KIRKMICHAEL’S young people are at the heart of efforts to restore the area’s community spirit.

So says Louise Mullender, who is part of a team of parents living in the area working hard to provide more for young people living locally to do.

Twenty-five Kirkmichael children took part in a sponsored walk earlier this year to raise funds for a family fun day

A sponsored car wash also provided much-needed cash to support the August 14 event, which featured a barbecue, bouncy castle, face painting, games and a series of fun activities.

And more events are in the pipeline to get the area’s young people active and away from their sofas and from street corners.

“People don’t seem to connect with a lot of the kids round here,” Louise told the Advertiser.

“We’re trying to get the community back together rather than tarring people with the perceptions of the past. We want to give the area’s young people things to do rather than leaving them arguing and fighting in the streets.”

Several of the Kirkmichael parents, Louise included, have undergone training in Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVGs) which will enable them to supervise a wider range of activities and to oversee day trips outside Helensburgh in the future.

Louise and her fellow volunteers are also hoping to work closely with Helensburgh’s community sport hub

“There are 14 parents involved so far,” Louise continued.

“It’s gone a lot better than we’d hoped. We started out just playing rounders and football in the summer, and more and more people kept coming along.

“We’re going to start doing regular fundraising of our own to help meet the cost of day trips – we want to go to the panto at Christmas and maybe go orienteering at Mugdock

“A lot of people, even in Kirkmichael, are saying ‘you’re wasting your time, it’s been done before, it’s never worked’. That was quite disheartening at first but we’re proving that it’s working.”

Louise and her fellow parents have formed an umbrella group – Kirkmichael Kids – working under the umbrella of the Kirkmichael Community Development Group (KCDG), whose work featured in last week’s Advertiser.

KCDG chairman Stephen Coates said: “We’ve got fantastic facilities in Kirkmichael – we’ve got a football park, a swing park and a skate park – and we want to get as many kids as we can off the streets and off their couch.

“The help we had from the kids themselves for the fun day was tremendous, and the reaction we’ve had from them to what we’re trying to do has been fantastic.

“Wee toddlers are giving me high-fives as I walk down the street – I think that’s amazing.

“Some of the kids in the area have hardly ever been out of Kirkmichael, but the group, and especially people like Louise, want to encourage the young people living in the area to help each other, rather than fighting all the time.”

If you’re on Facebook you can find out more about what’s going on by searching for Kirkmichael Community Development Group or KCDG kids activities.