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AN EAST end community worker is calling for calm after allotment gardeners – including a seven-year-old girl - were left ‘terrified’ by verbal abuse and threats of violence as the coronavirus lockdown continues.

Susan Wilson, who volunteers at Includeme2’s Reidvale allotments in Dennistoun, said: “I was working on my plot on Friday, and another gentleman who is in his 80s was on a different plot, when a very aggressive guy in his 30s started shouting abuse and threatening me.

“He swore at me and told me not to come back as I didn’t live there – I calmly tried to explain we were allowed to be there as the Government’s guidelines said it was okay.”

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She added: “I went to the car to get another pair of boots and he kept shouting at me. I was standing behind the car door ready to jump in to protect myself. Then he spotted a young family on one of the other plots, booted the gate open and started hurling abuse at them. The children, who are just seven and 10, are now terrified and don’t want to come back to what was our tranquil space.”

As revealed by the Glasgow Times last week, Susan and her fellow Allotment Angels at Reidvale have been working hard in recent days to plant fresh food for the community.

Government guidelines, revealed recently by UK Cabinet Minister Michael Gove, confirm that people can still attend allotments as long as they practise social distancing by staying on their own plots, not gathering with other plotholders and following strict hygiene rules in relation to locks, gates, handles on communal sheds and water tanks.

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Susan explained: “Going to an allotment is considered a form of exercise and for many of the people here, it’s the only thing they can do to get outside and get fresh air. We are all working in our own corners, keeping safe and distant from each other at all times. This was really frightening for all of us. I just want people to stay calm, and follow the advice.”

Includeme2 supports adults with additional support needs and disabilities. The Allotment Angels has become a popular group in the east end, working with local nurseries and community groups and sharing harvests with local residents. Volunteers range from schoolchildren to pensioners.

A spokesperson for Police Scotland said: “We received a report of a verbal altercation between parties at an allotment space in Glasgow around 2.30pm on Friday, 27 March, 2020. Police attended and suitable advice was given.”