THE sound of laughter and a burble of excitement are spilling out on to the street from inside a former church building.
When the doors to the former hall of the Community of the Risen Christ on Belleisle Street open it's clear from the hubbub within that something important is going on.
The noise is being made by a group of women delighted to be gaining their first ESOL certificates from a course organised by community hub The Space.
"It's lovely seeing their progress rewarded," said Project Manager Fiona Boyd.
"English helps them to achieve things they dreamed of but that would never become a reality without that vital skill."
The Space is a support centre for Govanhill's large Roma community, a community that can often find itself on the margins of society.
Under the guidance of Margot Uprichard, who is responsible for the development and delivery of the project, several different support systems are in place from cookery lessons to helping access health services.
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One of the strands provided by The Space, which is run by the Daughters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul, is English lessons delivered by a tutor from City of Glasgow College.
And women taking part are here for a variety of different goals - some want to get jobs while others wish to be able to help with their children's homework.
Fiona, who started off as a volunteer at The Space but who is now staff, added: "Margot really had a vision for us that the women could achieve more than they might be otherwise expected to.
"Without language you can't progress so we do see that as a great need for the women, so for us it was a no brainer to set up classes.
"If someone can't speak English or read or write in English then they are extremely limited.
"Our vision is to see woman in a job with healthy pay – that's our aspiration for the women.
"For them, they maybe want to help children with homework but her aspiration might grow further the more she learns into being a goal of helping to provide for her family."
Among the women who have completed the ESOL class are Alina Monteano, 27; Lamiita Covaci, 31; and Pamela Covaciu, 27; who all live in Govanhill.
They are delighted with their achievement - and all want to go on and learn even more.
Alina said: "I started coming to The Space from 2015 then I started coming to English classes because I wanted to learn to speak English, to write, to talk, everything, so I can find a good job."
The 27-year-old had lived in London then moved to Glasgow 15 years ago. Having also lived in Portugal, she now feels, as do the other women, that Glasgow is home.
She added: "Glasgow feels like home now, exactly, when I got back to Slovakia it is just to spend holidays.
"When I go back there I know that this feels like home in Glasgow.
"My family are all here: my parents, my brothers, this is where my family is. I have my husband, I have my kids, four kids who are at school and nursery.
"The English classes were good and now I want to do any work I can. I want to learn to drive and the English classes will help with that, I hope."
Alina's children attend Annette Street Primary School where she praises all the teachers, particularly deputy head teacher Wendy English who has learned Romanian to help her communicate with pupils.
She said: "The schools here are much better than in my country, they will have more opportunities here and my husband can get a job here.
"It is much better."
The Space was not originally set up for the Roma residents but after opening first as a shopfront on Allison Street in 2013, members of the community were the those who most used the service.
It plays a vital role in community integration.
For Lamiita, The Space was initially a place to get support and a decent meal but she is now looking for work after completing her English class.
"It is four years since I was coming to The Space, from when I first arrived in Glasgow. The first time I am coming here I am coming for food," the mum-of-three said.
"Then I started the English classes.
"I didn’t know much about Glasgow before I came here but I like it, I feel like I want to stay here for a long time.
"When I back in Romania I say I am going back home, talking about Glasgow, because here is my home.
"All my family is here, my mum, dad, brothers, sister, so why would I go back? It is home here."
Fiona was an ESOL lecturer so had connections at City of Glasgow College.
Tutor Fiona Beattie has been working with the women in The Space but has also taught in the Govanhill community for eight years.
She said: "The challenges are all the same for novice learners - they lack a bit of confidence in themselves to learn but I really enjoy watching that confidence grow as the weeks go by.
"The whole classroom setting can be very different for them, even just remembering to bring books and a pen, because they may not have had many educational opportunities previously.
"Over the space of the 12 week course their progress has been immense and I hope they keep up the momentum to keep learning."
The Space has two part-time interpreters from the Roma community, including Pamela, who has taken the ESOL course.
She started coming to The Space in 2014 having been in Glasgow since 2012.
Pamela had initially come on holiday to visit her sister but loved the city, found the people friendly and decided to stay.
"I have four sisters and three are here. One is in Romania and one is in Ireland," she said.
"I like living in Glasgow. I get homesick sometimes but this is home for me now. I go back there just for holidays.
"After you live somewhere, your kids are at school, your family is there - that is home.
"When you go back to Romania there is no jobs, your kids are not in school, no family there, and you feel it hard.
"But now I have this certificate I want to be able to help my children with homework and I want to get work.
"For us, learning English is really important to be part of the community in Glasgow."
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