton spinners 

documented in the records, occupations at the mill included clockmakers, 

turners, brassfounders and wrights, all of whom built and maintained the 

mill machinery. 

Like many cotton mills, Linwood mill was burned down, and was later 

rebuilt. In an 1804 advert, only one of its six stories remained standing, 

plus a large water wheel, 14 feet diameter and 12 feet wide. The mill was 

then rebuilt. At this point on the Black Cart, so far down the river, the bottom 

of the waterwheel could be swamped at high tide, and a smaller, higher 

water wheel had to be used. 

Beside the big cotton mill there was also a small thread bleachfield. Further 

down the river at Middleton there was a much bigger thread bleachfield, 

started by James Smith by 1782. 

Less well known is Linwood’s second cotton mill. Henderson’s Mill was 

built shortly after the big mill, but with only a tenth of the big mill’s 400 

workers. Both mills latterly changed to paper making. 

© 2017 Stuart Nisbet, Renfrewshire Local History Forum 

RLHF next archaeology lecture will be held in the Shawl Gallery in Paisley 

Museum on 9th March, when John Wells will speak on Kite Photography as 

applied to Archaeology Visitors are welcome at all our lecture meetings. 

Quarriers receives Funding 

Boost from Kingsley Wood & Co 

On Wednesday 8th February, Bridge of Weir solicitor Kingsley Wood 

presented social care charity Quarriers with a cheque for £1,090, raised 

through Make a Will Fortnight. Kingsley Wood and Co partnered with 

Quarriers during its Make a Will Fortnight in October 2016, during which 

the solicitor waived fees for writing Wills and in return suggested clients 

made a donation to Quarriers. 

Fiona Scott, Head of Business Development and Fundraising at Quarriers, 

said “We are very grateful to Kingsley Wood for partnering with us again 

this year to offer this valuable service in aid of Quarriers. We would 

also like to say thank you to all of those people who chose to donate to 

Quarriers through Make a Will fortnight.” 

“This support from the public and generous organisations such as 

Kingsley Wood and Co enables us to support even more vulnerable 

children, families and adults to reach their true potential.” 

Quarriers services in Inverclyde and throughout the UK provide practical 

care and support for vulnerable children, adults and families who face 

extremely challenging circumstances. 

Kingsley Wood, Founder of Kingsley Wood and Co, said “We are 

delighted to be able to support Quarriers once again this year. I am well 

aware of the valuable work Quarriers does to help people in the most 

difficult of circumstances. Quarriers’ work touches many people that live 

in our community. 

“We are pleased that 

people were encouraged 

to make a will as it 

something all adults, 

whatever the age group 

should do to protect their 

family and loved ones.” 

Details about the initiative 

and other solicitors 

involved can be found by 

emailing fundraising@ 

quarriers.org.uk. 

Kingsley Wood presents cheque to Fiona Scott in Quarriers Village


Paisley Colour Photographic 

Club 

PCPC 2nd Bimonthly Competition Results 

At the McMaster Centre in Renfrew last month members of Paisley Colour 

Photographic Club were well entertained by a series of beautiful images at 

the club’s 2nd Bimonthly Competition of the session. 

The club welcomed experienced photographer Gordon McMann (CPAGB) 

from Port Glasgow to judge the competition. Gordon demonstrated his 

technical knowledge and very good photographic eye as he carefully 

critiqued each of the sixty nine entries. His comments gave encouragement 

as well as good positive criticism. 

In the Introductory section of the 

competition Gordon awarded 

top place to David Scott for his 

image “Kookaburra Lunch”. In the 

intermediate section the top place 

awarded to Jim Murdoch for his 

image “Grey Heron in Flight”. 

portrait image “Sampling His 

Own Product” and in fourth place 

was Mike Cruise’s image “Black 

Grouse”. Mountain landscape 

image “Warnscale Bothy” by David 

Dalziel was judged by Gordon as 

the third top image whilst Robert 

Fulton’s landscape “Calm Morning” 

was second placed. This year 

the winner of the 2nd Bimonthly 

Competition of the session was 

Mike Cruise for his superb capture 

“Pine Martin”. 

In the Advanced section of the 

competition Richard Bennett’s “Bengal 

Tiger” image was in sixth position. 

In fifth place was Alison Smart’s 

Kilmacolm Camera Club 

We had a very useful evening of photo techniques, organised by our own 

Janice Stevenson. She provided a lot of useful tips involving the dark arts 

of Layers (a powerful Photoshop tool!). 

Another January talk was given by Gaie Brown, of Inverclyde Camera Club. 

This was entitled “Local Area Images” and included a fascinating set of 

images taken around the Greenock Cut. In particular, her shots of local 

wildlife and landscapes were of a very high quality. I’m sure a number of 

members have made a note to explore this scenic part of Inverclyde! 

Our latest internal competition, 

on “The Five Senses”, was 

judged last month by Campbell 

Skinner, of Greenock Camera 

Club. Campbell provided a very 

constructive and supportive critique 

of our efforts. The “Five Senses” 

theme provided an interesting 

selection of images and interpretations. In 

the Print class, Janice Stevenson came fi rst 

and second, with “The Day the Music Died” 

and “Family”, respectively. David Addison 

was third, with 

“Savour”. In the 

Digital class, 

David Walker 

was first, with 

“Sound, Sight, 

Smell....and 

Whiskers” 

and Bill Ham came second, with “A Bit of 

Grooming”. Third equal were Janice, with 

“The Pianist” and Gordon McGibbon, with 

“Find the Burger.” 

Still a few Tuesday evenings left 

before the end of the season. Come 

along and exercise some, or all, of 

your “five senses.” 

Venue: Kilmacolm New Community 

Centre, Room 1.01; Tuesday evening, 

time 7.30. 

Contacts: Billy Blair, Tel: 873383; 

Janice Stevenson, Tel 873595. 

Website: clikpic.com/kilcamclub/ 

Diaporama 

David Dalziel very sadly and 

suddenly passed away last month. 

He was a very popular, well thought 

of member of the club and was the 

club’s website manager for many years. David was a skilled photographer 

and even up until last month he was creating beautiful landscape images. 

For further details about PCPC and updated members galleries please 

view: www.paisleycolour.co.uk 

At our February meeting Bill 

Crookston presented a series of 

new shows that used the technique 

of layers. This is where you 

use a computer programme e.g. 

Photoshop, to cut out bits from 

different images and then combine 

them together on a background to 

make a new picture i.e. an imaginary 

scene and not one that actually 

exists. We also had a session on 

Audacity - a computer programme 

that allows you to make a series 

of different recordings such as a 

music track, sound effects (e.g. a dripping tap, bird song), speech. These 

can then be moved to match your images and/or combined together e.g. 

speech over a soft piece of music, to make a very interesting sound track to 

add to the visual images. We also looked at the different places where you 

can find sound effects, music etc. 

Our March meeting is on Monday 13th March, 7.30pm at the Carrick Centre, 

Houston when Geof Longstaff from Falkirk Camera Club to talk about his 

work. Visitors are always welcome.


31 31 

Road Works Update 

Booster seat law - UK changes/updates 

No, there isn’t a booster seat ban, but there is a change in the height and 

age when children can use backless booster seats. 

You may have seen recent reports in the media about backless booster seats 

being banned under a new law. No new law has actually been passed, in fact 

the BPA (British Products Association) and car seat makers who help develop 

the laws have confi rmed backless boosters cushions will never be banned. 

What is happening, however, is a height and age increase in when children 

should use backless booster seats. 

Currently booster cushions fall under the Group 

2/3 car seat category, meaning they can be used 

from around 4-years-old. The new extension 

recommends children use backless boosters once 

they are 125cm or taller, which is roughly about 

7-years-old. 

What do I need to do? 

Don’t panic if you use a booster seat for your 

children. Booster seats are still legal and available 

to buy, as long as they conform to the current 

(ECE R4/04) law. 

Will I need to get a new car seat if or when the 

law changes? 

Any changes to the law will apply to new products, 

not child restraint systems that are already in use 

and meet existing safety standards. 

So should I stop using my backless booster? 

We recommend the use of complete high-backed 

car seats up to the height of 135cm or until children 

are over 12 years old. The evidence shows highbacked 

Group 2/3 car seats offer a higher level 

of protection compared to backless boosters. 

Remember that booster seats are still certifi ed to 

be safe, legal and available to buy, as long as they 

conform to the current (ECE R4/04) law. 

www.madeformums.com/news-and-gossip/booster-seat-law--- 

uk-changes-and-updates/41270.html 

Clippens Road News 

Linwood Community Council has received 

word from the Service Coordination Manager at 

Renfrewshire Council’s Community Resources 

department regarding the proposed changes to traffic management at 

Stirling Drive/Clippens Road. The email reads: 

“I write to advise you that the requested junction works at Stirling Drive 

and Clippens Road, Linwood will start on 20th February and will last for 6 

weeks. 

These works will avoid peak times by starting at 9.30am and fi nishing at 

3.30pm. 

Works at the Deafhillock roundabout junction of Bridge of Weir Road and 

Barrochan Road, at the corner of the Merchiston Hospital site, will also 

start on 20th February for 14 weeks. Four way temporary signals will be 

working full time. 

While the start dates of these works coinciding is unfortunate, the work at 

Deafhillock is by a private developer and is outwith our control, whilst the 

Linwood works are necessary to finish the new signal works by the end of 

the financial year. As stated above, we have tried to minimise the impact 

by working outwith peak hours on Clippens Road.”

32 the advertizer t: 01505 613340 07731 923970 e: info@advertizer.co.uk


33 33


bishopton, langbank & bridge of weir 


The Bridge 

Spring is upon us, already in The Bridge, we are planning for Christmas 2017! 

Alison Bannerman is drawing our much acclaimed Christmas card and members 

of the Paisley Colour Photographic Club are taking photographs for the 2018 

Calendar. 

Mother’s Day is celebrated on 26th March. Show how much your Mum means to 

you by sending a card from our selection. 

Easter Sunday is celebrated on 16th April. Brighten up someone’s day by sending 

an Easter Greetings card from our colourful display - available from mid March. 

Art Exhibition - during March, Jimmy Gibson will be showcasing his paintings of 

Pop Stars. Please view. 

Stationery: Please support The Bridge. Buy your greetings cards and stationery 

from our extensive selection. 

Post Office: The usual postal services are provided during opening hours. For 

that trip abroad - buy your Euros from our Euros on Demand service. 

Volunteers: Do you have a spare 4 hours once a month? If so, please consider 

becoming a volunteer in The Bridge. Do not worry about lack of experience as 

another friendly volunteer will be only too happy to assist. 

Trustees Annual Report: The Trustees Report & Accounts for the fi fth year of 

The Bridge were approved by the trustees on 25th January. Please view a copy 

at The Bridge. 

We look forward to meeting up with you in The Bridge – Your Community Centre, 

Shop and Post Offi ce. 

(Opening Hours: Mon – 9am to 5pm (PO closed 12 noon to 12.30pm); 

Tues & Fri – 1pm to 5pm; Wed & Thu – 10am to 2pm; Sat – 9am to 1pm) 


Bishopton Art Group Preview Exhibition 

at Ingliston Country Club 

Between 11.30am and 8pm on Wednesday 8th March at Ingliston Country 

Club, Ingliston Estate, Old Greenock Road, Bishopton, PA7 5PA, Bishopton Art 

Group will host a preview exhibition of their annual Spring Show. There will be 

a variety of paintings on display, some by new members of Bishopton Art Group. 

Members of the Group will be in attendance throughout the day and there will be 

the opportunity to ask any relevant questions and purchase any of the paintings. 

The preview exhibition is free to attend. There is separate catering available at 

Ingliston Country Club. The venue has adequate free parking available. 

Linda Mitchell, Chairperson of Bishopton Art Group said, 

“Following on from Bishopton Art Group’s successful previous exhibitions at 

Ingliston Country Club, Bishopton, I am pleased to announce that between 

11.30am and 8pm on Wednesday 8th March we are holding a preview exhibition 

of our Spring works at Ingliston Country Club, Bishopton. There will be a varied 

selection of art mediums on display and they will be available to purchase too. 

Admission to the exhibition is free. We are very grateful to the management of 

Ingliston Country Club for their support and to everyone who has attended our 

previous events that have been held there.” 


Bridge of Weir 

Lace Group 

Bridge of Weir Lace Group meets 

fortnightly on Tuesday mornings 

(10 am - 12 noon) during the winter 

months. If you’d like to try lacemaking 

we can provide materials & tuition. 

For further details phone (01505) 

613967. 


RagBag Recycle 

Bin - Langbank 

There is now a permanent RagBag 

Recycle bin sited in the school car park 

of Langbank Primary School for any 

of your unwanted textiles (no duvets 

or pillows). Any money raised from 

this will go to Langbank Playgroup. If 

anyone has any items and is unable 

to get to the recycle bin please call 

Jacqueline on 01475 540728. Thank 

you in advance. 


BoW Senior 

Citizens Club 

We meet at Cargill Hall every 2nd and 

4th Wednesday 7 - 9pm. Subscriptions 

are only £6 per year and £1 each 

week pays for your tea and biscuits. 

Entertainment provided. Previous 

entertainers include a male voice 

choir & live music. Contact Sheila 

Patterson for further information on 

01505 690521. 


Langbank SWI 

Thursday 16th March The 

Village Centre at 7.30pm. 

Talk by Ian Quinn 

“A Cruise to the Sacred 

Isle” 

Competitions will be: 

Savoury Wrap x 1 

Rag Doll (any craft) 

“Doon the Watter” Souvenir 


Bridge of Weir Messy Church 

We will be back on Sunday 5th March from 4pm 

to 6pm with a Lent and Easter themed session. 

As usual anyone is welcome, it is free and you 

can just turn up on the day. 

The activities and games will be from 4pm to 5pm 

followed by a short celebration with songs and a 

talk. We will then sit down for something to eat and a chat. 

If you have any questions, please contact Catherine Daly on 07980 649377. The 

next Messy Church after this will be Sunday 4th June. 

Hope to see you there!


35 


Bridge of Weir & Houston Fairtrade Villages Fairtrade 

Fortnight 17 

Saturday 11th March, 10am - 12noon 

Main Halls, Houston and Killellan Kirk, Main Street, 

Houston 

Come along and help us celebrate Fairtrade Fortnight 

and get some ideas of how to “put Fairtrade into your 

break”. 

Fairtrade tea, coffee, baking; stalls selling Fairtrade 

food and crafts from Rainbow Turtle shop in Paisley; 

food from Just Trading Scotland (Malawi and 

Swaziland); crafts from Peru; Palestinian crafts from 

OliveTree. 

Music from Gryffe High Pupils. 

ALSO - 

During Fairtrade Fortnight the Scottish Fairtrade 

Forum is hosting a visit from Lousi Albadawi from the 

Oasis Centre, which is an organisation that produces a range of craft and gift items, and provides employment for people 

with disabilities in the Palestinian town of Beit Sahour. Lousi will be accompanied by her husband, Mohammed. There will 

be an opportunity to meet Lousi on the afternoon of Tuesday, March 7th in Paisley. Please look at the Fairtrade Fortnight 

Events page of the Renfrewshire Council website for exact details of this event. 


SWI Federation Show in Cargill Hall 

The SWI Renfrewshire Federation Show will take place on Saturday 

25th March from 10am until 3pm in the Cargill Hall, Bridge of Weir. 

2017 is our centenary year and handicrafts will refl ect styles from 

different eras in the last hundred years. The housewifery table theme 

will be a centenary garden party. The show will include entries from a wide area 

and should be colourful and imaginative. Refreshments will be available and 

there will be stalls for baking and haberdashery plus a raffl e and tombola. 


Times are moving on and you will no doubt soon start to 

realise by the number of political party mailings and leafl ets 

that drop through your letterbox that we are approaching 

another election. The Council election takes place on 

Thursday 4th May. While the various parties select their 

fi nal candidates, it is sometimes sad to see well known and 

hardworking councillors and others being shoved aside. In 

some cases established councillors go willingly, feeling that 

they have done their bit, while others are devastated. I would 

be despondent at having to fi ght for a ward with changed 

boundaries after fi ve years of getting myself known in my 

area. I am pleased to say that I have been selected to stand 

again with no change to my ward, which I am relieved about. When Bridge of 

Weir, Bishopton, and Langbank were individual wards, it was much easier for 

a candidate to call on every house. Now the wards are much larger and many 

hands make light work. If you would like to help me with some leafl eting, or 

knocking doors, etc. then please get in touch with me. Even doing one street 

would be a great help. 

I have sent the Council a priority list of roads and pavements I think should be 

resurfaced in 2017/18. Several of you kindly sent me suggestions of roads and 

pavements that are in a poor state of repair, unfortunately the list cannot be 

extensive, but I do hope that the Roads department choose to resurface some 

of my suggestions, if not all. There are still numerous private roads and many 

private pavements that the Council will not maintain and if these are ever to be 

resurfaced then it is going to take a small miracle. But it can and does happen 

occasionally. 

Surgeries: Bishopton Community Library - 1st Monday of every month (6.30pm), Cargill Hall 

- 2nd Monday of every month (6.30pm), Langbank Parish Church Hall - 3rd Monday of every 

month (6.30pm). 

Contact: 0300-300-1291 or email cllr.james.maclaren@renfrewshire.gov.uk. Also on 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/councillormaclaren 

“Working with you and improving our local area”. Please feel free to contact me with any of 

your concerns, and I am happy to meet with you at a mutually convenient time. 


Exercise Class 

This class has been running in Freeland 

Church on a Wednesday afternoon for 

some time now and has proved both 

benefi cial and fun for all who came. 

Unfortunately the lady who took the 

class on a Wednesday is unable to 

continue and we have been unable to 

recruit a replacement. However, that 

lady can do a Monday morning so we 

have decided to change the class to 

then and it will be held from 10.30 - 

11.30am in the Large Hall in Freeland 

Church (enter by side door). The class 

will follow the same format - an hour 

of enjoyable and not too strenuous 

dance/exercise to music. This activity 

is also suitable for anyone who wishes 

to use a chair. 

Most of our Wednesday afternoon 

ladies can manage Mondays but 

new members would also be made 

most welcome. If you require further 

information, please contact either 

Janet Birch (01505 613506) or Irene 

Macfarlane (01505 614443). 


BoW SWI 

The next meeting will be 

on Thursday 2nd March 

at 7.15pm for 7.30pm in the 

British Legion Hall. We will welcome 

David Walker, who is going to talk about 

some Hidden Treasures of Glasgow. 

This should be an informative evening 

and visitors would be made very 

welcome. We also plan to hold a silent 

auction on this evening. 

Our group is also looking forward to 

the Federation Show which will take 

place on Saturday 25th March in the 

Cargill Hall. Many of our members are 

working hard to ensure this will be an 

attractive and successful day. 

bishopton, langbank & bridge of weir


kilmacolm & quarriers 


The Kilmacolm and Quarriers 

Christian Aid Group 

The Kilmacolm and Quarriers Christian Aid committee are holding a Bread and 

Cheese Lunch in Kidston Hall, Kilmacolm on Sunday 12th March at 12.30pm. 

Everyone welcome - homemade soups, delicious bread and cheeses, shortbread 

with coffee/tea. A suggested donation following lunch is the replacement of your 

traditional Sunday meal, which so many thousands of families in the poorest 

countries of our world can never hope to enjoy. This Lent, as we journey through 

March and April to the blessing of Easter, Christian Aid have produced a ‘Count 

Your Blessings’ diary of refl ections. Copies are available from each church, the 

New Community Centre, or speak to Jill Russell on 01505 872393. Poverty, 

disease, war torn counties, justice in trade, fl oods, are ever present issues which 

Christian Aid strive to attack and overcome. Please support the committee’s 

fundraising and join us this March for a Bread and Cheese Lunch, and pick up a 

copy of the Lent refl ections diary. 


Kilmacolm Art Annual Exhibition 

Kilmacolm Art Class will be holding their annual Art Exhibition on Friday 24th 

March (10am - 5.30pm) and Saturday 25th March (10am - 4pm) in the Community 

Centre, Kilmacolm. 


Kilmacolm Old Kirk 

Dates for your diary 

Thursday 9th March Sòlas Bereavement Group meets in the 

Kidston Hall from 6.30pm – 8.30pm. 

Outlook 

Don’t forget our regular Outlook group which reaches out to the whole community 

in fellowship. The format is the same for most weeks – invited speakers offering 

topics of interest, community issues for discussion, shared activities, music 

fi lms etc. Afternoon tea gives us all the chance to enjoy time with friends and to 

make new friends too. The team provide a wonderful variety of home baking. A 

voluntary donation is collected, to be sent to the OUTLOOK monthly nominated 

charity. 

The spring programme is: 

Thursday 2nd March – Keep fi t with David, plus laughter with Mr Bean. 

Thursday 16th March – Inverclyde Tourism – ‘Tearing the Tartan’ – A history of 

Scottish tartans, plus clan connections. Request – Wear Something Tartan!! 

Next Month 

Thursday 6th April – Guide Dogs for the Blind – from puppy training to owners. 

Thursday 20th April – Erskine Hospital – ‘Proud to Care’ – A century of care. 

Every afternoon: Community Issues, Dates for your Diary and Afternoon Tea. 

OUTLOOK is for the whole community; it’s an open invitation to everyone. Please 

come along and you can be sure of a warm welcome from the Old Kirk Community 

Issues Team. 


Kilmacolm Guides 

We are proud to be celebrating 100 years in 

the village. 1st Kilmacolm Guides was set up 

in 1917 and there have been up to 3 units 

of Guides in the village ever since, a great 

achievement for a small village. 

Were you a Guide in Kilmacolm or were you part of Guiding 

in the village? If so we would love to hear from you. We are trying to fi nd out as 

much history about Guides in the village as possible and to see any old photos, 

memorabilia or uniforms. If you have any stories please get in touch - email us at 

kilmacolmguides100@gmail.com if you can help us archive our history. We look 

forward to hearing from you. 

There will be over 100 framed pictures for sale in all mediums at very attractive 

prices. 

This year the Art Class is sponsoring an art competition with Kilmacolm Primary 

School. The winning entries will be on display. 

Please come along and see today’s artists as well as the artists of tomorrow. 

Entrance - Adults £1, children free. 



on Saturday 4th March 

in the New Community 

Centre, Kilmacolm 

from 

10am - 12noon 

Ticket £3. 


Scout Quiz and 

Curry Night 

Annual Scout Quiz and Curry Night is 

on Saturday 11th March at the Scout 

Hall, Barr’s Brae, Kilmacolm at 7pm. 

Tickets are £10 which includes your 

curry and quiz. 

Bar is available at the event. 

For tickets please contact Maureen 

Todd on 01505 872094 or ask one of 

the Section Leaders. 



World Day of Prayer 

Do you want to improve 

your Bridge? 

Classes resumed in Kilmacolm Community Centre on 28th 

February for 10 weeks. Class meets on Tuesdays from 

7.15pm until 9.15pm. These are stand alone lessons and 

it is possible to attend on a weekly basis. 

All welcome except complete beginners. Look forward to 

seeing you. Further information Tel : 01505 872345. 

Written by the Christian Women of the 

Philippines 

Theme: Jesus said ‘Am I being fair to you?’ 

Local Service in St Columba Church Hall, 

Bridge of Weir Road, Kilmacolm at 1.30pm on 

Friday 3rd March. 

The local WDP group of representatives from 

the local Churches warmly invites you to share worship and 

fellowship with people around the world who will be participating in the World 

Day of Prayer. We are delighted that the children from Kilmacolm Primary School 

will be able to join us with their singing and music. There will be refreshments 

after the Service. 

Everyone welcome! If you want to know more about the event, please give me a 

call. Maureen Russell, Convenor (telephone 872905).


37 


Going Solo At Sixty Nine - 

Shelagh Campbell Exhibition 

You are invited to attend an 

Exhibition of Shelagh’s work at 

House for An Art Lover, 10 Dumbreck 

Road, Glasgow, G41 5BW, until 3rd 

April. The gallery will be open daily 

from 10am to 5pm. 

“I adore colour. Scotland is rich in 

colour. A red sky in Scoraig or yellow 

moonlight on Handa Island is equal 

in brilliance to any Mediterranean 

beach. I try to capture the essence 

of the place. I love Misty Law and 

the Knapps Loch and can’t believe 

how lucky I am to walk to them daily 

and see them covered in snow or 

clothed in poppies and gorse.” 

Please visit www.shelaghcampbellartist.co.uk for further information 

or email arts@houseforanartlover.co.uk. 


St Fillan’s Annual 

Shrove Tuesday 


Tuesday 28th February 10.30am to 

12 noon in St Fillan’s Hall, Moss Road, 

Kilmacolm. Delicious pancakes and 

home baking, stalls and raffl e. 


Hall to Hire - 

Kilmacolm Guide 

Hut 

A great venue with easy access near to 

the village centre. Newly refurbished 

main hall, with additional kitchen 

facilities and outdoor area. Perfect for 

children’s parties, weekly classes and 

one off special occasions. Anyone 

wanting to hire the Guide Hut please 

contact Roz on 07584 359007. 


Girl Guiding Daffodil Spring Fair 

Saturday 25th March, 10am - 12.30pm at St Columba’s Church Hall, Kilmacolm. 

Teas, Coffees, and home-baking. Come along and support our local Rainbows, 

Brownies and Guides as we celebrate 100 years of Guides in the village. 


The Council set its budget for next fi nancial 

year, 2017/18, on 16th February. Despite 

a reduction in our grant of nearly £5m from 

the Scottish Government we were able to 

honour the commitment given previously 

to balance the 2017/18 budget without 

further service reductions or jobs losses 

over and above those previously agreed 

as part of the 2016/18 two-year budget 

set in March 2016. This will be achieved 

through the use of reserves. 

The cross-party group (representing 

all Councillors except the SNP group) that agreed the budget proposals had 

considered closing some of the budget gap with a 3% Council Tax rise for all 

Council Taxpayers as recommended by the Scottish Government. However, on 

balance, members of the group decided against this. They were conscious that 

7,000 households in Inverclyde already face rises of between 7.5% and 22.5% 

and did not wish to add to the burden on these families. 

Members of the group recognise however that if the Scottish Government 

continues to cut the Council’s funding year on year a rise in the basic level of 

Council Tax is inevitable next year and every year thereafter. 

The Council’s Chief Financial Offi cer is estimating that the potential funding 

gap in 2018/19 is of the order of £10.5m, assuming a further £4.7m cut in 

Scottish Government funding. A savings target of this magnitude will be hugely 

challenging for the new Council elected in May and will require a fundamental 

review of the services the Council delivers. 

We are pleased to report that as part of the Council’s budget a further £13m 

capital investment on improving roads, pavements, street lighting and other 

roads assets will be made over the next three years. Kilmacolm and Quarriers 

should benefi t from this additional investment. 

Ward Councillors have received a number of complaints from residents about 

noise and vibration from works in Leperstone Avenue in Kilmacolm to create 

platforms for self-build plots being developed on the Council’s behalf by Riverside 

Inverclyde. Unfortunately the works have taken much longer than originally 

envisaged. We apologise for the inconvenience, nuisance and disruption to 

residents caused by these works. 

Councillor McColgan - Please fi nd details of my upcoming surgeries on the 

Council website at www.inverclyde.gov.uk 

You can reach me on 01475 712727 (during offi ce hours) and 07881280016 

(anytime) or by emailing me at james.mccolgan@inverclyde.gov.uk. Alternatively 

you can write to me at Inverclyde Council, Municipal Buildings, Greenock PA15 

1LY. 

You can keep up to date with my work as a Councillor by visiting my website: http:// 

jamesmccolgan.com. You can also follow me on Twitter @jamesmccolgan. 

Councillor McCabe - My surgeries this month are on Tuesday 14th March, 5.30 - 

6.30pm, in St Francis’ Primary School and Tuesday 28th March, 6.30 – 7.30pm, 

in Kilmacolm Community Centre. 

You can also contact me directly to discuss any matters that are of concern to 

you by telephone on 01475 

712020 (during offi ce 

hours) and 871368 (home) 

or by email to Stephen. 

McCabe@inverclyde.gov.uk. 

Alternatively you can write to 

me at 10 Victoria Gardens, 

Kilmacolm PA13 4HL. 

You can keep up to date 

with my work as a Councillor 

by visiting my blog: http:// 

councillorstephenmccabe. 

blogspot.com/ and follow me 

on Twitter @CllrSMcCabe. 

kilmacolm & quarriers




Local resident Alison Watson presented a petition to 

me containing 1,000 signatures of people encouraging 

Inverclyde Leisure to renew the lease of the Birkmyre Café. 

This is an astonishing number and is an indication of the 

excellent addition to the Birkmyre facility that Alessia Nardini, 

the proprietor has created. I have handed the petition to Bill 

Hawthorne, the Chair of the Board of IL, and I am hopeful 

that the IL Board and management will look kindly on the 

wishes of the people of Kilmacolm. 

The Inverclyde Music Festival again saw many entrants from 

Kilmacolm Primary, St Columba’s Senior and Primary, St 

Stephens and Port Glasgow High School. Miss Ballantyne, 

head of music at the latter, had her usual large entry and many successes. Adam 

Docherty again was the star performer amongst many winners from the above 

schools. 

As we fi nalise our Council budget, I am pleased that there will be no further 

Council Tax rise, apart from the increases announced by the Scottish Government 

to Bands E to H, which are against local accountability. Of those affected by 

the Band H increase of £539, 80% of those in Inverclyde are in Kilmacolm and 

Quarriers Villages. The extra monies must be spent on Education. Every report on 

education standards in the past year, has been damning in terms of attainment. 

Our pupils, I am afraid, are now behind those in many countries worldwide. I have 

the greatest of sympathy for our teachers who for the past decade have been 

faced with ever changing initiatives and objectives. 

I represent Inverclyde on the Consultative Board at Glasgow Airport. Our meetings 

are attended by the quite excellent Chief Executive Amanda MacMillan. Under 

her management team’s efforts, Glasgow now has 120 destinations worldwide 

and is rapidly catching up with Edinburgh which has 130. 2016 saw 9.4m 

passengers, an all time record. Glasgow Airport is having to compete with not 

just Edinburgh and North of England Airports but also with Prestwick. By the 

end of this year the Scottish Government’s investment in the latter will approach 

some £40m. This is, in my view, unfair competition. Glasgow Airport and its 

environs is one of the top employers in Inverclyde and should receive the same 

subsidy as Prestwick. 

I rashly assumed and predicted that the pavements on the Port Glasgow Road 

were about to be completed. I did not allow for the activities of Virgin Media, who 

again at the tail end, have put in an application to install their cables. They have 

caused problems in the village as I have previously written. Not my favourite 

utility. 

The building site at Leperstone Avenue continues to cause extreme inconvenience 

to local residents. The moral is, do not build in a quarry because the easy to shift 

rock has gone. 

I am pleased and honoured to have been nominated by the local Conservative 

and Unionist Association to stand in Inverclyde Ward 1, Quarriers, Kilmacolm and 

Port Glasgow, in the May Council elections. 

My surgeries are 7th March 5.30pm – 6.30pm in St Francis School and 11th March 10am 

- 11am in the Cargill Centre. I can be contacted at david.wilson@inverclyde.gov.uk 01475 

712727 and 741969 and 07766 992294. 

houston, crosslee & brookfield 

I am on the warpath in relation to the massacre of Merchiston 

Wood, where Barratt Housing have devastated at least fi fty 

or sixty mature adult trees, next to Deafhillock Roundabout, 

when in fact it was a stipulation of the planning approval that 

only two lines of trees be taken away at the entrance of the 

new estate, to improve the 

sightline of drivers. Upon 

recently witnessing this 

devastation of the natural 

environment, which it was not 

Barratt’s place to destroy, I 

called an immediate meeting 

with the Head of Planning 

to articulate my displeasure about what has 

happened. I also had a meeting with regional 

Barratt representatives to ensure there is no 

repeat of this senseless destruction. 

Recently at the Planning Board of Renfrewshire 

Council I seconded my husband, Cllr Andy Doig, 

in opposing the new proposed retail drive thru 

development at the former Paton’s Mill site, 

at the entrance to Johnstone off the A737. Johnstone Community Council had 

concerns about traffi c access and the real threat of gridlock, not only in Johnstone 

town centre, but right back to communities in my ward such as Houston and 

Brookfi eld. Simply adjusting the traffi c sequence at the Morrison’s junction, 

which will be right across from the main entrance to this new retail development, 

is simply not radical enough. Brookfi eld and Houston Community Councils also 

objected on traffi c and access grounds and at the Planning meeting I fought their 

corner. 

My advice surgery in Linwood is on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of the month, at 6pm, in 

Linwood High School. But I am also always available to constituents who can call me on 

07768 130935, or e-mail me at cllr.audrey.doig@renfrewshire.gov.uk.


39 


H.O.S.T. The Carrick Centre, Houston 

(Houston Old School Trust) 

Monday to Friday, Woodlands Out of 

School 01505 615438 

MONDAY 

Sewing Group (Weekly) 10am - 

12noon 

Yoga (Weekly) 1pm - Mary Laidlaw 

01505 229112 

Diaporama 13th 7.30pm 

Young Farmers 13th 7.30pm 

Handiwives 20th 7.30pm 

TUESDAY 

Paint Pot Tots (Weekly) 10am - Dawn 

Campbell 07789 262350 

Musical Theatre (Weekly) 4pm - 5pm 

Yoga (Weekly) 7pm 01505 613690 

Agric Discussion Society 7th 7.30pm 

WEDNESDAY 

Big Kids Little Learners 10am – 11am 

- Janine Neil 07870 697010 

Councillors Surgeries 15th 6.30pm 

Gryffe Melody Makers 1st, 15th 7pm 

Camera Club (Weekly) 7.30pm 

Community Council 15th 7.30pm 

Cricketfi eld Residents 15th 7.30pm 

THURSDAY 

Gryffe Quilting Group (2nd, 9th, 16th, 

23rd) 1.15pm - 3.15pm (16th 10am) 

Primary Colours (Weekly) 3.30pm - 

Dawn Campbell 07789 262350 

Crafty Friends 2nd, 16th, 30th 7.30pm 

Folk Club (weekly) 8pm - iaintdawson@ 

gmail.com 07786 078952 

BurleX Fitness (Weekly) 9.15 - 

10.15am. Kelly, 07944 815298 

FRIDAY 

Yoga (Weekly) 10.30am - M/s Lawson 

01505 613690 

Big Kids Little Learners 1pm – 2pm 

Janine Neil 07870 697010 

Galaxy Dancing (Wkly) 3.30pm - 7pm 

MP Surgery 10th 12.30pm – 1.30pm 

SATURDAY 

Galaxy Dancing (Wkly) 9.30am - 5pm 

Carrick Concert 25th (Paul Livingston 

& Ian Watt) - 8pm 

SUNDAY 

Baptist Church (Weekly) 11am & 6pm 

Heyes Images. Portrait Day 12th from 

10am - 07738 711911 

Booking enquiries to Ian Simpson, 01505 612203 Sandy Young 01505 331488 

Bill Haddow 01505 690693 

hostbooking@outlook.com or The Coffee Shop 


Ella’s Kitchen – Pouch Recycling Bin at 

Co-op Houston 

Marie White has installed an Ella’s 

kitchen pouch recycling bin in the Coop 

Houston. 

The pouches are recycled by ‘Terracycle’ 

– all pouches are accepted, not just 

Ella’s kitchen pouches – and for every 

500 pouches Terracycle receive, Marie 

will receive £10 to donate to a local 

children’s group or charity. 

Please feed the bin generously! Good 

for the environment and good for our 

local kids. 


Kirk Carnival 

Do you want to be a HOLLYWOOD STAR for a day, now is your chance. Live your 

fantasy and become a Hollywood actor, a cartoon character or anyone or anything 

associated with Hollywood. Let this be an opportunity to turn Houston into a fi lm 

makers paradise. Glitz and glamour let’s have it! 

This is an immensely successful event but in order to achieve this there is a 

tremendous amount of hard work involved by organisers, contributors, helping 

hands and all who take part. Now is the time those with green fi ngers are thinking 

about sowing seeds and getting the fl owers and shrubs ready for the plant stall. 

To all who are de-cluttering and getting rid of unwanted items of ‘bric a brac’, 

etc. please remember the white elephant stall. If you need assistance getting 

items to the church hall please contact Kathryn McCartney (613741) or Mary 

Reid (613770) who will gladly help. Unfortunately we cannot accept electrical 

goods or large items of furniture. Don’t forget donations of toiletries, bottles, 

jewellery, home baking and toys. All will be received gratefully. 

All proceeds will go to the Killellan Halls 

Fund. 

Carnival Conveners 

Food: Ina Jefferson (612962) and 

Lorna Kinloch; Tearoom: Moira Dunlop 

(331309) and Jean Mills; Sideshows: 

Charles Green (690107); Non Food: 

Heather Hughes (07980 853052) 

(614159) (614326) (613676); Coordinators: 

Jim McLaughlin (690070) 

and Kate Jackson. 

howwood & elderslie 


Carnival a call for 

HELP! 

The organizers of the Houston and 

Killellan Kirk Carnival are looking 

for help distributing programmes in 

Locher Place, Locherburn Avenue and 

Locher Grove. If you can help please 

contact Elaine Rowan, 

btinternet.com 

erowan4@ 


Renfrewshire Chamber of Commerce 

cheque presentation 

Bob Grant, CEO Chamber of Commerce along with Tom Johnston, president 

of Chamber of Commerce came along to St Vincent’s Hospice today to donate 

£3,000 which has been raised at The Rocco Awards 2016 raffl e. Each year, 

ROCCO support 2 Organisations which are based or operate in Renfrewshire. 

Eunice Muir, Chairman of St 

Vincent’s Hospice said “We 

would like to thank the Chamber 

of Commerce for their continued 

support, we greatly appreciate 

all that they do for the Hospice.” 

Pictured presenting the cheque 

are Bob Grant and Tom Johnston 

from Renfrewshire Chamber of 

Commerce and Kate Lennon 

Chief Executive and Eunice Muir 

chairman of St Vincent’s hospice. 

As I mentioned last month the council was meeting to discuss 

the futures of St Anthony's Primary School and the Spateston 

Nursery. The good news is that the school is to be refurbished 

and a new nursery is to be built close to the existing site. So 

great news for the pupils. 

St Vincent's are at the early stage of planning a new path 

which would run from Corseford School to the Hospice. This 

would certainly improve links to the hospice for people walking 

or using public transport, but also generally improve the area. 

So I wish the hospice all the best with that. 

Johnstone High was recently inspected so I will update you on this as soon as I 

get the report. 

Renfrewshire Health and Social Care Partnership have been carrying out a 

recruitment for Home Carers. This part of our service is growing and the demand 

is likely to get higher in the future. So it is important that we get the right people 

to do this highly rewarding job. 

The Scottish government have asked the council for more details on our 

concerns about the A737. We will continue to argue for improvements to this 

road. I will keep you updated. I can be contacted by e-mail on cllr.iain.mcmillan@ 

renfrewshire.gov.uk 




Howwood SWI . 

Tuesday 21st March - On the buses by Rosemary Wilkinson. 

Competition - A Dinky Toy. Hostesses - Irene MacTaggart & Christina 

McCrae. Vote of Thanks - Jane Millar. Meetings in Howwood Village Hall at 

7.30pm. A warm welcome to all. Contact Irene on 01505 704800.




Schools in Houston and Linwood are among the benefi ciaries 

of Renfrewshire’s share (£4.245 million) of the £120million 

Pupil Equity Fund recently announced by the Scottish 

Government. The full list of participating Renfrewshire 

schools can be viewed on the Scottish Government website. 

Congratulations to pupils and staff in Houston Primary School 

and Nursery for the excellent report achieved following the 

recent joint inspection by Education Scotland and the Care 

Inspectorate. 

The Scottish Government’s Planning and Environmental 

Appeals Division have still to make a decision on the proposed 

Residential Developments at Sandholes Road, Brookfi eld and 

Branscroft, Kilbarchan. 

Major works were scheduled to start on the roads’ layout at the Deafhillock 

roundabout at the Merchiston Hospital site. The work is expected to take many 

months and traffi c disruption is likely over this period. 

The Road resurfacing on Houston Road, Crosslee at the River Inn and at the 

junction to Crosslee Crescent has been completed and the renovated steps, the 

new slabs and bollards at the Crosslee shops have greatly improved the area. 

Renfrewshire Council’s Administration should have set the Council Tax for 

2017/18 at the Budget meeting on 16th February. Over a number of years the 

Council Tax has been frozen, however this year, Councils can increase the Council 

Tax by up to 3%. 

My surgeries are held on the second Tuesday of the month in the Brookfi eld Village Hall from 

6pm to 6.30pm, then in the Houston Village Hall from 7pm to 7.45pm. I can be contacted by 

phone on 0300 300 1265 or by e-mail at cllr.allan.noon@renfrewshire.gov.uk 


Carrick Nights - Winter Concert Series 

Promoted by HOUSTON OLD SCHOOL TRUST 

Carrick Centre, Main Street, Houston - 8pm 

Saturday 25th March - PAUL LIVINGSTON (violin/viola) & IAN WATT (guitar). 

A well respected duo, they perform a wide ranging repertoire from Baroque to 

Modern, German to Argentinean including works by Bach, Corelli, Schubert, 

Paganini and Piazzola. 

Friday 28th April - BAROCHAN QUARTET + PAULA BARRON 

A welcome return after performing at our pilot concert in March 2016. [BQ] A 

string quartet of local talent, all professional musicians and members of the BBC 

Symphony Orchestra. [PB] A semi-professional mezzo soprano who hails from 

Paisley and her accompanist Jim Drennan with 

a programme of light classical repertoire/songs 

from the shows. 

Ticket prices: Adults - £12 Children/Students 

- £5. Why not have a meal in our Café at 6pm 

prior to the concert. Early booking a must as 

space is limited. (2 courses £15 - BYOB ) 

Call 01505 229597 or e mail thecarrickcentre@ 

gmail.com for further information. 

We are grateful to Enterprise Music Scotland, 

through funding provided by Creative Scotland, 

for their award of a grant to help make these 

Concerts a reality. 


Brookfield 

Country 

Dancing club 

Thursday evenings from 

7.30pm - 9.30pm run 

by Aileen Craig (01505- 

322684). New members 

are most welcome and as an 

introduction, the fi rst class 

is free. 


Brookfield Village 

The ladies of Brookfi eld and their friends enjoyed a fun fi lled and fashionable 

Swishing Event at Brookfi eld Village Hall on Saturday, 25th February. For those 

of you who are unfamiliar with Swishing, this involves digging out your best, but 

no longer worn, items of clothing and bringing them along to trade in for someone 

else’s best, but no longer worn, items and all for the bargain price of your entrance 

fee. A fabulous way to have a fun fi lled night with friends, involving refreshments 

and fashion. Keep your eyes peeled for further Swishing Events in Brookfi eld... 

AGM Notice: March brings with it the start of Spring and Brookfi eld Village 

Council’s AGM and Social Evening. Brookfi eld Village Hall is a wonderful asset, 

providing a hub for village life and a venue for Clubs, social events and a variety 

of exercise classes. This asset is jointly owned by the residents, but it is the 

members of the Village Council who work hard on their behalf, to ensure that it 

is properly utilised and maintained to a high standard. As with any asset, this 

involves a commitment of both time and money. The AGM is when the Village 

Council report back to the residents on the year’s events and discuss the 

fi nances and any fund-raising requirements for the coming year. The AGM is also 

an opportunity for residents to ask questions and offer help of time or resources. 

The Village Council are always on the look-out for new members, with new ideas 

and inspiration, so if you would like to join, please put your name forward. This 

year’s meeting will also include ‘a year in pictures’ which will give villagers the 

opportunity to see photographic highlights from the past year and perhaps spot 

themselves on the big screen! 

SOCIAL EVENING: Following the formalities of the AGM, the Village Council will 

be hosting a social evening. This will be a great opportunity to catch up with less 

formal news of village life and drinks and snacks will be provided. 

RACE NIGHT: Looking forward to April, don’t forget to put the date of the Race 

Night in your diary. Saturday, 22nd April at 7.30pm and no it isn’t just horses, but 

pigs too. The latter are back by popular demand following their successful debut 

at last year’s Gala Day. If that doesn’t tempt you, then nothing will!!!! 


Crafty Friends 

We meet the 1st and 3rd Thursdays in the 

month at 7.30pm in the Carrick Centre, 

Houston. No craft experience necessary. 

Telephone - Lorna Cairns 612844 or Shirley 

White 610721. 


French Conversation 

If you speak French (doesn’t matter what 

level) and you want to join a local conversation 

group to practise in Kilmacolm, Bridge of 

Weir Kilbarchan or Houston please contact 

me by email or mobile 0746 357 0464. We 

would meet in a local cafe and only expense 

would be price of a tea or coffee. Informal 

tuition available if desired. There are plenty 

of similar groups in Glasgow and Milngavie. 

Let’s start one here. 


Houston & 

Crosslee SWI 

kilbarchan & lochwinnoch 

Kilbarchan Habbies’ Annual Art 

Exhibition 

Our meeting on 

Wednesday 8th 

March will be 

an interesting talk 

about The Botanic 

Gardens given by Louise 

Bustard. We hold our AGM and 

Spring Show on Wednesday 

12th April. 

All our meetings are held in 

The Compass Centre, South 

Street, Houston at 7.30pm. 

Come along and join us, you 

will be made very welcome. 

For further information please 

contact, Arlene MacKay on 

07932 459994. 

Kilbarchan Habbies’ Art Group will be holding their annual exhibition on Saturday, 

8th April and Sunday, 9th April. As usual, the exhibition will be held in the Guide 

Centre, Barn Green, Kilbarchan. Opening times are Saturday 10am - 4pm and 

Sunday 12 noon - 4pm. 

There will be our usual amazing 

display of over 100 paintings 

in various mediums and styles 

which our members have worked 

on throughout the year. If you are 

looking for something to fi ll that 

empty space on the wall, a special 

unique gift for someone, or just 

want to while away a pleasant 

hour or so, this is the place to be. 

In addition to the paintings we 

have some very attractive cards 

and crafts for sale. 

There are prices to suit all 

pockets, and you can then relax 

in our tea room with a refreshing cup of tea or coffee and something from the 

wonderful array of home baking. 

You can also try your luck at the tombola with some really great prizes on offer. 

Come along and enjoy a pleasant morning or afternoon. We look forward to 

seeing you there!


41 

LEAP supports residents to 

make it happen 

LEAP has launched ‘Making It Happen’ – a programme of 

FREE practical assistance for Renfrewshire Residents who 

are struggling with fuel bills and comfort at home this winter. 

Supported through Renfrewshire Council’s Tackling Poverty Programme, the 

service aims to reach a minimum of 80 fuel poor and vulnerable persons, 

who are struggling with fuel bills, health conditions, or living in cold, damp, 

or draughty homes, across urban and rural Renfrewshire by 31st March 

2017. 

A Lochwinnoch resident who has already benefi ted from the ‘Making it 

Happen’ service recently commented, “Thank you so much for fi xing my 

house door so quickly, I can’t believe the difference it has made it is so 

much warmer, and no more howling wind and water getting in. My family 

and I are delighted” 

LEAP’s Energy team will carry out practical actions to 

help improve warmth and save money in the long term. 

The types of FREE practical energy effi ciency actions 

LEAP can provide may include fi tting draught strips, 

letterbox/keyhole seals, chimney balloons, minor 

repairs (structural draught proofi ng), pipe lagging, 

tank jackets, window seals, secondary glazing, loft 

insulation including coombed ceilings or tricky areas, 

loft hatches, and introducing 

the use of low energy/LED 

light bulbs, power down plugs, energy monitors and 

radiator panels to reduce the energy used for heating 

and lighting in the home. 

Don’t delay, get in touch. If you think you or someone 

you know could benefi t from this programme, and 

you are Renfrewshire Residents then please contact 

LEAP in confi dence by email to energy@myleapproject. 

org, via our website http://www.myleapproject.org/ 

contact-leap-staff-team/ or call 01505 612034. 

LEAP will consider and assess everyone who contacts them and if anyone is 

ineligible for this programme LEAP may be able to provide other help, advice 

or referrals. 

Visit LEAP and Remode for a Crafty afternoon 

LEAP and ReMode are running workshops and fi lm screenings in the 

McKillop Centre’s Lesser Hall at the Festival’s Craft Fair on Saturday 25th 

March. Why not join us on the day between 12noon and 4pm or check for 

the timings and activity details on our website at www.myleapproject.org/ 

news or join us on facebook at www.facebook.com/myleapproject. 

Get ready for the next BIKE 

SWAP in Lochwinnoch on 

19th March 

Following on from our February 

Bike Swap and Bike Maintenance 

event in Kilbarchan, we can 

now announce our March Bike 

Swap will be on Sunday 19th 

March between 1pm and 3pm 

at the Bike Hut in Castle Semple, 

Lochwinnoch. We’ll be partnering with Clyde Muirshiel and RT Cycles to 

make sure that everyone who comes along gets Cycling information, learns 

how to do a simple Cycle Check and naturally gets the chance to swap their 

bike for another. So, dust off your bikes and get cycling! Bike the wrong 

size? Swap it for another. Unused bike lurking at the back of the garage? 

Donate it, so another can use it. No bike to swap? Come along to see if 

there is one that suits you. Bikes of all sizes and conditions welcome! Look 

out on our website at www.myleapproject.org/news and facebook www. 

facebook.com/myleapproject for event updates. 

Join LEAP car club now & get £25 worth 

of free driving. 

To find out more contact mike@ 

myleapproject.org or 01505 8425230 


Masonic 

Meeting 

Lodge Captain Speirs 

Houston 791 

Masonic Temple, New Street, 

Kilbarchan at 7.30pm 

14th March FC Degree 

11th April MM Degree 

Visiting brethren welcome. 


At the last meeting of the Planning Board of Renfrewshire 

Council I was pleased to be able to second a motion to reject 

the Milliken Road planning application, by Williamsburgh 

Housing Association, for 19 fl ats to be sited between the 

existing fl ats in Milliken Road, and the A737. I did so not 

because I am against affordable, social housing in principle, 

because last year I wrote to the Scottish Housing Minister 

complaining about the desperate need for social housing in 

Kilbarchan and Lochwinnoch, I opposed this development for 

three fundamental reasons: diffi culties with traffi c access, and 

the fact it would be on greenbelt, and the practical inability of 

widening Milliken Road, which was part of the proposals. I 

remain open to proposals for social housing in our village communities, but in 

the correct place. 

In the context of the current climate of economic 

austerity it is even more important that villages like 

Lochwinnoch are not left out of spending priorities, 

and receive their proportionate due. Therefore I 

am pleased that recently the Scottish Government 

has awarded £4 million to Renfrewshire Council as 

their share of the Pupil Equity Fund to help close 

the educational attainment gap for pupils from less 

affl uent backgrounds. As far as local primaries 

are concerned, Lochwinnoch Primary will get the 

highest share of the West Renfrewshire villages, at 

£33,600, Kilbarchan Primary is next with £32,400, 

and Howwood Primary is receiving £7,200. This 

is positive news for the West Renfrewshire villages 

which I very much welcome. 

My advice surgery in Kilbarchan is on the 2nd Wednesday 

of the month in the Steeple Hall at 7.45pm, and my advice 

surgery in Lochwinnoch is on the 4th Wednesday of the 

month in the McKillop at 7.30pm, excluding July. But I am 

also always available to constituents who can call me on 

07534 148224, tweet me on CllrAndy4Ward8 or e-mail me 

at cllr.andy.doig@renfrewshire.gov.uk. 


Lochwinnoch SWI 


Kilbarchan Old Library Centre 

Cllr Andy Doig points out an ice laden 

Castle Semple with local curling on 

it, a picture on display at the recent 

Lochwinnoch Art Show at Castle 

Semple 

The March meeting of Lochwinnoch SWI will be on Wednesday 15th 

March at 7.30pm in the McKillop Hall. Joan Shaw will be giving us a 

talk on “a Century of Fashion”. So, ladies prepare for some fashion nostalgia! 

We look forward to welcoming members and friends. 

Contact Elma Richmond at 843193 or richmond32@tiscali.co.uk for further 

information. 

Please read this - The team at the Centre need your help. The Centre has always 

had a struggle to have suffi cient manpower and fi nance to enable the voluntary 

KIPCo Management Board and volunteer team to run this facility. 

What do the team do? They use their skills to help keep the building in good 

condition, because under the KIPCo agreement with Renfrewshire Council, 

maintenance is the KipCo’s responsibility. They welcome people to the Centre. 

They think up projects and sources to raise funds. Then they make items for sale 

like the Calendar and the project book on Trees of the Track, which was used by 

Primary 7. How else are we able to fi nance the Centre? We run classes for young 

and old, we have interest and health groups and we hire out the Community 

Room, which was the original Library, for meetings and business seminars. Some 

readers may remember Mrs. Reid’s story time. Many visitors remark on recalling 

going up the stairs which are still used to-day. We have provided a lift for those 

who fi nd the climb arduous. 

When the Library closed in 1999 the Kilbarchan Improvement Projects company 

was formed. Money was raised to bring the building up to modern standards. 

This was a huge undertaking by the original seven Board members. They could 

have done very little without the fi nancial help they got from seeking funds from 

various sources. A list of these funders is displayed in the Centre. However, 

the fi nancial help given by the people of Kilbarchan and surrounding area has 

remained a very constant and important element. The supporters group has over 

the years greatly reduced in number. I would like to publicly acknowledge this 

outstanding help and to appeal to you, if you are not one of this group, to consider 

becoming a supporter. We ask for an annual gift of £5 or £10 if this is affordable 

to you. I know that everyone is constantly being asked for money and that you 

may not think that this Registered Charity SC031251 is a worthy cause. 

I am hopeful that The Centre will continue to give everyone a place to sit and chat, 

have a cup of tea or coffee, meet others, either in one of our organisations or 

informal reading room. Our offi ce has high quality printing facility and our regular 

volunteers will help with information about local events, history and directions. 

kilbarchan & lochwinnoch




Killin’ in The Glen 

Calder Drama’s Lochwinnoch Arts Festival Production. 

The Laird’s Glendower Estate is in a poor state of repair and 

much needed money is needed to infuse life back into it. To 

this remote and desolate area come a number of guests who turn 

out to be not what they fi rst appear to be. A Comedy thriller written by Felix 

Lando that incorporates mystery and murder with its many twists and turns until 

its violent and bloody conclusion. A pair of decrepit housekeepers, an Estate 

Manager, An Ex-Governess, a French Student, an American and a Business 

Tycoon complete with private secretary make up the cast. Added to the action is 

the Annual Shoot on the Moors and a Burns Supper with its Fu-As-A-Wulk Quaich 

competition. The pace never slackens and we would especially advise asthma 

suffers to remember to bring along their inhalers as a precaution. 

Staged in the McKillop Hall on Thursday 23rd & Friday 24th March. Doors Open 7pm. 

Curtain Up 7.30pm. Bar & Refreshments Available. (£6/£4 Arts festival outlets) 



The Kilbarchan Singers are hosting a Coffee Morning, on Saturday 11th March, 

from 10am to 12noon in the Kilbarchan Parish Church Hall, off Steeple Square. 

There will be stalls selling home baking, books, jewellery and candles, plus 

a tombola. Tickets cost £2.50 and are available on the door, or from choir 

members. www.thekilbarchansingers.co.uk 


Last year local people in Kilbarchan expressed their views 

in regard to the proposed major housing development at 

Branscroft and these should be respected. A number of 

villagers have recently raised concerns with me regarding 

the time it is taking for the Scottish Government to deal with 

the appeal against the decision of Renfrewshire Council to 

reject the planning application for this development. The 

application which I opposed, was rightly and unanimously 

rejected in June last year, as it was the wrong development 

in the wrong place. 

The report and assessment presented by planning offi cers 

of the council, concluded that there were no economic or 

environmental benefi ts to Kilbarchan and the proposal was a breach of the green 

belt. 

Given this clear cut position, it is puzzling that almost 9 months on from that 

decision, there has at the time of writing, been no word on the appeal from the 

Scottish Government. 

I have therefore written to the planning minister, in the Scottish Government 

pressing for this matter to be concluded with the appeal rejected, thus ending 

the current uncertainty. 

I am pleased to report that Lochwinnoch, Kilbarchan and Howwood Primary 

Schools have benefi ted from additional funding totalling over £72,000. 

I have in the past, taken McGill's buses to task over aspects of the local service, 

the most recent occasion being during the bad weather in January when the 

evening service to Kilbarchan was withdrawn with, I would suggest with little 

justifi cation. Conversely it is only right that where credit is due it is duly given. I 

am therefore delighted that McGills have, with the Royal National Institute for the 

Blind developed plans to help passengers with visual impairment and sight loss, 

who have to rely on buses more than most, because they do not drive and fi nd 

taxis expensive ... A really positive move forward from McGills. 

My next surgeries will be on Saturday 4th March at 9am in the McKillop Institute Lochwinnoch 

and 10am in the Steeple Hall Kilbarchan. Meantime please contact me at cllr.derek.bibby@ 

renfrewshire.gov.uk or phone 0300 300 1274 or 07534 156007. 


Kilbarchan Parish 

Our next Messy Church takes place in 

our halls on Saturday 18th March from 

4pm – 6pm. 

As we are approaching Easter, that will 

be our theme. 

All children, accompanied by an adult, 

will be made most welcome. 

So 

come along and join us for a couple 

of hours of crafts, stories and song. 

We end by sitting down to eat together 

and enjoying the fellowship of other 

families. 


Kilbarchan Parish Drama Group 

Formerly East Church Drama Group, the Kilbarchan Parish Drama Group 

celebrates the 40th anniversary of its fi rst performance at the end of March. 

To mark this event, the group hopes people will come along to a Buffet Supper, 

in the church hall on Saturday 25th March at 6.30pm when there will also be a 

“Singalonga Mary Poppins”. Tickets for this all-age evening are £5, children £2, 

there will be a prize for the best Mary Poppins (1910) costume, also a prize draw. 

To book a ticket, please phone 704048 or 703786. 


Kilbarchan National Women’s Register 

During the month of March, the group has a speaker from the 

charity Mary’s Meals and also a discussion evening about which 

charities we would choose to support and why. The group would welcome new 

members, we meet on Wednesday evenings in each other’s homes and enjoy 

speakers and discussions on a wide variety of topics. If you are interested in 

fi nding out more, please phone 703786 or see the website: www.nwr.org.uk. 




Church Tots’ Club 

The club takes place on Monday 

mornings from 9.15am - 11.30am in 

the hall, where there is a large variety 

of toys and a bouncy castle for the tots 

- from birth - 3 years - and coffee and 

friendly chat for the accompanying 

adults, cost £1 for each adult. The 

club continues until 3rd April, when 

there are 2 weeks holiday for Easter. 



Church Easter 

Extravaganza 

Kilbarchan Parish Church Easter 

Extravaganza will take place on 

Saturday 8th April. Further information 

in the April edition. 


Gryffe Scottish Country Dance Club 

A very successful Fundraising dance was held on 3rd February with 70 dancers 

having a great evening with the music of Ian Muir. The club’s next event will be 

a charity dance in aid of the McMillan Nurses, to be held in Kilbarchan Guide 

Centre on Wednesday 12th April 7.30pm. Music will be provided by Marian 

Anderson and the programme is as follows:- 

Laird of Milton’s Daughter, Welcome to Glasgow. Speirs Wharf Hornpipe. Brisk 

Young Lad. Library of Birmingham. The Peat Fire Flame. Sands of Morar. The 

Dancing Master. Auchinellan Jig. Rutland Reel. Neidpath Castle. Johnny Walker. 

Never at Sea. Foxhill Court. Snake Pass. Reel of the Royal Scots. 

Tickets @ £8 and information can be obtained from Les Lambert 01505 704398 

or e mail leslambert08@gmail.com. 

Mothers Day Gift 

and Craft Fayre 

Sunday 12th March 

Kilbarchan Guide Centre, High 

Barholm, Kilbarchan 

1pm to 4pm. 

Come along and browse our fantastic local crafter stalls. More than 20 to 

choose from; jewellery, soaps, art work, sweets, cards, books and much more...... 

Something for everyone! 

We would love to see you there! Entry: Adults £1.50 Children £0.50 

All funds raised will go towards World Challenge Tanzania.


43 


Lilias Day 2017 

Looking for the next Miss Lilias 

We are looking for nominations for Miss 

Lilias 2017. Each year, Miss Lilias plays 

a key role in the Lilias celebrations and 

at other events throughout the year. We 

are looking for a young lady, 16 years + 

who would love to take on the role and 

act as an ambassador for the village. 

If you, or someone you know, would be 

ideal of the role please email us at info@ 

liliasday.co.uk 

Stall holders evening Tuesday 

14th March 

Having a stall at Lilias Day 

is a great way to raise funds 

for your local organisation 

or charity appeal. With over 

3,000 people coming to the 

park individual stalls can 

often raise between £500 

- £1000 for their cause. To 

book a stall come to the stall 

holders event on Tuesday 

14th March 7pm, Old Library 

Centre Kilbarchan. Pitches will be allocated on fi rst come fi rst served basis. If 

you cannot attend on the evening please email info@liliasday.co.uk and we will 

allocate a pitch after the stall holders evening. 

Prices: Non local - £60, Local - £50, (Commercial stalls - £150 and allocated at 

our discretion). Charity stall receive a 10% discount on the night. 

Historic Parade costume fitting Sunday 19th 

March 

Who would you like to be for the day? Mary Queen of 

Scots? Mary Barbour? The Statue of Liberty? The 

boy who witnessed the last witch burning in Paisley? 

The historic parade celebrates the rich history of the 

village with fabulous costumes and stories behind 

each character. To take part come along to the 

costume fi tting day on Sunday 19th March, 12 - 2pm, 

The Old Library Centre, Kilbarchan. Children under 12 

must be accompanied by an adult in the parade. 

Decorate a float 


Fairtrade? Gie’s a break 

On Saturday 11th March we’re holding a Fairtrade ‘break’ event in the McKillop 

between 10.30am and 12.30pm. There will be home cooking, fairtrade tea and 

coffee, a stall of Fairtrade goods from the Rainbow Turtle shop in Paisley. We 

hope to show a short fi lm about recent developments in Fairtrade business. Last 

year was very busy and we’re hoping this one will be too. 

Lochwinnoch International Aid 

Over the last year we raised nearly £5,000 which we donated to a number of 

international charities. Seeds of Light works with AIDS prevention and care of 

orphans in South Africa (£500). The Music School in Gaza (£200), Acid Survivors 

Trust International works with victims of acid attacks in several countries (£260), 

Womenkind Worldwide for work on violence prevention for women in Bolivia 

(£250). Medecins sans Frontier for rescue work in Haiti (£400). These are 

examples of the one-off donations we make around the world. We also support 

some organisations on a regular basis. Most of this money is raised from our 26 

regular contributors giving monthly payments. We would welcome some more 

contributors. We have regular meetings through the year and welcome anyone 

interested. Contact LIA secretary, Dave Mellor 843 099 


Lochwinnoch Arts Festival 

Mapping Lochwinnoch 

A full house at Castle Semple for the fi rst of 

two events in the lead up to the 2017 Arts 

Festival. Vanessa Collingridge writer and TV 

presenter and 

John Moore 

from Glasgow 

U n i v e r s i t y 

map historian 

held an 

informative 

John Moore 

and fun event 

on Sunday 

5th February. Looking at old and new maps of 

the village tracing the history and industry on the 

area. 

The children and families then made their own 

maps of the village - Great fun! 

Two locals Mrs Dolan and Mrs 

Cochrane making a map 


Colourful, fun and 

wonderfully creative 

the fl oats are the 

centre piece of the 

Lilias Day parade. 

Floats are limited, so 

if you wish to theme 

and decorate a fl oat 

this year please get 

in touch as soon 

a possible. Floats 

are free for the 

day, thanks to the 

fantastic support of 

Malcolm’s Group who each year donate the use of the lorries and drivers for the 

day. 

Contact us on info@liliasday.co.uk website: http://www.liliasday.co.uk or on 

Facebook


The Underheugh Ark 

are a local Animal 

Rescue based in the 

West of Scotland, we rescue all animals big and small from 

guinea pigs, rabbits and chickens to cats, dogs and even 

donkeys! 

The dogs we rescue are mainly strays from the pounds 

in England, why English pounds and not Scottish? - 

unfortunately dogs in pounds in England are at a high risk 

as they are only offered 7 days before they are put to sleep. 

Too many dogs are dying, afraid and alone, because their 

previous “owners” have abandoned them. We aren’t a typical rescue as we are foster based so any animal that 

comes up to us goes right into a foster home where they are assessed before being put up for adoption. The rescue 

was setup by a local couple with a love for animals, they both work long hours and on top of that deal with the rescue 

at same time. The rescue has grown so much in the past few years we now have several volunteers to help out on 

the day to day admin tasks of the rescue, fundraising etc. 

We are a non-profi t organisation that relies completely on donations from adoptions and fundraising events so 

that we can ensure any animal we take in has full vet 

LOST PETS? 

check ups, vaccinations, neutering etc. before being rehomed. 

If you would like to donate this can be done in 

If your pet has gone missing and you 

∂∫∞€Ł@)( person at Abbey Vets in Greenock and Paisley. Food/ 

would like to place a notice in The 

bedding donations are also welcome! 

We’ve also 

Advertizer, please call 

recently setup a monthly lottery too for fundraising - any 

01505 613340 or email 

questions please contact our Facebook page https:// 

info@advertizer.co.uk 

www.facebook.com/The-Underheugh-Ark-Rescue- 

531939926873298/. Underheugh Farm, Lunderston 

Bay, By Gourock, Gourock, Renfrewshire PA19 1BB. 

We can also put updates on our website & Facebook. 

Contact Details. Email: UnderheughArk@gmail. 

There is no charge for this service! 

Registered Scottish Charity No SCO46258 

Pet Blog 

by PetVets 

Diabetes - Dogs & Cats 

lð§¥‡þÐœ 

Diabetes Mellitus is a relatively common disease of middle aged to older 

cats and dogs. It is more common in overweight animals and some breeds 

also have an increased risk e.g. Toy Poodles, Terriers, Cocker Spaniels 

and Siamese cats. 

Diabetes is caused by either an inadequate production of insulin or an 

abnormal response of the body to insulin. Insulin is a hormone produced 

by the pancreas which allows the body to transport glucose (sugar) from the 

blood into cells to provide energy. Lack of insulin, or inadequate response 

to insulin, means that glucose cannot enter cells leading to increased 

glucose in the blood and reduced energy for cells. 

Signs of diabetes can include: 

• Increased thirst 

• Increased urination 

• Increased appetite 

• Weight loss 

• Lethargy/reduced activity 

• Poor coat 

• Cloudy eyes 

ÐœðŁ 

lð§¥ 

Diagnosis is based on blood and urine samples. 

Treatment of diabetes is achieved using a controlled diet and daily injections 

of insulin. A strict routine of feeding times, amounts and injection times can 

result in very good control of blood glucose and good resolution of clinical 

signs. In overweight animals a diet to achieve optimum body condition can 

also help control diabetes. Any concurrent diseases must also be treated. 

Regular monitoring using blood and urine samples is important as each 

animal will require a specifi c insulin 

dose to achieve stability and this can 

vary over time. 

Possible complications of untreated 

diabetes include: 

• Ketoacidosis (accumulation 

of ketones in blood causing 

increased acidity) 

• Cataracts 

• Chronic pancreatitis (cats) 

• Peripheral neuropathy (nerve 

dysfunction leading to an 

abnormal stance) (cats) 

• Recurrent infections 

With early diagnosis and appropriate 

treatment most diabetic cats and 

dogs can enjoy long, happy lives.


Re-homing Pets 

Can you offer a home to any of our featured pets? 

Jasper - Male cat around 14 

years young 

Jasper was stressed with the children 

in his previous home so is looking 

for a new home with no children, but 

may be ok with other cats. He is a 

lovely, friendly boy who is still a bit shy at the centre 

but he especially likes female humans giving me 

attention. He would like a garden please, not near 

a busy road, as he is used to getting outside for a 

potter around. 

Delta - female cat - 5 years old 

Delta is a lovely, friendly girl who can be a little 

bit shy & doesn’t like being lifted up but does 

love attention & a fuss being made of. She is 

looking for a home with no children & no other 

pets please, but she would like a garden, not 

near a busy road, so that she can go out & 

stretch her paws. 

Cardyke Farm, Langmuirhead Road, Auchinloch, 

Glasgow G66 5LD - Telephone 0141 779 3341 

Squeak - 

male Degu, 

age unknown 

Squeak is looking for his forever home 

with his best friend Bubble. This pair 

are inseparable and enjoy cuddles and 

afternoon naps. They are looking for 

a new owner who understands their 

requirements. 

Prosecco - male Guinea Pig, age 6 months 

Prosecco is looking for his forever home with 

his friend Chambord. Prosecco isn’t too 

confi dent at the moment and will need time 

to get used to being handled. He loves hiding 

in his house and snacking on his favourite 

veggies. 

To contact the centre about any animals, please 

call 03000 999 999 or visit www.scottishspca. 

org/rehoming 

Ruby - Female Beagle - 

Age: 2 to 5yrs 

Ruby loves to play with 

rope toys. She can live 

with children who are 16 years old or 

over and would benefit from a super 

active home to get the exercise she 

needs and loves. Someone who has 

owned hound types before would also 

help her settle. Ruby needs a home 

who are around for most of the day for 

company as she can be worried when 

left. Ruby would prefer to be the only dog in the home & needs her own 

secure garden to practice her training in. 

Harvey - Male Crossbreed - Age: 5-7 Years 

Harvey is very affectionate and loves to play 

games! He can live with children who are 8 

years old or over and needs his own secure 

garden to practice his training in. Someone 

who has owned dogs like Harvey previously 

would benefi t him and help him settle. 

Harvey is ok with dogs but may need space 

and careful introductions and someone who 

is happy to give him the space around dogs 

that he needs. 

Dogs Trust Rehoming Centre, 315 Hamilton Road, 

Uddingston, Glasgow, G71 7SL. Open: 12noon - 

4pm (inc weekends); 12noon- 7.30pm on Tuesdays; closed: Wednesdays 

Search for Furry 

Tail Romance 

How did you meet the love of your 

life and are they furry with four legs? 

Did you rescue your dog, or did 

it rescue you? Local dog holiday 

service providers, ‘Barking Mad’ 

Paisley & Inverclyde are used to 

hearing their customers’ emotional 

beginnings and are searching for the 

most inspirational and heartwarming 

story. 

A staggering one in fi ve pet owners 

was reported to prefer their pet to 

their partner, in a study carried out to 

celebrate National Pet Month 2016 

by Panasonic Home Smart! 

Scientific research has shown that 

when a dog gazes at its owner, 

the hormone oxytocin rises in both 

human and canine brains, suggesting 

that a true love is felt. Oxytocin is 

the hormone known to trigger strong 

feelings of unconditional love and 

protection when parents and their 

children look into each other’s eyes. 

Faye first met her Collie Jazz when she was fostering dogs. He was only 

supposed to stay for a month and its now 5 years! Jazz hadn’t had much 

training and was a wild teenager. He would snap when he didn’t want to do 

what he was told and was much harder work than Faye thought he would 

be. Faye worked at his training and Jazz came round to her ways and 

they’ve now inseparable. 

If you would like 

to share your 

canine love story, 

it’s really easy to 

get involved! Just 

email us (Faye. 

Carruthers@ 

barkingmad. 

uk.com) with a 

basic outline of 

your story and 

contact details, 

including a phone 

number. Don’t 

worry if your writing skills are a little rusty, it’s the story that is important! 

45 45


Top 5 jobs 

for march 

1 Protect new spring shoots 

from slugs 

2 Plant shallots, onion sets and 

early potatoes 

3 Plant summer-flowering 

bulbs 

4 Lift and divide overgrown 

clumps of perennials 

5 Top dress containers with 

fresh compost 

It’s impossible not to feel the anticipation of spring as the days get longer 

and at last the clocks spring forwards 

This month look out for 

• Birds returning from their winter homes 

• Dawn Chorus 

• Woodland flowers in blossom 

• Blackthorn Blossom (but not Hawthorn Blossom) 

• Frogspawn 

• Scarlet Elf Cup 

• The Sale of Snowdrop bulbs in the green 

There are also a pair of woodpeckers drumming in the woods and Herons 

are frequently seen over the lake so hopefully they will breed this year. 

The ground is green with butterbur, the snowdrops have been out since 

February and many early woodland plant species will come into flower, 

Lesser Celandine opens in the sun but closes it’s petals when it is cloudy, 

wood anemones and violets appear at this time. In wetter areas wild garlic 

and dogs mercury totally cover the ground in a sea of pungent foliage. 

Blackthorn will flower towards the end of the month, even before the leaves 

come out, every year there is keen interest from naturalists as to the exact 

date of the first blackthorn, and later hawthorn flowering in various parts of 

the UK as they are used to measure the effects of climate change. 

Membership - Annual membership is available now, that means if you 

purchase in March you will get an extra month free! Remember to renew if 

you are already a member as last year’s tickets expire March 31st. 

Prices on a family ticket remain frozen this year. 

Family and Grandparent Tickets £69, Single or Concession Tickets £32. 

Garden Report - During the month of March we should begin to see 

improved light levels, and after a dull, wet, and snowy February, this will be 

most welcome and should trigger off new growth in many of our plants. 

As the famous Finlaystone snowdrop displays come to an end, we will 

be undertaking the tasks of lifting, dividing, and replanting them in other 

locations; this is done to prevent the clumps becoming too congested and 

also increases the amount of snowdrops that we have on display. This job 

is very rewarding but time consuming, and if you would like to come along 

from March onwards as a snowdrop volunteer, or volunteer to help in all 

parts of the garden, please give us a call, you will be made most welcome. 

As snowdrops transplant better when in ‘greenleaf’, now is the perfect time 

to do it; if you would like some for your own garden, please phone your 

order into reception, these will give you pleasure year after year, and will 

increase in numbers as they mature. 

Plants of interest in the garden this month are Helleborous (Lenten rose) 

Viburnum bodnantense, with its bright pink blossom, and the gorgeous 

scent of the tiny flowered Lonicera purpusii (the winter honeysuckle), 

these can all be seen in the winter border. In our knot garden, the Camelia 

japonica ‘hedge’, is a riot of colour with masses of rose-like blooms, and is 

well worth a visit. 

Volunteer - If you would like to come down and see what the rangers 

do when we aren’t leading walks or playing on pirate ships, if you are 

interested in volunteering, either doing ranger work, helping with snowdrop 

preparations, restaking windblown trees, gardening or surveys please 

contact Fraser Lang on 01475 540505 

Logs - Are for sale at £5.50 a bag (softwood) or £21 for four bags. £6.95 a 

bag (Hardwood) £26 for four or a mixed 2 hard and 2 soft for £23. Please 

ring Norah on 01475 540505 for further details.


47 47 

The mornings are getting brighter and the evenings are becoming 

lighter – spring is surely upon us. As we leave the grips of winter, 

it is a great time to get outside and enjoy nature. Why not take a 

family stroll along our woodland trails and see what signs of spring 

you can spot together? Can you see any daffodils or primroses blooming on 

the woodland floor? Watch the birds closely to see if they are collecting moss, 

grass and twigs for their nests. Look up to the trees – is there a blue tit or house 

sparrow flying in to a bird box? Can you hear the calls of a chiffchaff, newly 

arrived in Scotland after a long journey from its winter home in Africa? There is 

so much to discover! 

If the beauty of Scottish springtime inspires you to give nature a helping hand, 

why not come along to our Family Volunteering group on Saturday 11th March? 

Bring your kids or grandchildren, nieces and nephews and join us for a fun 

afternoon on the reserve. You could be helping to build homes for mini-beasts, 

clearing vegetation or creating a living willow tunnel. What better way to get 

outdoors and enjoy the fresh air with your loved ones, while also helping to make 

Lochwinnoch reserve a great place for wildlife and for people! 

For the chance to enjoy everything that RSPB Lochwinnoch has to offer, pop 

along to our Open Day on Sunday 26th. Discover the visitor centre, explore the 

woodland trails and take part in fun kids activities like pond dipping, bug hunting 

and storytelling – and all for free! It’s guaranteed to be a fun day out for all the 

family. 

For more information about the reserve or any of our events, please call 01505 

842 663 or email lochwinnoch@rspb.org.uk. 

‘Step Up for St Vincent’s’ 

Sponsored Walk 

Join us and Vinnie, our St Vincent’s Hospice Mascot, on Sunday 19th 

March at 11am, for our first ever sponsored walk at Castle Semple, 

Lochwinnoch. 

Bring your friends and family and join Vinnie and fellow supporters on this leisurely 10k walk or 

our shorter family friendly 5k route which is suitable for all abilities. 

After a fun warm-up, the walk will start 

at 11am and will be a great chance to 

catch up with friends, spend the day 

with the family or even just get out for 

a bit of exercise … all while supporting 

a great cause! 

St Vincent’s Hospice is a charitable 

organisation at the heart of the 

Renfrewshire community, offering 

specialist care and services to all 

those affected by life-limiting illness. 

To register please follow the link 

below to complete a registration form 

http://bit.ly/2izZvuC or go to www.svh. 

co.uk. £10 entry fee for adults, under 

16’s register for free.


Bridge of Weir Horticultural Society 

Members faced wintry conditions to join Sue and 

Adrian Whitaker on their Arctic Odyssey to Norway, 

Iceland and Greenland. The first stop was Tromso’s 

Botanical Gardens, the world’s most northerly Botanic 

Gardens which specialises in Arctic and alpine plants. 

There was a magnificent display of herbaceous plants, 

many familiar to us such Eryngium and Aquilegia. They 

then visited the northerly town of Honningsvag which 

enjoys warmth from the Gulf Stream and there plants 

such as Marsh and Spotted Orchids grow, in profusion, 

alongside other wild flowers on the outskirts of town. 

Centaura, sea hollies, daisies, roses and Stachys are 

cultivated in local gardens. 

Leaving for Svalbard, a group of Norwegian islands, 

the Whitakers travelled to the Advent Valley which is 

an area locked by perma-frost excepting the 100 day 

growing season when it becomes boggy and active with 

displays of tiny Arctic and scree-loving plants. Willows 

are the only trees which can survive. They only grow 

a few centimetres 

but what they lack in 

height they make up 

for in longevity living 

for hundreds of years. 

Svalbard is a very 

sensitive conservation 

area and visitors 

are accompanied 

by guides, guns and 

dogs. The latter 

sniff out lurking polar 

bears, rather than 

keep tourists in line! 

Iceland, is the second largest island in the North 

Atlantic and home to the Skrudur Gardens, Iceland’s 

oldest Botanical Garden dating from 1909. Here, if the 

conditions are right, plants will grow even in this hostile 

environment. They thrive if protected by shelter belts 

of trees or dry stone walls and are well fed using local 

seaweed. We saw Delphiniums, Lupins, Astrantias, 

Nasturtiums and Cirsiums all growing happily here. 

Sue and Adrian enjoyed a bumpy journey through 

barren terrain to walk on the Langjokull glacier in the 

Thingvellir National Park. Even in this desolate area, 

some plants can grow and it was here that American 

astronauts practised their moon landings. 

Continuing West to Greenland, the largest island, 

they visited Nanortalik, an isolated community, which 

welcomes visitors to its small village and costume 

museum. Colours are so important to the resilient 

residents; their houses are brightly painted in primary 

colours and their costumes are embroidered with 

complex and unique patterns using colourful beads 

and threads. 

The Whitakers presentation was greatly enjoyed by 

everyone. Their photos of bleak terrain, icebergs and 

fjords were stunning, as were their shots of tenacious 

alpines or magnificent herbaceous plants growing in 

the harshest of conditions. 

We next meet on 9th March to hear Robert McCaw 

talk on Spring Planting. We meet at The Royal 

British Legion, BOW and start at 8pm - visitors always 

welcome. 

Kilmacolm Horticultural Society 

The March winter lecture for Kilmacolm Horticultural Society will be held on Wednesday 15th March at 7.30pm 

in the New Community Centre, Kilmacolm. Our favourite speaker - Louise Bustard, senior lecturer at Glasgow 

Botanic Gardens, will give a lecture entitled ‘The weird and wonderful 

world of tropical plants’ - her fascinating photos will be enhanced by 

the superb anecdotes for which Louise is famous. The Annual Spring 

Bulb Competition will be held following the lecture. Please bring along 

your exhibits of daffodils, tulips, Spring selection, for judging and 

presentation of the Jimmy Whittet Trophy. We also hope to hold our first 

children’s bulb competition, with the support of the local schoolchildren. 

Refreshments at the end of the evening, everyone is most welcome, 

please come along and enjoy a superb evening together. The Spring 

and Summer Outings are now taking bookings - the Spring outing to 

Glenarn at Rhu, the Summer outing to Crarae near Inveraray. Further 

details on all events from Jill Russell on 01505 872393.


49 49 

Welcome to Scotland’s largest Regional Park 

70 Walkers Tartan Walk around Lochwinnoch: On Wednesday 8th 

February the Park’s Ranger Service and Renfrewshire’s Walking Network 

lead over 70 people around the village. They wore tartan and sang 

traditional songs such as the Uist Tramping Song, Coulters Candy and 

Mairi’s Wedding! Well done to all. 

Help Keep Britain Tidy: Volunteer your time and help keep your local 

Park free from litter. Every little helps and all equipment provided. Join us 

at Lunderston Bay 10.30am - 12.30pm on Saturday 4th March or Castle 

Semple Sunday 5th March from 10am - 12noon. Thank you. 

Easter Fun & Summer Courses Online now: Planning ahead? We’ve 

just taken our first bookings for Spring and Summer courses through our 

new online booking system. Keep your kids busy and give them a taste 

of adventure in the holidays. 

Final Chance to Stargaze: The final Stargazing Evening of the season 

at Muirshiel Country Park is Monday 6th March, 7 - 9pm, book now by 

calling 01505 842 882. Special deal £2.50 for a hot drink & cake! 

Bike Swap with LEAP 19th March: The Local Energy Action Plan group 

will be at Castle Semple from 1 - 3pm with one of their handy bike swap 

days. Such a good idea for little ones who grow quick and are in need of 

an upgrade! 

Beginner Adult Courses: Have you ever fancied learning to canoe, 

kayak or sail? We have RYA Level 1 sailing, and British Canoeing Union 

1 star beginner’s courses now online for summer 2017. It’s a recognised 

qualification and no experience is necessary, prices are just £80 for a 

full day paddling course and £135 for a 2 day introductory RYA sailing 

course. 

Pedal the Park Road Sportive Sunday 23rd April: Online entry is now 

LIVE for this 100km sportive! Sign up now for just £15, this includes a £5 

donation to local charity CLIC Sargent in Scotland supporting their work 

with young people with cancer and their families. 

Ride 63 Community Cycle Club: The 2017 Ride Calendar will be out 

soon. Join our new ‘group style facebook page’ contact the secretary by 

email ridesixtythree@gmail.com for a membership form and ride info. 

Tag n Track Project update 

It’s time for the monthly roundup from Project Officer Hayley Douglas. TnT 

is funded by Heritage Lottery Fund, Greater Renfrewshire and Inverclyde 

LEADER and Clyde Muirshiel Regional Park 

Project News 

It has been a busy first few months with the TnT Project. We held our 

first Bird Ringing event up at Muirshiel where nearly 40 birds were caught 

in the mist net. As well as the usual suspects of coal and blue tits, the 

big surprise of the day was a woodcock. These 

waders usually sit tight to the ground and rely on 

their cryptically camouflage to protect them from 

predators. This one was spooked by a walker 

further down the slope from the mist net and 

flew straight into it. A mad dash and the bird was 

soon in the Centre being admired by a group of 

20 Geochachers. Our woodcock numbers increase in the winter when 

they are joined by birds from Russia and other Northern areas, with birds 

ringed in the Clyde area often turning up in Ireland. 

You may be aware that many of the mute 

swans at Castle Semple are ringed and 

previous resightings have shown that 

the birds tend to stay within the Clyde 

area. Not so for one intrepid swan who 

was spotted on the 29th of January on a 

little reservoir in Belfast! It hadn’t been 

spotted since it was ringed back in May 

2015 so who knows what route it took to 

get there. If only we could have fitted it with a satellite tag! 

Finally I would like to say a big thank you to our first two business sponsors 

who have kindly contributed to the project. Wild Surveys and Starling 

Learning are both local ecological consultancies and their donations will 

allow for the purchasing of the tag harnesses which are fitted to the lesser 

black-backed gulls. One of our sponsors provided the following quote: 

‘Starling Learning has provided some sponsorship money for the Tagn-Track 

project as we believe environmental education is vital. And any 

work that can be done to improve the image of gulls is very worthwhile.’ 

If your business would like to get involved in the tagging and tracking of 

the gulls then please get in touch on tnt@clydemuirshiel.co.uk. We have 

a variety of packages available. 

Event News 

Our next ringing event will take place at Muirshiel Country Park on Sunday 

5th March between 10.30am and 3.30pm. Please do come along and see 

what surprise birds we get in the net this time. 

More Info… 

Details can be found on the Park’s website www.clydemuirshiel.co.uk/tagn-track 

or by emailing tnt@clydemuirshiel.co.uk. The Project also now 

has its own Facebook Page which can be found at www.facebook.com/ 

TagnTrack/ Talks to groups can be arranged if you are interested in finding 

out more about the project and its findings as the project progresses. 

Regular Events 

Mondays (but not public holidays) 

Lochwinnoch Community Walks 

meet 10.30am at The Cross, 

Lochwinnoch. 

Weekly Volunteer Groups - 

Newcomers always welcome! 

Thursdays 

Castle Semple Conservation 

Volunteers, Adult group, from 

12.30pm – 3.30pm. 

Saturdays 

Greenock Cut Conservation 

Volunteers, Adult group, 10.30am 

– 2.30pm. 

Sundays 

Castle Semple Young Volunteers, 

12 - 18 yr olds, 10am – 12noon 

Keep up to speed with events and activities taking place on the Park’s Facebook: facebook.com/ClydeMuirshielRegionalPark or 

Twitter @Clydemuirshiel pages and Instagram pages.


Kilbarchan Community Nursery 

As part of the nursery’s 

transition to school 

programme, the children 

took part in ‘Money week’, 

a joint topic with Kilbarchan 

Primary School. 

The school pupils visited 

the nursery to take 

part in a book sale and 

money activities on the 

smartboard. 

Nursery children visited 

the primary school and 

learned about different 

coins with sorting games, 

making coin people and 

using the stampers to 

make pictures. 

In January we celebrated 

Burns’ Day where the 

children enjoyed a snack 

of haggis, neeps and 

tatties. Murray said the 

haggis was ‘yummy.’ In 

the afternoon, Carol came 

along to show the children 

some Highland hustle 

Scottish dancing. 

Kilmacolm Playgroup & Toddlers 

The children are happy to announce we have welcomed even more new children to playgroup as well as more 

joining this month! This means we have lots of friends to play and have fun with. We have enjoyed celebrating 

World Book Day where the children were encouraged to bring along their favourite 

story and could even dress up if they wanted. We are also exploring topics of On 

the Farm, Spring and Easter in the coming weeks. 

Role and creative play continues to be a firm favourite. We like pretending to be 

doctors, patients, chefs, mummys & daddies to name but a few! 

Playgroup runs on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday mornings. For more information 

contact Playgroup Secretary Claire at kilmacolmplaygroupandtoddlers@gmail. 

com. 

Our Toddlers group is on Wednesday mornings from 10am - 11.30am and gives 

0 - 3 year olds a chance to play with lots of different toys, make friends, and 

share a snack, while the grown-ups catch up over a cup of tea. Drop in to find 

out more, or contact Frances at kilmacolmtoddlers@outlook.com. Our website is 

http://kilmacolmplaygroupandtoddlers@jimdo.com. 

Lochwinnoch Toddlers & Baby 

Lochwinnoch Toddlers & Baby group is a charitable community that meet 

every Monday and Wednesday morning 9.45am - 11.30am in the McKillop 

Hall Lochwinnoch (term time). There are plenty of toys to keep the wee 

ones amused and parents/grandparents/minders can get a hot drink and a 

chat. We aim to book different entertainment at least once a month. For 

March we have a Soft Play company joining us on Monday 13th. 

On Wednesday 19th April we have our Easter themed Painting Corner, 

this gets messy so be warned! To keep up-to-date with our events please 

find us on Facebook. We are a very relaxed group and you can come to as 

many or as little sessions as you please. Hope to see you soon. 

EVERY MO N D A Y 

Lochwinnoch Baby & Toddlers 

McKillop Hall, 9.45am - 11.30am 

£2/family fee incl tea & children’s snacks. 

Kilmacolm Playgroup 

St Columba Church Hall, Kilmacolm, 

9.30am - 11.40am 

Howwood Baby & Toddler Group 

Howwood Parish Church, 10am - 12noon 

Kilbarchan Parish Church Tots’ Club 

Kilbarchan Parish Church Hall, 9.15am 

- 11.30am 

EVERY TUESDAY 

Bridge of Weir Toddlers 

Cargill Hall, Lintwhite Cres, BoW 

Pop along and see us from 9.30 - 11.30am 



9.30am - 11.40am 

Howwood Playgroup 

Howwood Church Hall, 9.45am - 11.35am 

EVERY WEDNESDAY 

Kilmacolm Toddlers 


10am - 11.30am 

For children from birth to 3 years. 

Lochwinnoch Baby & Toddlers 

McKillop Hall. 9.45am - 11.30am 

£2/family fee incl tea and children’s snacks. 


Howwood Church Hall 9.45am - 11.35am 

EVERY TH U R S D A Y 

Houston Toddlers 

Church Hall, Main Street, Houston 

Pop along and see us from 9.30 - 11.30am 



9.15am - 11.40am 


Howwood Church Hall 9.45am - 11.35am 

EVERY FR I D A Y 

Langbank Playgroup 

Langbank Village Hall 9.45 - 11.45am 

For 2.5 - 5yr olds. 

Contact Jen Burrows 07947 983025. 

Langbank Under 3’s 

Church Hall, Langbank 10am - 11.45am 

For children from birth to 3 years 

1ST & 3RD FR I D A Y 

Renfrewshire Inverclyde Twins Club 

McKillop Hall, Lochwinnoch 

1pm-2.30pm 

£3. Bring a mug along for a cuppa.


Gryffe Rotary Young Carers 

Outing 

51 51 

Funds raised by collections 

alongside the Santa’s Sleigh in 

Brookfi eld and Houston, followed 

by the raffle at the Rotary Burns 

Supper were used to very good 

effect to support evenings out, 

organised in conjunction with 

Renfrewshire Young Carers at The 

Experience, Hillington between 

23rd and 31st January. The week 

of Rotary outings coincided with 

national Young Carers Awareness 

day, 26th January organised by 

The Carer’s Trust (https://carers. 

org/young-carers-awareness-day). 

Bridge of Weir Primary School 

Grandparents and senior citizens were thoroughly entertained at our Scottish 

concert on Friday 9th February when pupils did themselves proud with 

their wonderful singing, dancing, reciting, guitar playing, bagpipe blowing 

- and even a wee bit of joke telling from Cameron our very accomplished 

compere! Everyone from our tiniest children in the nursery to our senior 

pupils in Primary 7 participated in this celebration of all things Scottish and 

the audience loved every moment. 

Pupils also got the chance to 

be an appreciative audience 

when the Hopscotch Theatre 

Company came to the school 

with their show The Nation 

of Innovation. P1-7 pupils 

learned about some of the 

great Scottish innovators and 

inventors and our P6 classes 

are looking forward to follow 

up workshops which will focus 

on developing self confi dence, 

resilience and creativity. 

Fairtrade Fortnight takes 

place between 27th February 

and 12th March and this year 

we are marking it with a whole 

school competition. Everyone 

has to think of the name of a 

new Fairtrade chocolate or 

snack bar, choose the shape 

of it and then design an eyecatching 

wrapper for it. There 

will be a prize for each class 

and we are looking forward 

to getting lots of creative and 

imaginative entries! 

Finally, congratulations are in order for four of our P3 pupils whose art work 

was selected to be included in this year’s “Inspired” exhibition at Paisley 

Museum and Art Galleries. You can see the brilliant pirate pictures created 

by Erin Watson, Jess Peters, Holly Bright and Billy McKie at the art galleries 

until 18th April. 

Gryffe High School 

S6 Pupils give Blood 

The Blood Transfusion 

Service recently 

provided S6 pupils 

with the opportunity 

to become a blood 

donor. A presentation 

was given to the year 

group from Scot Blood 

outlining the reasons 

behind giving blood 

and the restrictions 

placed in order to 

become a donor. 

The challenge was 

given to the S6 

pupils to engage in 

this opportunity and 

hopefully begin their 

journey of being a regular donor. The S6 pupils rose to the challenge with 

all appointments fully booked by Monday morning. The mobile unit was 

busy all day with 43 pupil appointments. A fantastic response from the S6 

pupils resulted in a total of 35 pints of blood being donated with a number 

more registering to donate in the future. Comments were made by the Scot 

Blood staff regarding the maturity and the way pupils handled themselves 

across the day and that they were delighted with the response. Well done 

to all pupils involved and hopefully they will continue to give blood in the 

future. 

Mr A Findlay - PT Pupil Support Mackintosh House 

Photographs - Rowan Seel S3 

S2 Pupils take part in Money Week 

.......and it was down to Money Business for the S2 pupils at the start of 

February. 

Money Week provides a numeracy focus which started with a visit from 

Scotwest Credit Union giving the pupils Savings advice. The pupils were 

issued with a Money Booklet to complete throughout the week and a fi nance 

theme was integrated into normal subject lessons. 

To finish off the week, pupils found themselves in ‘Contestants Row’ as Mr 

Anderson (who had apparently been rehearsing for this starring role for 

quite some time!) hosted an exciting edition of ‘The Price is Right’ in the 

school theatre. Pupils thoroughly enjoyed this S2 Money week event.


Johnstone High School 

Languages in Work Day 

S3 and S4 pupils in Johnstone High School have recently enjoyed 

an incredible insight into the power of Modern Languages in the global 

economic market. Guest speakers and notable companies, including the 

likes of IBM and Iberdrola were on hand to educate pupils on the benefits 

of modern languages for the enhancement of their future careers. Pupils 

enjoyed a series of varied workshops that highlighted the many benefits 

of learning languages in the school, university and the wider workplace 

context. It was an invaluable experience for pupils that would no doubt 

have had a lasting impact. 

Future 30 

Johnstone High Fashion & Textile Technology pupils take part in a joint 

venture with Cardonald College, The Princes Trust and Creative Scotland. 

Eleven pupils from Johnstone High’s Fashion and Textile department have 

been given the opportunity to take part in a series of workshops aimed 

at enhancing 

their garment 

construction 

techniques. 

Lecturers 

from Glasgow 

C l y d e 

College 

are guiding 

the pupils 

through 

increasing 

complex 

fashion and 

textile items, 

which is in 

addition to the skills learned in school, as they prepare to sit their National 

4/5 assessments. Pupils will make tote bags, embellished cushions, a 

rucksack, a dress and a shirt. 

Inspired 2017 Exhibition 

Congratulations to Johnstone High. Our very talented pupils were 

successfully chosen to exhibit work at the Paisley Museum and Art Gallery 

on 27th January for the INSPIRE exhibition 2017. The pupils enjoyed some 

light refreshments at the exhibition and had the opportunity to view their 

work displayed at the show. 

Christopher Brookmyre Visit 

The English department were delighted to welcome award winning Scottish 

crime writer, Christopher Brookmyre, to JHS recently. He shared with the 

senior pupils the inspiration behind his various novels and read one of his 

clever and witty short stories. 

Our pupils left inspired to read more of his work and create their own. 

Houston Primary School 

Teenage Lego Movie Whizz 

Unveils New Film 

Teenage Lego movie whizz unveils new film for Paisley’s City of 

Culture bid 

A Kilbarchan teenager from Johnstone High School has created a fabulous 

stop-motion animation film about the nearby town of Paisley, in trademark 

Lego bricks style. 

The three-minute film, which was launched on 1st 

February at Charles’ Primary School in Paisley, 

features the town’s most striking buildings while 

Paisley “buddies” are depicted in their most 

famous roles – from David Tennant as Dr. Who 

and the artist and playwright, John Byrne, in his 

studio, to pop megastar Paolo Nutini performing 

at ‘T in the Park’. There’s even homage to kitsch 70s Paisley pop queen, 

Kelly-Marie. 

Following his creation of ‘Brick Flicks’- a series of stop-motion animation 

films using Lego of famous movie scenes - 17 year-old Morgan Spence 

has been fêted by America’s Jimmy Kimmel and commissioned by a 

Birmingham man to create a unique marriage proposal. 

Renfrewshire Council Leader and Chair of the Paisley 2021 Partnership 

Board, Mark Macmillan said, “The wealth of young, creative talent in 

Renfrewshire is an extremely important part of our bid to become UK City 

of Culture 2021, and we are delighted to have Morgan in our midst. His 

film is a wonderful, affectionate tribute to Paisley, which we hope will ignite 

further debate about the town and its future.” 

Morgan Spence said, “Renfrewshire Council has supported my fi lms for 

several years now, involving me in Lego exhibitions back in 2013 and 2014. 

So it was a privilege for me to be able to promote the town in this way. 

My parents and grandparents are from Paisley and I’m delighted to have 

been able to play a small part in enhancing the town’s bid to become City 

of Culture.” 

The nursery pupils have been enjoying learning about the Scots language through traditional songs, stories and 

rhymes. They particularly enjoyed, ‘The Gruffalo’s Wean’ and ‘The Reiver Rat’. They also performed ‘Three 

Craws’ with confidence to the whole school as part of our Scottish Day. The P1-7 pupils have also been learning 

about Scotland via vertical learning sessions. 

Primary 3 have gone back in time and are learning about the Ancient Egyptians. They are busy transforming their 

class into an Egyptian Museum. 

Primary 7 are working on their Technology Challenge and this year they have chosen to make a robot. A huge 

thank you to the team of parents and grandparents who have come to support them throughout this challenge. As 

part of our extensive P7/S1 transition programme, Gryffe High School 

science department staff have been down to teach the children about 

microbes and carried out an experiment using UV light. The pupils 

were astonished to see the amount of germs that were still visible on 

their hands after washing! 

Eco News 

Primary 2 pupils have been learning about reducing, reusing and recycling thanks to the Eco Drama team. 

They had to sort out lots of junk into the three different categories. Our ‘Eco Warriors’ did this with ease and 

impressed the team with their knowledge. 

We continue to promote our ‘Clear out your Closet’ initiative on the first of each month. The next collection from 

our outdoor and indoor recycling bank is 6th March. 

The Gardening Club resumed on Thursday 23rd February for P5 and P6 pupils. Our gardening volunteers are 

keen to get started and are looking forward to meeting our green fingered pupils.


Kilmacolm Primary School 

We started back in January and hit the ground running as we were planning 

for the Official Opening of our refurbished building. To say there was a 

flurry of activity is putting it mildly as we prepared to welcome our local 

councillors, our Director of Education, Head of Service, Leader of Inverclyde 

Council, directors & managers from CBC builders and many dignitaries and 

friends past and present. 

The school was officially opened 

by Leader of the Council Stephen 

McCabe, with the vote of thanks 

given by Cllr Martin Brennan. 

All guests were entertained by a 

group of children who performed 

songs from ‘Matilda’, which they’d 

already successfully performed 

at The Scottish Parliament. After 

refreshments guests were given 

tours of our smart new building by 

P7 tour guides. 

Following our official opening we 

began to prepare for a celebration 

of Scotland, to showcase our 


Our Spring Coffee Morning will 

be on Saturday 25th March from 

10am until 12noon in the Primary 

School. There will be a bonnet 

parade from the children, a raffle, 

tombola, home baking, pocket 

money and tuck shop for the 

children and the golf tees game. 

£8 for a family ticket which is 2 

adults and up to 3 children, adults 

£2.50 and children £1.50 - pay at 

the door please. This includes a 

tea / coffee / juice and a cake. 

learning this term. Parents enjoyed scots verse recitals, Burns recitals, 

highland dancing and pupils who spoke confidently about their learning 

from every stage in 

school. The boys and girls 

studied a variety of stories 

from Katie Morag, Maisie 

the Cat, The Broons and 

First Aid for Fairies. 

As part of this Scottish 

celebration we held our 

annual Burns competition 

where P1-4 learned a 

Scots Verse and P5-7 

took part in the main 

competition by learning 

Port Glasgow High School 

PGHS successes at Festival 

Another year of outstanding successes 

at the Inverclyde music festival this year 

for PGHS pupils. 49 pupils from S1 to S6 

took part in a variety of classes, including 

percussion, voice, flute, bass, violin, 

piano, drama and many more. This is 

10% of our school roll and demonstrates 

the huge array of talent and dedication 

of our learners. Out of 49 participants, 

there were 18 first places and 14 second 

places. Trophies were won by Adam 

Docherty S6 for voice (A Davidson Mitchel trophy, Walter Rae trophy), 

Kirsten Mackay S6 for fl ute (John Langan Trophy), Alison Walker S6 for 

diction (Duncan Cup) and Sam Lunn S5 for Euphonium (JA Sloan Trophy). 

A special mention was given to the PGHS Junior Orchestra (in partnership 

with associate primary schools and Craigmarloch School). As we have 

come to expect, PGHS pupils excelled in their categories due to their hard 

work and commitment in preparing for the competition. A huge thank you 

to the music and instrumental teachers involved. 

Visit from Graphic Novelist, Paul Bristow 

On Tuesday 24th January, local author and graphic novelist Paul Bristow 

visited the Learning Resource Centre in Port Glasgow Community Campus. 

He delivered a workshop to pupils from Port Glasgow High School and 

showed them how to write and illustrate graphic novels. The pupils also got 

a chance to draw their own comic strip and learned some really interesting 

techniques used by illustrators. It was a great afternoon and hopefully Paul 

will come back and visit us again soon! 

S6 Pupils Paired Reading programme 

As part of their community award, S6 pupils volunteered to lead the Paired 

Reading program with PGHS S1 and Craigmarloch P7 pupils. The paired 

reading scheme ran for 12 weeks and involved S6 pupils supporting 

other pupils with their reading with an aim to improve literacy. S6 pupils 

also supported Craigmarloch pupils with the First Minister’s Reading 

Challenge. 

and reciting a Burns Poem. This year our finalists were; from P6 Emily 

Hathaway, P6 was Jack McGradey and P7 Poppy Paterson. Our panel 

of judges took quite some time to decide on an overall winner before 

announcing Poppy Paterson as winner for 2017. Poppy received a book 

voucher, copy of Burns for Bairns and the trophy. 

Whilst all of the above 

was taking place 

our pupils were also 

preparing to participate 

in Inverclyde Music 

Festival. As usual we 

had many children 

who gave powerful 

performances, some 

getting special mention, 

some winning 1st and 

2nd places and some 

who gained so much 

from the experience. 

Classes included Solo 

Verse, Verse Sight Reading, Inventive Story Telling and Vocal Solo. We are 

so proud of every one of our competitors who worked so hard to prepare for 

the event over and above successfully completing their school work. 

Competitors as follows: 

Verse Sight Reading; Kyle Aitchison 3rd, Lilly Davis 1st, Cara McMinn 

2nd, Kate Winning 3rd 

Solo Verse: Daniel Bruce, Elena Ferguson, Sam McGoldrick, Skye 

McLean, Kirsty Simpson, Ruby Torrance, Anne Wright and Kerr Wright 

Inventive Story Telling: Lorie Bunemann 3rd, Jude Gallagher Alagha, 

Jules Gaston 3rd, Emily Hathaway 1st, Poppy Paterson 1st, Ruby 

Torrance, Wesley Wilson 2nd and Anne Wright 

Vocal Solo: Jamie Dudgeon, Mahri Gilbert 3rd, Jessica Gilmour, Stella 

MacEachran 2nd, Jodie McClure, Poppy Paterson 1st, Christopher Todd 

and Natalina Wong 

Scots Poem; Logan Vosper 2nd, Ava Reid 3rd 

Embracing Languages at Port Glasgow High School 

100 S3 pupils at Port Glasgow High School had the opportunity to hear 

presentations from two Strathclyde University Language Ambassadors who 

volunteer their time to spread their passion and enthusiasm for languages. 

The aim of the visit was to encourage pupils to consider continuing their 

language studies beyond S3. The Language Ambassadors presented on 

their experiences of learning languages beyond high school. They told 

tales of their exotic travels, living abroad, demanding locals, student life and 

the tricky situations you may find yourself in if you do not know the local 

lingo! Let’s just say the Columbian jungle can be a dangerous place si no 

hablas español! 

The Ambassadors then opened the floor to pupils’ questions – the pupils 

were extremely keen to discover more about the ambassadors’ reasons 

behind their decision to continue studying languages. Everyone involved 

very much enjoyed the event and we hope to welcome the Language 

Ambassadors back to the school in the near future. Merci Beaucoup 

Muchas Gracias 

World Cancer Day 

S3 pupils working towards their Duke 

of Edinburgh Bronze Award, led by 

Sara Lynch S3, ran a school project 

to raise awareness of World Cancer 

Day, Saturday 4th February. £140.55 

was raised for Cancer Research UK 

by selling Unity Bands and organising 

a cake sale at break. 

Y DANCE 

S3 pupils were treated to a special dance session delivered by Y-Dance, a 

Scottish Dance Company that works closely with schools to deliver dance 

in different capacities. The instructor was absolutely fantastic and soon the 

confidence of the dancers was booming! Every pupil involved was a credit 

to PGHS. They showed determination and enthusiasm to work hard and 

perform to the highest standard. 

Follow us on Twitter @PortGlasgowHS and @PGHS_PE_ 

53 53


Photography Blog 

by Lauren Russell, Owner, Little Studio Kilmacolm 

Boost your child’s self 

esteem with family portraits 

An email caught my eye recently, it discussed family 

photos and how they can positively effect your child’s self esteem. It 

highlighted that by displaying family photos this will positively reinforce 

your child’s self-image and self-confidence as the photos themselves 

serve as a visual reminder of family events, everyday activities and 

cements your child as part of your family unit. “It’s important not only 

to be photographed in ways that indicate caring, nurturing, love and 

success, but also to see those images and take them in,” explains 

Krauss, co-author with Jerry Fryrear of “Photo Therapy and Mental 

Health.” 

Dr Krauss fi nds that family photographs are positive reinforcement to 

children “What it says to a child is, ‘I’m important in this family.’ ” It also 

shows a child they are meaningfully connected to others in the pictures. 

Favourite photos in a child’s room can enhance the feeling of safety, or 

offer stimulation.” 

By now you probably understand how important is to have your Family 

Portraits for helping your child to see themselves as an important part of 

the family. Moreover, the most positive impact for your children are not 

the digital images you have in drawer on usb, phone or on your tablet 

but according to Dr Krauss, he 

says “My bias is very simple. I 

think they (family photographs) 

should be on the wall,” 

By displaying photos in your 

house, you are showing your 

children that they are a part of 

a family unit, you are helping 

them to build their confi dence 

as they see themselves as a 

valued and important part of 

your family. 

Lauren 

Duchal Nursery 

There have been lots of noodles and chopsticks in Duchal recently, both 

proving a great hit with the children while celebrating Chinese New Year. 

This followed our French breakfast which was a great success. Not only 

do we have good Duchal manners in English but we also have excellent 

Duchal manners in French! 

In conjunction with 

the Big Garden Bird 

Watch the children 

made bird feeders 

and then enjoyed 

watching the birds 

feeding from them in 

their gardens. 

New Entries to 

Duchal: 

We are now offering 

places for the new 

intake for August 

2017. If your child will 

be of nursery age after the summer and you are looking at your pre school 

options, please do get in touch to have an informal look around. With our 

new extended hours offering greater flexibility of care and our purpose built 

facilities, Duchal Nursery, now in its 50th year, is a fantastic place to begin 

your child’s pre-school education. Please take a look at our website for 

more information – www.duchal.com and find us on Facebook. If you would 

like to come and visit the Nursery and meet the teachers please contact 

Head Teacher Jean McCarthy on: Tel. 874358. 

Houston Baby & Toddlers 

We loved making 

Valentine’s Day cards, 

with more crafts 

planned in March. It 

has been lots of fun 

at Baby and Toddlers, 

with all our friends - 

old and new. 

www.advertizer.co.uk/blog 

Why not come along and join us? Children 

from 0 - 4 years old, together with their parents/ 

grandparent/carer, will receive a warm welcome. 

The children can have fun playing with our many 

toys while the adults chat over a cuppa! We 

meet every Thursday 9.30 - 11.30am (term time 

only) in the West Hall, Main Street, Houston, PA6 

7EL (next door to the Carrick Centre) – welcome 

anytime. We look forward to meeting you. 

Sharon, Lesley & Fiona. (lesleyannjackson@ 

outlook.com) 

Langbank Playgroup 

The children were recently offered the opportunity to experience an animal 

handling session with Kevin from Scales and Tails. The children were able 

to meet a variety of animals such as millipedes, lizards, a tortoise and even 

a snake! 

Do you have a child aged between 

2.5yrs to 5yrs old? Are you looking 

for a fun, friendly and welcoming 

place to go on a Friday morning? 

Then why not come along and join us! 

Everyone welcome from Langbank 

and surrounding areas. 

Playgroup is held on a Friday morning 

in Langbank Village Hall and we 

currently have spaces for children 

aged 2.5yrs to 5yrs. If u would like 

to join us on a Friday morning or for 

more information please contact Jen Burrows on 07947 983025.


55 55 

St Columba’s School, Kilmacolm 

Inverclyde Music Festival 

It was another successful Festival for St Columba’s who was awarded the Cuthbert Forster 

Memorial Trophy for the most meritorious performance by a school entrant. A few of the 

many highlights include the Orchestra and Jazz Band winning each of their respective 

classes - further results for school and individual entries can be found in the news section at 

www.st-columbas.org. 

BP Ultimate STEM 

Challenge 

Congratulations to Michael 

Makin, Michael McGeoch, 

Quinn Murphy and Lewis 

Heasley who have made it 

through to the grand final 

of the BP Ultimate STEM 

Challenge competition with 

their video on the efficiency 

of an aircraft wing. They will 

now visit London in March for 

a fun, celebratory day in the 

heart of the Science Museum. There, they will be asked to present their entry in front 

of a team of judges and host a mini science fair. 

Suppers and Tea Parties 

Our pupils have been busy hosting a number of events. Senior School pupils and 

Junior 6 hosted their annual Burns Suppers in spectacular style. Junior 6 entertained 

guests with an afternoon of music, songs and poetry. From piping in the haggis, to 

giving the traditional speeches and toasts, to chairing the afternoon and providing the 

entertainment, the pupils of Junior 6 all showed what a talented group they are. Junior 

2 were excited to write and send the invitations to their annual tea party where guests 

enjoyed wonderful baking and a little show performed by the children. 

DATES: 

Wed 15th March - Former Pupils’ AGM - 19:30 Senior School. Former pupils and former staff welcome. 

Sat 25th March - Former Pupils & School Hockey/Rugby Matches - Hockey 09:15 Astro Turf, Rugby 10:30 Birkmyre Park. All welcome.


Gleddoch Ladies Golf Club 

Gleddoch Ladies held their AGM on Sunday 5th March. The golf AGM is 

a nice occasion because it comes at the start of the season and friends 

who might not have seen each other all winter meet and chat. We are 

all very much looking forward to the new season. A lot of work has been 

done on the course, and is still ongoing. And the hotel has been beautifully 

refurbished. 

The West Renfrewshire evening league team remains in Division 2 and is 

looking forward to this years matches. 

Retiring captain Jackie Gray reported a successful season, and thanked 

her committee for all their work. She also hopes that we will have fewer 

illnesses and injuries this year. She passed on the badge of office to new 

captain Mhairi Bryce. 

So we will continue with 

Winter League and bounce 

games, getting prepared 

for the new season, ready 

to start soon. 

In the photo: Vice Captain 

Shirley Back, Captain 

Mhairi Bryce and Past 

Captain Jackie Gray. 

Kilmacolm Golf Club - Ladies 

On 7th February, the Annual Charity Bridge Afternoon in aid of Erskine 

Hospital raised a record total of £895.20. 

22 Tables for Bridge, 

with over 90 ladies 

attending; there 

was time for a 

delicious afternoon 

tea, & a Raffle, with 

many donations of 

prizes from the lady 

members. 

Barbara Wilson won 

first prize; well done. 

This successful 

fundraiser has been 

in our social calendar 

for nearly 50 years; 

records have been kept throughout 

these years. Norah Adams has 

organised the afternoon for 10 years, 

receiving a well deserved Decorus 

voucher for all her hard work 

Thank you to Etoile & to Gibb Stuart 

for donating prizes & to everyone who 

supported, assisted & contributed to a 

very successful & happy afternoon. 

We hope to keep on running this 

Erskine Hospital fundraiser for many 

more years. 

Lois Brown, Lady Captain 

Norah Adams receiving a present for 10 years 

of running Erskine Charity Bridge from Lady 

captain Lois Brown 

Friday 24th to Sunday 26th March at the SEC 

(Scottish Exhibition Centre, Glasgow) 

Launched in 2006, the Scottish Golf show continues 

to grow in success year-on-year. 

Attracting 

over 17,000 golfers, the three-day event 

brings together all of the biggest brand 

names in the game and offers visitors an 

all-encompassing, interactive show experience. 

The show offers a fully-engaging day out with a range of 

exciting interactive features including 30 plus indoor driving bays, 

the ‘Get Rich Pitch’ the Bunker Challenge and the ever-popular Tiger Chip 

Challenge. Customers can test their skills on numerous putting challenges, 

whilst long drive and short game simulators provide yet more chances to hit 

some shots. 

PGA professionals are on-hand throughout the show delivering free lessons 

to help get your game into shape and back on track. Live demonstrations, 

trick-shot shows and short game clinics are just another reason why golfers 

rate this as the top golf show in the country. 

With driving ranges, golf simulators, putting greens, as well as one of the 

country’s largest purpose-built golf shops, all under one roof, this is one event 

golf enthusiasts won’t want to miss. 

Book at http://www.thescottishgolfshow.co.uk/ 

Houston United FC 

We are looking for more players for the 2006/07 Football 

Team. The team train every Wednesday & Thursday 

evening at the Onyx in Linwood, with games played on 

Saturdays throughout the season. This is open to both 

boys and girls. Please share with friends & family as 

someone might be interested. Contact Andy on 07796 

000 283 for more info. 

Gryffe Valley 10K Run 

Sunday 7 th May 2017 at 1.00pm 

NOW is the me to make your plans: 

Start/step up training, organise your team, seek sponsorship! 

Register via www.gryffevalley.rotary1230.org 

or using forms available at local shops, pubs and Sports Centres 

Entry fees: £12.50 if paid in advance, £15 on the day. £5 for runners 16-17 years 

Download your debra Sponsorship Form from above Club website! 

Follow us on Facebook - Gryffe Valley Rotary 10K Run


57 57 

The Ladies Section held their 

postponed AGM on Monday 16th 

January. There was no snow to 

disrupt things and a good turnout 

of 45 Ladies attended. 

The Business of the meeting 

was conducted by the outgoing 

Lady Captain - Joy McLeod. She 

took the opportunity to thank the 

very many people at the club 

who had helped to make her 

year of Captaincy a pleasant and 

successful one. 

Joy introduced the new Lady 

captain for 2017 - Pamela 

MacKenzie - to the members, 

wishing her a very successful year 

of golf. Pamela then proposed 

Marion Munro to be her Vice 

Captain for the year and she was 

welcomed by all the ladies. 

Finally, the prizes for the winners of 

the 2016 season were presented 

by Joy, followed by the Club 

Champion, Lesley Robertson, 

giving a vote of thanks before 

everyone retired to enjoy a cup of 

tea and chat. 

The Ladies section has continued 

to play regularly during the winter 

months and is looking forward to 

the lighter evenings which are now coming in fast.


Castle Semple Sailing Club 

Whacky Winchester Winter Pursuit Series (“WWWPS”) 

The second year of this popular 

series started in November in 

glorious sunshine and a good 

wind and finished in mid February 

in a howling gale with threatening 

grey skies. Recently, the keen 

racers had been suffering that little 

known ailment of SSM (severe 

sailing malnutrition) due to lack of 

wind from mid January to mid February (almost unheard of in the West of 

Scotland even during the summer months). However for the final race day 

the wind man delivered in style ie in force - but sadly only 4 boats could be 

enticed out to race (well it did clash with Scotland V France). So the risky 

racers were: Angus (Vortex), Brian and Alan (MV2), Team Pam (Enterprise) 

and Mark and Steve C (Dart). 

Surprisingly even though I arrived at the club house well after 11am there 

was not a rigged boat to be seen - seems the weather had driven them all 

in to the club house. However after much debate Angus declared that the 

wind had dropped sufficiently and there would be 2 races of 60 minutes 

(I had my doubts but anyway off they went). First the MV2 followed by 

the Enterprise, Vortex and Dart. After 30 minutes or so needless to say 

the usual “midday blast” arrived - I would guess at 40mph. Angus was 

heading up to buoy 9 when suddenly the unthinkable happened - he was 

upside down! When did we last see Double Trouble in trouble - I cannot 

honestly remember - seconds later the Dart spectacularly pitch poled into 

the swan area, swiftly followed by Team Pam close to buoy 7. However, 

the MV2 sailed on regardless - but did return to the pontoon to rescue Team 

Pam after a second capsize, who subsequently retired from the racing. As 

reward the MV2 were awarded first place in the race. 

After some welcome soup from Mrs Brian, Angus declared the second race 

was starting. After 20 minutes or so Angus was approaching buoy 2 when 

the previously unthinkable now not so unthinkable happened again - the 

Vortex was upside down in the loch twice in one day (due to a knotted 

spinnaker halyard…). Anyway once upright again he could see the race 

slipping away from him and the tension could be felt from the pontoon as 

the Vortex was powered up and was on a mission to win at all costs. The 

Dart was close to over taking him and the MV2 was way ahead down the 

loch. But Angus was having none of that. Coming back up to buoy 2 again, 

having battled with the Dart and finally got ahead after buoy 3 in the final 8 

minutes of the race, the MV2 went too close to the beach area giving the 

Vortex plenty of room to overtake, and once that happened the Vortex was 

Strathgryffe Squash 

Success at National 

Championships 

Strathgryffe squash juniors, Orla, 

Findlay & Ruadhri McDougall 

along with John Meehan & Beth 

Moglia had a very successful 

trip to Aberdeen for the Scottish 

Junior National Championships 

on the weekend of the 4th & 5th February. 

Orla the youngest, won the Under 11 Girls, 

brother Findlay came 3rd in the Boys Under 13 

and older brother Ruadhri won the Boys under 15 

Championship. 

John Meehan who has just turned 15 played in 

the Under 17’s and surpassed his seeding of 8 to 

finish 5th, only losing one match to the eventual 

winner. Completing the Strathgryffe squad Beth 

Moglia came 3rd in the Girls under 15’s. 

Many congratulations to all the juniors who had a 

very successful competition. 

Strathgryffe holds beginners squash sessions for 

juniors every Saturday morning between 9.45am 

and 10.45am for 5 to 9 year olds and 10.45am to 

12noon for 10 to 16 year olds. 

Strathgryffe 

Supports Local 

Community 

off with the Dart in hot pursuit. 

Well then it was all over. As usual 

there was much debate about the 

final positions but eventually without 

too much protest the final positions 

were: 

16 races – 4 discards 

First Angus Winchester (Vortex) 25 pts 

- series winner based on numbers of 

fi rsts. 

Second Brian Young and Alan 

Falconer (MV2) - 25 pts – failure to 

sail second race on 6th November 

came back to bite 

Third Team Pam (Doug McQuilken and 

Pamela Hunter) (Enterprise) - 36 pts 

– unfortunate broken enterprise at a 

critical point in January when there 

was good enterprise wind 

Fourth (Dart) Mark Simmonds and 

various crew. - 72 pts - more 30 knot 

+ winds needed 

Overall there were 19 boats taking 

part in the series 

For more info see website: www. 

castlesemplesc.co.uk 

Despite Andy Murray’s 

early exit in the Australian 

Open, Strathgryffe Tennis & 

Squash Club is determined 

to give as many local 

children as possible the opportunity to try some free tennis. 

The club works closely with Active Schools Renfrewshire and 

for over 10 years has been delivering free tennis coaching to 

the primary schools in Houston, St Fillan’s, Bridge of Weir, 

Kilbarchan, Howwood and Lochwinnoch. Gryffe High School is 

also supported by Strathgryffe and uses the club for all school 

home matches and for the annual school championships. 

Head Coach, Derek Brown is keen to expand this outreach 

programme to include more schools. In a joint venture with 

Bishopton Tennis Club free sessions have been offered to 

Rashilea, Bargarran, Barsail, Bishopton, Langbank, St John 

Bosco, St Annes and Inchinnan Primary Schools. 

Strathgryffe Tennis & Squash Club was constituted in 1991 as 

the result of a merger between Elderslie and Bridge of Weir 

tennis clubs. The club is non-profitmaking and committed 

to offering the local community the opportunity to enjoy the 

benefits of the fabulous tennis, squash & fitness facilities the 

club has to offer. 

For more information please contact the club on 01505 615100 or email info@strathgryffe.net. 

EVERY MO N D A Y 

Adult Jazz Class 

Bridge of Weir 10am 

Tel: 01505 690757 for further information. 

Adult Beginners Ballet Class 

Bridge of Weir 11.30am 

Tel: 01505 690757 for further information. 

Kilbarchan Athletic Club 

On-X, Linwood, 7pm 

All abilities welcome. Tel: 07941 686990. 

5-a-side Football 

Powerleague Paisley, 6pm 

Tel: Jim on 01505 874215; or jimbretherton@aol.com 

Bridge of Weir Ladies Badminton 

Cargill Hall, Lintwhite Cres, 7.30pm 

Callanetics 

Brookfield Village Hall, 7.15pm 

Strathgryffe Motorcycle Club 

The Trust Inn, Kilbarchan, 9pm - 10.30pm 

Visit www.strathgryffe.org for details. 

The Shotokan Karate Club 

Woodlands Primary, Linwood, 7-8pm/8-9pm 

www.linwoodkarate.co.uk 

EVERY TUESDAY 

Bridge of Weir Walking Group 

Outside the Co-op, BoW 10.30am 

1 hour walks. Call Senga on 0141 842 3000. 

Gryffe Badminton 

Strathgryffe Tennis Club, 8pm 

Football Training 

Johnstone High School, 6pm - 9pm 

Call Ali on 07775 578795 for details. 

EVERY WEDNESDAY 

Greenock Hockey Club 

Inverclyde Academy, Greenock, 6.30 - 8pm 

Contact Liz Baldwin, mobile 07944 607005. 

Callanetics 

Brookfield Village Hall 5.15, 6.15 & 7.30pm 

EVERY TH U R S D A Y 

Kilbarchan Athletic Club 

On-X, Linwood, 7pm 

All abilities welcome. Tel: 07941 686990. 

Kilmacolm Walkers 

Birkmyre Park Pavilion, Kilmacolm, 10am 

David 01505 874192 

kilmacolmwalkers@talktalk.net 

Callanetics 

Brookfield Village Hall, 9.15am & 10.30am 

The Shotokan Karate Club 

Woodlands Primary. Linwood, 

7pm - 8pm & 8pm - 9pm 

www.linwoodkarate.co.uk 

Football Training 

Johnstone High School, 6pm - 9pm 

Call Ali on 07775 578795 for details 

EVERY FR I D A Y 

Callanetics 

Brookfield Village Hall, 9.15am & 

10.30am 

18 Movement (Tai Chi) Chi Kung 

St Fillans Church Hall, Moss Rd, 

Kilmacolm 10.15am - 11.15am 

Gentle, relaxing exercise class. 0141 954 2456. 

EVERY SA T U R D A Y 

Adult Tap Lessons 

Cargill Centre, Kilmacolm. Lunchtime. 

Call Gail Ashley on 01475 531336 for details 

EVERY SU N D A Y 

Birkmyre Rugby Club, Kilmacolm 

Youth Rugby Section 11am - 1pm 

www.pitchero.com/clubs/birkmyre


59 59 

Howwood Curling Club - 

Come & Try on 8th March 

Howwood Curling Club are always looking for new members 

to join our friendly curling club which meets at Greenacres, 

near Howwood. It is a great way to keep fit and socialise 

with people in a friendly atmosphere. Current club members 

come from Renfrewshire, Glasgow and North Ayrshire. 

We are now looking for new players to play for the 2017/18 

season. 

We have organised a Come & Try session on Wednesday 8th March at 

8.30pm at Greenacres Curling Club. Anyone who is interested is welcome 

to come along and try out curling. No experience is necessary. Everyone 

is welcome, whatever your age or ability. We will provide a qualifi ed coach 

to give you the tuition you need to try out curling. You will also meet with 

our club members and get to play. We will invite you to our closing bonspiel 

for the 2016/17 season on the 29th March if you continue to be interested 

following the Come & Try. 

All the equipment you need will be provided. The cost on the night for ice 

is £6. Please contact Lachie Carmichael (see below) if you wish to attend 

- lachiedcarmichael@hotmail.com or 01294 823643. 

Sporting Blog 

by Lesley Handley 

Achieving Fat Loss… 

For fat loss your body needs consistency, it needs to feel secure and it needs to be 

healthy. If you do not get these fundamental points right from the off, you are onto a 

losing battle. Unfortunately plenty of common misconceptions are still out there. 

Scenario... 

“Diet starts Monday...” You start by swapping your breakfast to a piece of fruit. Then 

lunch time comes and you’ll have just half of your sandwich. Then you’ll start to 

crave a latte in the afternoon, you are so tired! You feel unable to resist this and give 

in... Then the guilt kicks in and you decide to just have cereal for tea. We have ALL 

experienced this one way or another and I still see it in food diaries! 

There are so many things wrong with this. Your body cannot be expected to run on 

tiny amounts of food. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that a calorie only has two 

options; to be either used for energy or stored as fat. That’s not true. Protein and 

fat have far more important things to do first; like producing hormones, repairing 

tissue, building new tissues, building your brain cells, insulating your brain cells and 

so much more. 

Problem is that when this energy is denied and intake drops too low your body just 

gets clever. The body’s main priority will always come down to survival, and when 

this happens it won’t think you are just trying to lose a bit of weight, it will think 

“starvation... famine... PANIC”. And then things will start to shift; it will hold on to your 

fat but let go of the ‘energy expensive’ and ‘metabolically active’ lean muscle. 

Your muscle burns fuel, fat doesn’t. So all this means it’s now lowered your 

metabolism, got rid of your muscle, and kept the fat. Entirely the opposite of what 

anyone seeking long term fat loss would want. 

Start by eating BETTER, not LESS. Stop being scared of food, it’s not there to harm 

you, it’s there to protect you. 

Lesley 

For more information or advice on Personal Training or nutrition contact Lesley on 

0773 627 4925 or email Lesley@fitsmartfitness.co.uk


PROPERTY 

TRADES AND SERVICES 

HOLIDAY HOMES 

ADVERTISE 

HERE FOR ONLY 

£16.79 PER 

MONTH (INCL. VAT) 

COMMERCIAL PROPERTY 

follow The Adverzer on 

twier and facebook 

for regular updates 

t: @GryffeAds 

f: www.facebook.com/ 


MUSIC TUITION 

SITUATIONS VACANT 

HEALTHCARE/BEAUTY 

BUSINESS 

TUITION 

Kilmacolm/Quarriers area 

registered childminders. P/ 

time or F/time vacancies for 

u-5’s and after school. T: 

873839. 

MISCELLANEOUS 

CHILDCARE 

Houston registered childminders. 

For an informal chat to fi nd 

your best childcare, call 

Elizabeth Waddell T: 614925 

CAFE ASSISTANT VOLUNTEERS & TOUR 

GUIDE VOLUNTEERS REQUIRED 

Sma’ Shot Cottage, 2 Smashot Lane, Paisley PA1 

2HG, is unique in Scotland, providing visitors with the 

opportunity to see two distinct periods in Paisley’s 

weaving history. 

From Shuttle Street you will enter the Weaver’s Cottage 

and be transported back in time by nearly 250 years. 

After Experiencing life in the late 1700’s you will cross 

a yard behind the cottage and jump forward in time by 

70 years to experience life in the town during the early 

to mid 1800’s as portrayed by a small row of three cottages 

comprising fi ve dwelling houses. 

Engage Renfrewshire is working in partnership with 

Sma’ Shot to help them recruit VOLUNTEERS to 

help them run their Cafe and show visitors around the 

cottage. 

If you have availability on a Friday and would like to 

VOLUNTEER please contact: Karen Miller, Volunteer 

Development Offi cer, Engage Renfrewshire. T: 0141 

887 7707 E: kmiller@engagerenfrewshire.com


61 61 

ADVERTISING 

business ad rates: 

TRADES & SERVICES 

Black & White ads only 

Lineage: up to 20 words £12.50* 

Boxed ad: £7.00* per column cm 

PROPERTY & HOLIDAY HOMES 

CARS FOR SALE 

Lineage: up to 20 words £13.00* 

Boxed ad: £7.50* per column cm 

Photo: add £7.50* (colour) 

*all prices subject to VAT 

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BRIDGE OF WEIR 

Freeland Church: Rev KN Gray BA 

BD. Morning Service 10.30am. 

Crèche, Sunday School, Lynx 

and Cornerstone. Evening 

Service 7pm www.freeland. 

org.uk 

St Mary’s Episcopal Church, 

Johnston Rd, Bridge of Weir, 

PA11 3EE. Our Services are 

held every Sunday at 10am. 

On the fi rst Sunday each month 

at 6pm we welcome all who 

enjoy the beauty of quietness 

and peace at “Sanctuary” our 

Contemplative Service. All who 

seek God in mindful enquiry, 

in beauty, in quietness and 

service to others, all who are 

tired of life or full of it, all who 

are confident or all who are 

afraid - indeed whoever you 

are - you are welcome here! 

http://www.heartlandsec.org/ 

BoW/index.html Contact: Revd. 

Heller G.P 01505 872961. 

St Machar’s Ranfurly Church: 

Sunday services 10.30am, 

Junior Church & Youth Church, 

hearing aid loop system. For 

more information on activities 

and events find us online – 

stmacharsranfurlychurch.org. 

uk or Facebook. Come along 

– all welcome. 

Hope Hall: Sun 1pm Sunday 

School, 4.30pm Gospel Service; 

Mon 6.30pm Investigators for 

Kids, 8pm Bible Study and 

Prayer. 

ELDERSLIE 

Elderslie Kirk: Sunday service 

every week at 11am. Minister - 

Rev. Robin Allison. All welcome. 

Weekly meetings:- Monday 

Club every week from 12noon 

- 2.30pm. Light lunch and a 

varied activity programme. 

Midweek Fellowship will meet 

every Wed from 10.30am for 

Tea/Coffee followed by a short 

Service of Worship at 11am. 

HOWWOOD 

Howwood Parish Church. Minister 

Rev May Bell. Sunday Service 

and Sunday School. 10am each 

Sunday. Prayer meeting held at 

3 Bowfield Way, Howwood, 

7.30pm on Tuesdays. 

HOUSTON 

Houston and Killellan Kirk, Church 

of Scotland Scottish Charity no 

SC 012822. During the current 

Ministerial vacancy, the Rev Ian 

Bell will conduct our services. 

5th March - 11am, 2pm & 

6.45pm (Holy Communion). 

12th, 19th & 26th March - 

11am Morning Service. 

St Fillan’s, Main St, Houston: Sun 

Masses: Vigil (Sat) 5pm, 9.30am 

& 11am. Weekday Mass: Tues - 

Sat 9.30am except Thurs, 7pm. 

Reconciliation: Sat 10 - 10.30am 

and after Vigil Mass; Thurs 7.30 - 

8pm. Exposition: As announced. 

All are welcome. Baptisms: 1st 

& 3rd Sunday of the month by 

arrangement. Parish Priest: 

Rev. Daniel J McLoughlin, Dip. 

Th.,MA Pastoral Assistant: Sr 

Mary Frances Collett, RNDM (Tel 

01505 613514). “Abbotsfi eld”, 

St Fillan’s, Main St, Houston, 

PA6 7EL. T: 01505 612046, 

F: 01505 610556. E: parish@ 

stfillan.org.uk. www.stfillan. 

org.uk 

Houston Baptist Church at Carrick 

Centre: 11am Family services 

with SS for children age 5 - 12; 

6pm Eve Service; Mid-week 

Home Bible Study; For more 

information contact; Rev. D 

Snelson 01505 612722. 

Church of the Nazarene: Village 

Hall, Main St, Houston PA6 

7EL. Rev. Benito S Coetzee. 

Family services at 10.30am 

with full toddler, children & youth 

activities running concurrently 

with the service. Youth meets 

at 6.30pm - 8pm on Sundays. 

Word and Table Quiet Service 

held from 9am - 9.30am every 

3rd Sunday. www.houston. 

nazarene.org.uk 

DEADLINES 

If you want something placed in the 

next issue either send an email to: 

info@advertizer.co.uk 

or call the office: 

01505 613340 (24hr ans) 


April ‘17 Issue: 

• Deadline: 17 Mar 

• Delivery: 31 Mar 

• May ‘17 Issue: 

• Deadline: 14 Apr 

• Delivery: 28 Apr 

churches 

KILBARCHAN 

Services continue at 11am each 

Sunday throughout March, 

conducted by Rev. Stephen 

Smith. On Sunday 5th, there 

will be the annual service when 

the 1st Kilbarchan Company 

of the Boys’ Brigade will be on 

parade. The 1st Annual General 

Meeting of the Parish Church will 

take place immediately after the 

service. There is a Sacrament of 

Baptism on Sunday 26th. Sunday 

School and the creche meet in 

the large hall from 10.45am 

each week and refreshments 

will be served after the service 

as usual. 

Kilbarchan Parish Church Midweek 

Fellowship continues from 

10.30am for coffee, followed by 

a short service of worship, on 

Wednesdays in the small hall. 

KILMACOLM 

St Columba Church of Scotland: 

(charity no. SC007992) Morning 

Worship Sundays at 11am. All 

welcome. Coffee/tea served in 

the hall after the service. 

Grace Church Kilmacolm: in 

association with Downavale 

Free Church of Scotland (Charity 

No: SCO38274) - Sunday Service 

at 10.30am in Kilmacolm Guide 

Hut, Woodrow Avenue, PA13 4QF 

- all welcome. 

Kilmacolm Old Kirk: Church of 

Scotland (Charity no. SC009291). 

www.kilmacolmoldkirk.org.uk. 

Minister Rev. Dr Peter McEnhill 

(01505 873174). Morning 

Worship – Sundays 11am, all 

welcome Sunday School and 

Crèche available. Night Kirk, 

a short reflective service 1st 

Sunday each month at 6pm. 

Sòlas Bereavement Group, 2nd 

Thursday each month at 6:30pm 

in Kidston Hall. 

St Colm’s Catholic Church, Smithy 

Brae Kilmacolm. Rev. Vincent 

Byrne. Family mass Sundays 

10am with children’s liturgy, 

followed by tea and coffee. 

Eucharistic service Thursdays 

11am. Rosar y Tuesdays 

6.30pm. Prayer group meets 

Thursdays 7.30pm. Further 

information and contact details 

www.stcolmsparish.co.uk. All 

welcome. 

Buddhist meetings: Buddhism 

of Nichiren Daishonin. Phone 

Margaret on 01505 871343. 

St Fillan’s Episcopal Church, Moss 

Road, Kilmacolm, PA13 4DL. 

Services on Sunday at 11.30am. 

Wednesday: 10.30am Holy 

Communion. On the last Sunday 

of the month at 11:30am we 

welcome families to come and 

join us for our monthly Family 

Service. We are united by our 

belief in Jesus, who sustains 

and encourages us in all the ups 

and downs of life. Everyone is 

welcome to join us ! http://www. 

heartlandsec.org/KLM/index. 

html Contacts: Revd. Heller 

G.P 01505 872961 / Maureen 

Russell (Pastoral Assistant) 

01505 872905. 

LANGBANK 

Langbank Parish Church: Rev. Dr. 

Ken Forrest. Sunday Services 

10am with Sunday School, 

Crèche and young people’s 

group, the Welcomers. Tea/ 

coffee after the service. Church 

service starts at 10am. Come 

along and meet in the Hall 

from 9.50am. Charity No. 

SC015085. 

LOCHWINNOCH 

Parish Church: Rev. May Bell. 

11.30am Morning Service 

Sunday School and Crèche. 

Calder United Free Church: 

(Church Street, Lochwinnoch) 

Sunday: 11am Morning worship 

with Sunday School and Crèche. 

6.30pm Evening Fellowship 

group, 7.30pm ABC’s Teen 

group. Wed 6.30pm - 7.30pm. 

Spiritualist Church, Lochlip Rd. All 

services commence 7.30pm. 

QUARRIERS 

Mount Zion Church: Rev. Andy Lunn 

BSc, (01475 791282) Mount 

Zion Church, Law View Road, 

Quarriers Village, PA11 3FD. 

Sunday Worship: 10:30am, 

Bible Study and Prayer Meetings: 

Wednesday at 7pm and Friday 

at 10 am. “Mozzy” Youth Club 

Thursdays at 6:30 for young 

people of high school age. Half 

night of prayer: 7pm – midnight, 

4th Friday of each month. Feel 

free to come along at any of 

these times. 

‘The Gatherin’ is at 7pm on the 

fourth Sunday of each month, at 

Mount Zion Church in Quarriers 

Village. The Gatherin’ for people 

to come together who hunger 

for more of the presence of the 

Lord and to be fed from His word. 

Please come and invite others: 

all welcome! 

LOCAL INFORMATION 

community council 

Visitors are welcome at these monthly meetings. 

BISHOPTON: Primary School: 1st Thurs at 7.30pm 

www.bishoptoncouncil.com 

BRIDGE OF WEIR: Cargill Hall 1st Tuesday 7pm. 

(NB: no meetings July, August and January) 

www.bridgeofweir.org 

BROOKFIELD: Brookfield Village Hall: 7.30pm 

in February, April, June, August, October and 

December on 2nd Thursday of the month. 

HOUSTON: Carrick Centre: 3rd Wed at 7.30pm 

www.houstoncommcouncil@yahoo.co.uk 

HOWWOOD: Village Hall: 2nd Tues at 7.30pm. 

www.howwood.com/community-council.php 

KILBARCHAN: Steeple Hall: monthly at 7.30pm. 

www.kilbarchan.info/community_council.html 

KILMACOLM & QUARRIERS: Last Tues at 7.30pm, 

Kilmacolm Cargill Centre (NB: No meetings: July or 

Dec) www.kilmacolmcc.co.uk 

LANGBANK: Church Hall: 2nd Wed at 7.30pm 

LOCHWINNOCH: Bowling Club: 1st Tues at 7.30pm 

community halls to let 

Bridge of Weir, Freeland Church. Tel: 612245 

Brookfi eld, Village Hall. Tel: 335562 

Houston, Carrick Centre. Tel: 612203 / 331488 

Houston, Compass Centre. Tel: 615441 / 612617 

Kilbarchan, Guide Centre. Tel: 702758. 

Kilbarchan, Old Library Centre. Tel: 706070 

Kilmacolm, Cargill Centre. Tel: 873994 

Kilmacolm, Brownie/Guide Hut. Tel: 874428 

Kilmacolm, Masonic Hall. Tel: 873059 

Linwood Masonic Hall. Tel: 07825 222944 

Please add your community hall details to our list - 

email to info@advertizer.co.uk 

local councillors 

RENFREWSHIRE COUNCIL: www.renfrewshire.gov.uk 

Ward 7 - Johnstone South, Elderslie & Howwood: Cllrs 

John Caldwell, John Hood, Stephen McGee and 

Iain McMillan 

Ward 8 - Johnstone (North), Kilbarchan & Lochwinnoch: 

Councillors Derek Bibby, Andy Doig and Christopher 

Gilmour 

Ward 9 - Houston, Crosslee, Brookfi eld & Linwood: 

Councillors Stuart Clark, Audrey Doig, Anne Hall 

and Allan Noon 

Ward 10 - Bishopton, Bridge of Weir & Langbank: 

Councillors Maria Brown, Mike Holmes and James 

Maclaren 

INVERCLYDE COUNCIL: www.inverclyde.gov.uk 

Ward 1 - Inverclyde East (P.Glasgow, Kilmacolm and 

Quarriers Village): Cllrs David Wilson, Jim MacLeod, 

Stephen McCabe and James McColgan 

looking for someone local? 

www.advertizer.co.uk/clients


ITEMS FOR SALE 

BABY EQUIPMENT 

Tidlo wooden activity walker. 

Exc cond. £18. Tel: 01505 

672175. 

Phillips AVENT microwave bottle 

steriliser. Exc cond, with 

instructions. Smoke & pet 

free home. £5. Tel: 01505 

672175. 

Phillips AVENT combined baby 

food steamer and blender 

with instructions and recipe 

booklet. Good cond. Smoke 

& pet free home. £30. Tel: 

01505 672175. 

Baby Cot Bumper Pad and blue 

Quilt. As new. Cost £130 - sell 

for £40. Tel: 01505 326230. 

Mamas and Papas Pilko 

Pramette in ‘Peace Camp’ 

colour way (khaki colour) in 

VGC, converts easily from 

a pram to a push chair. £30. 

Tel: 07966 623395. 

Cosatto 3Sixti pear high chair. 

Turns through 360 degrees, 

can be adjusted to any height 

and comes with removable 

tray section. Good cond, 

full instructions. Smoke 


672175. 

Silver Cross Surf baby foot snug 

in grey. Exc cond. Smoke 


672175. 

Mamas and Papas cream 

baby bath. Exc cond. Smoke 


672175. 

Chad Valley Baby Bouncer 

Chairs (2) as new, hardly 

used. Pink. £10 each. Tel: 

01505 862220. 

Potty Chair Mothercare red/ 

pink, VGC, £5. Tel: 01505 

874870. 

Toilet trainer seat, white, VGC, 

£5 (have two). Tel: 01505 

874870. 

CLOTHES & SHOES 

Women’s Nike running jacket. 

Lightweight, black, size medium. 

Exc cond. £20. Tel: 

01505 672175. 

Vans sweat shirt for age 13. 

Brand new with labels. Unwanted 

gift. £18. Tel: 07801 

549981. 

Men’s full length Dannimac 

raincoat in grey. Removable 

lining. Size large. Good cond. 

£25. Tel: 01505 672175. 

Men’s waxed Barbour gilet 

in dark green. Size large. 

Good cond. £50. Tel: 01505 

672175. 

Men’s M&S waxed casual coat 

in dark green. Size large. 

As new. £50. Tel: 01505 

672175. 

Purple peplum-style maternity 

dress by Seraphine in size 14. 

£8. Tel: 01505 672175. 

Marks and Spencer men’s charcoal 

suit. Chest 48ins, waist 

38ins, inside leg 31ins. Wool 

rich blend, excellent condition. 

£25. Tel: 01505 672175. 

Jacques Vert Dress & Jacket 

(size 16) - blue & white, worn 

once. Also a Hat. Cost £300 

- Sell for £100. Tel: 07961 

588820. 

Men’s Dehavilland black coat. 

Wool/cashmere mix, hardly 

worn and in excellent condition. 

Chest 48ins. £50 

(cost £120 new). Tel: 01505 

672175. 

Tap shoes pink junior size 10 

and 11. £10 per pair. VGC. 

Tel: 01505 874870. 

HOUSEHOLD & GARDEN 

Ikea Dining Table with leaves 

and two chairs. £20. Tel: 

01505 613051. 

Ikea Folding Bed. Good condition 

- little used. £20. Tel: 

01505 873252. 

Artistry in Iron “Capital” silver 

grey powder coated circular 

dining table with glass 

top (approx. 1.1m diameter) 

plus 4 matching chairs with 

feature laser cut backs and 

padded seat cushions. Ideal 

for kitchen or conservatory. 

£100. Tel: 07775 913334. 

Community centre style plastic 

chairs. Metal legs. Various 

colours. £3 each. Tel: 07720 

275550. 

Two IKEA adjustable white beds 

suitable for toddler and up to 

10yrs. Beds come complete 

with almost new mattresses 

and fitted sheets. Only been 

used for occasional visits of 

grandchildren so they are as 

good as new. £120 for both 

but can sell separately. Tel: 

01505 873139 

Green leather reclining armchair. 

Must collect. £75. Tel: 

01505 873139. 

Parker Knoll fireside chair with 

tapestry upholstery. £60. Tel: 

01505 873139. 

‘Nutuzzi’ Leather Sofa & 2 Arm 

Chairs. Only 19 months old. 

Beige in colour. VGC. £350. 

Tel: 01475 540770. 

Pine table & 2 high back chairs. 

Brand new. £35. Tel: 01505 

612726. 

Modern standard lamp and 

matching table lamp. Brand 

new (still boxed). £20 for 

both. Tel: 01505 612726. 

Mirrored wooden bathroom 

cabinet. Approximately 60cm 

wide x 65cm high x 13cm 

deep. Three shelves. Used 

but good condition. £30. Tel: 

01505 672175. 

White bathroom sink and 

pedestal with taps. Approx 

58cm wide x 46cm deep, 

bowl is 15cm deep. Pedestal 

65cm high. Used, but good 

condition. £25. Tel: 01505 

672175. 

Retro style oak and veneer 

coffee table from the House 

by John Lewis range. Handy 

shelves and drawers for 

storage. Approx H38cm X 

W110cm X D60cm. Excellent 

condition, smoke free home. 

£170. Tel: 01505 672175. 

Karma wool pile lounge rug - 3 

tone beige. 240cm x 170cm. 

Excellent condition. £30. Tel: 

01505 391026. 

Single Bed, Mattress & Matching 

Bedroom Furniture: Beautiful 

Marks & Spencer white wood 

single bed, mattress, matching 

bedside table and drawer 

unit for sale. Excellent condition, 

cost £800 new, sell the lot 

for £150. Collection required. 

Tel: 07557 564350. 

Beautiful Marks & Spencer 

white wood single bed, mattress, 

matching bedside table 

and drawer unit for sale. 

Excellent condition, cost £800 

new, sell the lot for £150. Collection 

required. Tel: 07557 

564350. 

Pair of cream fabric-covered 

column lamps (approx 

115cm tall and 15cm in diameter). 

Ideal for bedside. Good 

condition, smoke free home. 

£30. Tel: 01505 672175. 

Fire Surround complete with 

Parkway yew finish mantel 

(120cm wide x 98cm high) 

and Napoli beige marble back 

panel (94cm x 94cm) and 

hearth (122cm wide x 38cm 

deep x 6.5cm high). £100. 

Tel: 01505 614943. 

Entire Tea Towel collection - 

over 300 including Worldwide, 

Advert, Famous Buildings & 

Events - all new. £150. Tel: 

01505 613532. 

Mahogany sideboard. 67L 

x 17W x 32H. Smoke free 

house. VGC. £70ono. Tel: 

01475 540313. 

Laura Ashley Table Lamp 

Shade Black. £8. Tel: 01505 

326230. 

HSL Small Arm Chair. £45. Tel: 

01505 874825. 

Tall Table Lamp, bought in 

Baytree (BoW). £10. Tel: 

01505 326230. 

ELECTRICAL & GAS 

Panasonic portable stereo CD 

system in silver. Good condition, 

with instructions and remote 

control. £15. Tel: 01505 

672175. 

Gas fire. Fireglo Reality, coal 

effect gas fi re. Suitable for 

natural gas. £50. Tel: 01505 

614943. 

Philips HR1861 Juicer. Brand 

new and never used, without 

box. £35 ono. Tel: 07966 

623395. 

Dyson Upright vacuum cleaner 

in perfect working order. £30. 

Tel. 01505 873139. 

SPORTS 

Bowls Henselite Classic Deluxe, 

size 3 medium, plus bag. £45. 

Tel: 01505 337675. 

Bowls Drakes Pride - size medium, 

plus bag. £30. Tel: 

01505 337675. 

Raleigh Pioneer Metro LX Ladies 

Stepover Bike. 18” Airlite 

Frame, 15 Speed Shimano 

Gears. Front Basket, Rear 

Pannier Rack, Mudguards 

and Chainguard. Immaculate 

Condition! Collect Only. £95. 

Tel: 0141 884 2130. 

Dinesse large Matt black ski/ 

snowboard helmet. Good 


672175. 

2 x 12V 50AH Motive Powered 

Batteries, suitable for ‘sit on’ 

golf buggies. £75 for both. 

Tel: 01505 842950. 

Pink Pop Star Cycle with Stabilizers 

& Helmet. Size: 5 - 8 

years. Excellent condition. 

£25. Tel: 07882 984824. 

Various girls toddler bikes, 

with and without stabilisers, 

balance bike & girls scooters 

from £0 - £10. Tel: 01505 

874870. 

Toddler Bicycle helmets (44-48 

cm) pink x 2, suits appr. 1-5 

yrs old, VGC. £5 each. Tel: 

01505 874870. 

Figure skates white junior size 

10, good condition, £10. Tel: 

01505 874870. 

TOYS/GAMES/DVD 

Wooden Pony in a stick push 

toy. £4. Tel: 01505 672175. 

Toy Microwave Oven with Food. 

£8. Tel: 01505 326230. 

ADVERTISING 

sales & wants ad rates: 

UP TO £200 ....... FREE 

£201 to £500 ..... £5.00 

£501 to £1000 ... £10.00 

OVER £1000 ..... Call for details. 

Use our Sales & Wants form and post to 

The Gryffe Advertizer, Neva Place, Bridge 

of Weir, PA11 3PN. 

or email your items to info@advertizer.co.uk 

The Business Advertisements (Disclosure) Order 1977 

NOTICE TO ADVERTISERS 

The Law requires that Advertisers selling goods in the course 

of a business MUST include the word Trader, Dealer, Agent, 

Breeder or appropriate wording in the Advertisement to 

distinguish from private advertisers. 

Wooden toy ark with animals. 

Good condition, smoke 


672175. 

Fisher Price rainforest jungle 

gym. Excellent condition with 

instructions. Smoke free, pet 


672175. 

Plastic toddler seat for child’s 

swing with ropes attached, 

just no frame. Very good 


672175. 

OTHER ITEMS 

Vintage Harris hand sewing 

machine. £25. Tel: 01505 

672175. 

Brand new steel car wheel 

6JX15H2 and new Jinyu tyre 

185/60 R15. Stored as spare 

wheel only. £80. Tel: 07736 

067169. 

Router, hand operated, Powercraft 

1200W complete with 

router bits. The machine has 

been little used, is in good 

condition and full working 

order and most of the bits are 

brand new. £40. Tel: 01475 

540714. 

Bench mounted Bandsaw, Powercraft 

350W, hardly used, 

in good condition and full 

working order. £55. Tel: 01475 

540714. 

2 Man Tent. £10. Tel: 01505 

326230. 

Microsoft wireless keyboard, 

mouse and USB desktop 

receiver in black and silver. 

Excellent condition £15. Tel 

01505 672175. 

Nine interesting original Edwardian 

postcards of Johnstone. 

Good condition for age. £55. 

Tel: 07871 243336. 

Galvanised steel ash bucket 10 

litre. £4. Tel: 01505 672175. 

Reiki Bed (manual) rarely used. 

Navy blue. Comes with own 

wheeled trolley case for easy 

transportation. Buyer collects. 

£90. Tel: 07794 912790. 

Filing Cabinet. Foolscap size. 

Four Drawers, grey metal. Not 

pretty but highly functional. 

£10. Tel: 07788 111557. 

3 NR 17inch. Alloys with tyres. 

Tyre width is 8 inches. Tyres 

and Alloys in VGC. £150 ono. 

Tel: 07990 776288. 

2 wooden African figures, 2 

wooden spears, 1 large wooden 

folding seat. Excellent 


984824. 

Caddy 530 trailer Approx.5’x3’ 

with spare wheel £120. Tel: 

01505 673369. 

WANTED ITEMS 

Old records Wanted 45`s & 

LP`s CASH Paid. Tel: 07710 

777571. 

Local lily grower requires the 

use of a greenhouse/polytunnel 

in Kilmacolm area in return 

for light gardening duties. Tel: 

Vince 01505 872082. 

Cash paid for Music CDs ( a few 

or a lot ). Tel: 0141 882 5594 

or 07765 115347. 

FREE CYCLE 

Out ‘n’ about 360 double nipper 

buggy and a mac3 maclaren 

buggy. Both well used and 

showing it but perfectly serviceable. 

Tel: 07971 827379. 

Living room unit comprising of 

a display cabinet, cocktail 

cabinet, and lots of storage 

133(l)x45(w)x171(h)cm. Tel: 

07971 827379. 

Heavy duty wheelchair with padding. 

Uplift from BoW please. 

Tel: 01505 612724. 

Guitar Amp - over 20 years old, 

but still working last time we 

used it. Tel: 01505 872442. 

Fire surround - dark wood, 

1400mm W x 400mm D 

x 1100mm H. Tel: 01505 

872442. 

Ceiling centre light with fan. 

Ornate design. Working order. 

Tel: 01505 872442. 

CONTENT OF THE GRYFFE ADVERTIZER CANNOT 

BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT PRIOR CONSENT 

FROM THE PUBLISHER 

The Gryffe Advertizer is a magazine published by The Gryffe Advertizer Ltd 

Advertising throughout The Gryffe Advertizer: 

Defi nitions: “Standards” means the British Code of Advertising Practice 

and the provisions of any law applicable to advertising including, but not 

limited to, the Trade Descriptions Act, 1968, the Consumer Credit Act 

1974, the Control of Misleading Advertisements Regulations 1988, the 

Financial Services Act 1986, the Business Advertisement (Disclosure) 

Order 1977 and all amendments and replacements. 

It is hereby agreed that: 

• The placing by the Advertising Client of an Advertisement is deemed to 

be acceptance of these Conditions of Acceptance of Advertising. 

• All Advertisements in this Publication must not contravene the 

Standards. 

• Insertion of Advertisements and/or Editorial is strictly at the discretion 

of the Publisher. 

• The Publisher shall not be liable for any loss or damage incurred by the 

Advertising Client as a result of any failure, negligence or omission by 

any party in the course of the distribution or circulation of the Publication 

in which the Advertisement is scheduled to appear. 

• In the event of any error, misprint or omission by the Publisher in 

the printing of an Advertisement, the Publisher will either re-insert 

the advertisement, adjust the cost or provide a refund. This does 

not apply if the Advertisement has been approved by the Advertising 

Client prior to publication. The total liability of the Publisher for such 

an occurrence shall not exceed the amount of a full refund for that 

particular Advertisement. 

• The Advertising Client agrees to indemnify the Publisher in respect 

of all costs, damages or other charges falling upon the Publisher as 

the result of legal actions or threatened legal actions arising from the 

publication of the Advertisement, or any one or more of the series of 

Advertisements, published in accordance with the copy instructions 

supplied to the Publisher. 

• Readers are reminded that when purchasing items or services 

advertised in the Publication that the Publisher cannot be held in any 

way responsible for the quality or correctness of the items or services 

included in the Advertisement. 

Editorial throughout The Gryffe Advertizer: 

The opinions of the Contributors to this Publication are not necessarily 

the official views of the Publisher. The Publisher reserves the right to edit 

or refuse any material submitted for publication.


63 63 

ADVERTIZERS - A TO Z 

Accountants & Financial 

Affluent Financial Planning . . 24 

Cheetham & Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 

CLA Accountancy Services Ltd . . 15 

Fergusons CA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 

Fiona Christie Accounting Serv . . 16 

Stewart Independent Financial . . Bk 

Architectural Services 

Casa Homes & Gardens Architect . . 7 

Grid Design Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . 7 

Art, Gifts & Flowers 

Freelance Florist . . . . . . . . . 16 

Automotive Services 

AK Vehicle Rental . . . . . . . . . 1 

ARC Fleet Services . . . . . . . . . 31 

Collins Tyres . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 

Gryffe Garage Motor Engineers . . 31 

Bathrooms 

Affordable Luxuries . . . . . . . 7 

Bathroom Solutions by MPH . . 11 

G Woods Bathrooms . . . . . . . . . 6 

Instyle Kitchens & Bathrooms . . 17 

Bedrooms 

Burndale Workshop . . . . . . . . . 2 

Blacksmith & Metalwork 

McLaughlan Metal Fabrication . . 21 

Building Services 

A O’Hare - Building Services . . 5 

B Hughes Builders - Houston . . 6 

BOW Stone Works . . . . . . . . . . . 48 

Bridge of Weir Roofing . . . . . 6 

Clippens Roofing . . . . . . . . . . 3 

DJD Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 

I & J Building & Roofing Serv . . 2 

James Kerr Joiner . . . . . . . . . 19 

JBC Joiners and Builders . . . 6 

KC Enterprises . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 

Kilellan Roofing . . . . . . . . . . 15 

M Addison Joiners & Builders . . 3 

MBS Roofing & Building Contrac . . 39 

Old Mill Chimneys . . . . . . . . . 43 

RPH Joinery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 

SMG Roofing & Building Contrac . . 2 

Stewart Milne Homes . . . . . . . . 25 

SW Scott - Joiners & Builders . . 14 

Taylor Made Joinery . . . . . . . . 29 

Thomas McMaster & Son Ltd . . 51 

Business Services 

Laptop and PC Repairs . . . . . . 37 

Catering 

Gadds Gourmet . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 

Karen Rankin Catering . . . . . . 14 

Cleaning & PowerWash 

CleanDryCarpets . . . . . . . . . . . 37 

Come Clean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 

DS Cleaning (Windows) . . . . . . 16 

Eclipse deep clean . . . . . . . . . 14 

Fastclean Scotland . . . . . . . . . 16,7 

Gryffe Roofing Services . . . . 6 


MattVac Carpet & Upholstery Cl . . Bk 

Nutech Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . 2 

Platinum Cleaning Services . . 5 

Coffee Shops 

Bernie’s Cafe Deli . . . . . . . . . 34 

Computer, IT & Web 

ColCom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 

Computer Repairs . . . . . . . . . . 1 


Driveways 

A&G Driveways . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bk 

Driving Instructors 

AL Stewart - Driving Instruct . . 15 

Education 

St Columba’s School . . . . . . . . 55 

Electricians 

Delta Electrical Services . . 21 

GasMan Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 

JDPS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 

Lamont Electricians . . . . . . . . 3 

MAS Electrical & Security . . 2 

Fencing 

Boundaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 


Firewood & Logs 

Auldton Stoves . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 

LJX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 

Miller BioFuels Ltd . . . . . . . . 7 


W B Smith & Son . . . . . . . . . . . 49 

Funeral Services 

Beaton Brothers . . . . . . . . . . . 5 

John Roach Funeral Directors . . 10 

Garage Doors & Gates 

Powerdoors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bk 

Garden Service & Design 

3D Garden Design . . . . . . . . . . 48 

A Peebles Landscape Contractor . . 47 

Apple Tree Garden Design . . . 46 


Craig Kennedy Gardening . . . . 46 

DJD Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 

DMG Garden Services . . . . . . . . 48 

Garden Services . . . . . . . . . . . 46 

Glenmoss Landscapes . . . . . . . . 47 

Gowanlea Nurseries . . . . . . . . . 9 


M&M Garden Services . . . . . . . . 49 

MJ Lawnmowers . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 

R Williams Tree Surgeon & Grou . . 46 

W B Smith & Son . . . . . . . . . . . 49 

West of Scotland Landscape . . 46 

Gas & Heating Services 

A&J Plumbing Heating & Gas . . 14 

C Hunter Plumbing Heating Gas . . 19 

GasMan Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 

I D Plumbing & Heating . . . . . 43 

Phoenix Gas Services . . . . . . . 1 

Glazier 

1on1 Double Glazing . . . . . . . . 3 

Cloudy2Clear Windows Glasgow . . 5 

JayBee Double Glazing Repairs . . 9 

TD Cameron . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 

BY CATEGORY 

The Business Advertisements (Disclosure) Order 1977 

NOTICE TO ADVERTISERS 

The Law requires that Advertisers selling goods 

in the course of a business MUST include 

the word Trader, Dealer, Agent, Breeder or 

appropriate wording in the Advertisement to 

distinguish from private advertisers. 

pick up a copy 

Bishopton: Post Office, Woodrow’s Store, Keystore, Library, 

Ingliston Country Club 

Bridge of Weir: Gibb Stuart, Bernie’s Cafe, Lochnagar, 

The Bridge, Library (Cargill Centre) 

Erskine: Garden Centre, Library, Sports Centre, Swimming 

pool 

Houston: Co-op, Carrick Centre, Post Office, Newsagent 

Howwood: Village Store, St Vincent’s Hospice 

Johnstone: Henderson Kilts, Papa Mac’s, Library 

Kilbarchan: Sheridan’s Store, Campbell’s, Newsagents, 

Bobbins, Old Library Centre 

Kilmacolm: Newsagent, Pieri’s, Cross Café, 

Gibb Stuart, Cargill Centre, Library 

Langbank: Finlaystone Visitor Centre 

Lochwinnoch: Keystore, McKillop Centre, Library, Castle 

Semple Centre, Newsagent 

Hairdressers & Barbers 

Arlene Mitchell Hair & Beauty . . 36 

Nix Hairdressing . . . . . . . . . . 37 

Health, Beauty & Fitness 


Bluewater Dental . . . . . . . . . . 22 

Ferringtons Hypnotherapy . . . 38 

Kilbarchan Chiropodists . . . . 42 

Kilbarchan Dental Practice . . 13 

LaserLight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 

New Vision Opticians . . . . . . . 9 

NLP Positive Changes . . . . . . . 21 

Sole Solutions Podiatry . . . . 36 

Wellcentred UK . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 

Home Hardware 

Gibb Stuart ......... 14,15,16,32,33 

Home Improvements 

Alvic Sliding Wardrobes Ltd . . 4 


Conservatory Conversions . . . Bk 

Ideal Flooring Service . . . . . 9 

Orchard Flooring . . . . . . . . . . 22 

Rent A Bloke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 

Home Interiors 

Baytree Interiors . . . . . . . . . 5 



The Furniture Barn . . . . . . . . . 3 

Home Security 

Brookfield Alarms Ltd . . . . . . 2 

Joiners 


CLH Joinery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 

DJY Joinery Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . 4 

J Cullen Studios . . . . . . . . . . ,13 



JDPS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 


McGowan Joinery . . . . . . . . . . . 14 

RPH Joinery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 




TD Cameron . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 

Woodburn & Beattie Joiners . . 15 

Kitchens 







Leisure & Recreation 

Old Course Ranfurly Golf Club . . 57 

Ranfurly Castle Golf Club . . 57 

Locksmiths 

Arco Locksmith . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 

Elliott Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 

Painters & Decorators 

A Gallagher Painter&Decorator . . 16 

David Kennedy Decorator . . . . 3 

Ian Livingston Decorating . . 15 

James Martin - Painter & Decor . . 3 

John H Barney . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 

John Morgan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 

M&E Painters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 

Paul Brady Painter & Decorator . . 35 

Ranfurly Decor . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 

Pest Control 

RED Pest Control . . . . . . . . . . 34 

Pet Services & Training 

Bridge of Weir Dog Walking . . 44 

Husse Pet Food . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 

PetVets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 

Smart Dog Grooming . . . . . . . . . 45 

Strathgryffe Dog Walks . . . . . 44 

Walkies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 

Photographers 

Little Studio Kilmacolm . . . . 54 

Plasterers 

Bryan Slaven Slater & Plaster . . 39 

Charlie Orr Plasterer . . . . . . 2 



Plumbers 




GasMan Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 


JDPS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 

Shower Expert . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 

Property, Sales & Let 

Cochran Dickie Estate Agents . . 27 

Corum Property . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 

Hames Estates . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 

Kingsley Wood & Co Solicitors . . 1,29 

Lind Letting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 


Removals 

@ease Removals & Transport . . 7 

The Right Move . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 

Restaurant & Bars 


Retail 


Gibb Stuart ..... ..... . 14,15,16,32,33 

Saks & Hart Country Living . . 8 

Seasons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 


R o o fi n g 









RPH Joinery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 




Solicitors 

Affinity Family Law Experts . . 10 


Special Occasions 

ABC Taxis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bk 

Sports Clubs & Events 



Stoves 



Taxis & Minicoach hire 

ABC Taxis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bk 

Johnstone TOA Taxi Co . . . . . . 31 

Minicoach Tours Scotland Ltd . . 3 

Tiling 

Gordon James Ceramic Tiler . . 15 

Scott Russell . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 

Travel Agents 

Travel Actually . . . . . . . . . . . 3 

Tree Surgeon 

Branch Out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 


LJX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 

W B Smith & Son . . . . . . . . . . . 49 

TV & Satellite 

Derek McBride Aerials . . . . . . 35 

Kieran Turner Aerial&Satellite . . 3 

Upholstery Services 




P Thomson Upholstery . . . . . . . 26 

Window Cleaners 




Matthews Cleaning Services . . 15 

Window, Consv & Repair 




TD Cameron . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 

@ease Removals & Transport . . 7 


3D Garden Design . . . . . . . . . . 48 

A Gallagher Painter&Decorator . . 16 


A Peebles Landscape Contractor . . 47 

A&G Driveways . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bk 


ABC Taxis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bk 

Affinity Family Law Experts . . 10 

Affluent Financial Planning . . 24 


AK Vehicle Rental . . . . . . . . . 1 

AL Stewart - Driving Instruct . . 15 

Alvic Sliding Wardrobes Ltd . . 4 

Apple Tree Garden Design . . . 46 

ARC Fleet Services . . . . . . . . . 31 

Arco Locksmith . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 



B Hughes Builders - Houston . . 6 

Bathroom Solutions by MPH . . 11 


Beaton Brothers . . . . . . . . . . . 5 


Bluewater Dental . . . . . . . . . . 22 

Boundaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 

BOW Stone Works . . . . . . . . . . . 48 

Branch Out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 

Bridge of Weir Dog Walking . . 44 


Brookfield Alarms Ltd . . . . . . 2 





Charlie Orr Plasterer . . . . . . 2 

Cheetham & Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 

CLA Accountancy Services Ltd . . 15 

CleanDryCarpets . . . . . . . . . . . 37 

CLH Joinery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 


Cloudy2Clear Windows Glasgow . . 5 

Cochran Dickie Estate Agents . . 27 

ColCom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 

Collins Tyres . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 

Come Clean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 

Computer Repairs . . . . . . . . . . 1 


Corum Property . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 

Craig Kennedy Gardening . . . . 46 

David Kennedy Decorator . . . . 3 

Delta Electrical Services . . 21 

Derek McBride Aerials . . . . . . 35 

DJD Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 

DJY Joinery Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . 4 

DMG Garden Services . . . . . . . . 48 



Elliott Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 


Fergusons CA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 

Ferringtons Hypnotherapy . . . 38 

Fiona Christie Accounting Serv . . 16 

Freelance Florist . . . . . . . . . 16 


Gadds Gourmet . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 

Garden Services . . . . . . . . . . . 46 

GasMan Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 

Gibb Stuart . . . . 14,15,16,32,33 


Gordon James Ceramic Tiler . . 15 

Gowanlea Nurseries . . . . . . . . . 9 

Grid Design Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . 7 

Gryffe Garage Motor Engineers . . 31 


Hames Estates . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 

Husse Pet Food . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 



contact us 

The Gryffe Advertizer 

Neva Place, Bridge of Weir PA11 3PN 

t: 01505 613340 or e: info@advertizer.co.uk 

For more information please call us on 01505 613340 

WhatsApp 07731 923970 

or check our website at www.advertizer.co.uk 

Next Issue: (#271) April ‘17 

Deadline: Friday 17 March 

Ian Livingston Decorating . . 15 

Ideal Flooring Service . . . . . 9 


J Cullen Studios . . . . . . . . . . 13 


James Martin - Painter & Decor . . 3 



JDPS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 

John H Barney . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 

John Morgan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 

John Roach Funeral Directors . . 10 

Johnstone TOA Taxi Co . . . . . . 31 

Karen Rankin Catering . . . . . . 14 


Kieran Turner Aerial&Satellite . . 3 

Kilbarchan Chiropodists . . . . 42 

Kilbarchan Dental Practice . . 13 



Lamont Electricians . . . . . . . . 3 


LaserLight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 

Lind Letting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 

Little Studio Kilmacolm . . . . 54 

LJX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 


M&E Painters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 

M&M Garden Services . . . . . . . . 49 

MAS Electrical & Security . . 2 

Matthews Cleaning Services . . 15 

MattVac Carpet & Upholstery Cl . . Bk 


McGowan Joinery . . . . . . . . . . . 14 


Miller BioFuels Ltd . . . . . . . . 7 

Minicoach Tours Scotland Ltd . . 3 

MJ Lawnmowers . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 

New Vision Opticians . . . . . . . 9 

Nix Hairdressing . . . . . . . . . . 37 

NLP Positive Changes . . . . . . . 21 

Nutech Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . 2 



Orchard Flooring . . . . . . . . . . 22 

P Thomson Upholstery . . . . . . . 26 

Paul Brady Painter & Decorator . . 35 

PetVets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 

Phoenix Gas Services . . . . . . . 1 

Platinum Cleaning Services . . 5 

Powerdoors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bk 

R Williams Tree Surgeon & Grou . . 46 


Ranfurly Decor . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 

RED Pest Control . . . . . . . . . . 34 

Rent A Bloke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 

RPH Joinery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 

Saks & Hart Country Living . . 8 

Scott Russell . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 

Seasons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 

Shower Expert . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 

Smart Dog Grooming . . . . . . . . . 45 


Sole Solutions Podiatry . . . . 36 

St Columba’s School . . . . . . . . 55 

Stewart Independent Financial . . Bk 


Strathgryffe Dog Walks . . . . . 44 



TD Cameron . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 


The Right Move . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 


Travel Actually . . . . . . . . . . . 3 

W B Smith & Son . . . . . . . . . . . 49 

Walkies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 

Wellcentred UK . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 

West of Scotland Landscape . . 46 

Woodburn & Beattie Joiners . . 15

64 

t: 01505 613340 07731 923970 e: info@advertizer.co.uk 

you can contact us @GryffeAds using #Advertizer 

or by email info@advertizer.co.uk or phone 01505 613340

270 March 2017 - Gryffe Advertizer

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