Cardonald residents say they feel ignored and forgotten following the closure of their local library 14 months ago.

Cardonald Library temporarily shut down in September 2023 after the presence of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) – which is less durable than concrete and is prone to collapse when wet - was discovered.

At the time Glasgow Life – the arms-length leisure body of Glasgow City Council - said it was in the process of appointing structural engineers to carry out further investigations.

(Image: Image by Louise Cairns) (Image: Image by Louise Cairns) However, the library has not re-opened yet and residents claim that Glasgow Life have not provided locals with any updates or an alternative to the library in the meantime.

Louise Cairns, 46, a Cardonald resident said: “We are incredibly aware of the difficulty with RAAC, and we know it is not an easy fix.

“But this has been a year and a half with no attempt from Glasgow Life to facilitate an alternative to the library which is local and accessible.

“There has been very little communication with what is going to happen with the library and not being communicated with is leaving people feeling ignored and forgotten about.

“We need that building because now it feels like there is nowhere you can go without spending money and that shouldn’t be the way it is.

“Everybody is waiting, and we need an answer now.”

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The library, which opened back in 1970, has been known for offering a range of services such as toddler and baby groups, sessions for OAPs and of course, printer and computer access.

And as Louise said, the library is some people’s only place for socialising, support, internet access or using technology.

She added: “The library has classes for OAPs, Lego clubs for toddlers and local schools use it as part of their day and I know the kids really miss it.

“There is a lady who lives in the area and her child has specific needs, she meets with a care/mental health worker and the library is their mutual meeting ground which they don’t have anymore.”

(Image: Image by Louise Cairns) After seeing how much the community were missing out, and learning that locals too wanted a temporary arrangement during the closure, Louise and three other mums in the area decided to organise a demonstration to get their voices heard.

The demonstration took place outside the library on Sunday – and over 100 attendees turned up at one point.

Louise said: “We realised that we could write things online and moan all we wanted but there comes a time when you need to do something.

“And when we went onto Facebook community pages to suss out local thoughts, we found that a lot of people felt as we did.”

(Image: Image by Louise Cairns) Louise went on to say: “It was a really good atmosphere, and it totally exceeded our expectations. We thought we would get about 12 people along if we were lucky.

“We had loads of cars honking us in support, the kids made banners, and we already have people emailing and messaging about when the next one will be.

“People really want to be involved.”

However, Glasgow Life have said dealing with the RAAC and putting temporary measures are costly. 

A spokesperson for Glasgow Life said: "We know the RAAC at Cardonald Library is high risk thanks to a structural survey and we have developed proposals for how to remove it.

"Each proposal has a significant cost attached and, along with Glasgow City Council, we have to find the money to pay for the work needed to get the building open again.

"We have explored other options for temporary provision but they come with further costs.

"Pollok, Pollokshaws and Ibrox Library are the nearest available alternatives. Once work is planned at Cardonald Library we will update users on expected timings." 

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Louise and the other mums have organised another demonstration to take place on December 15.

For updates, keep up to date with the Crookston and Pollok Community Group on Facebook.