A Southside cafe dedicated to empowering refugee women is set to transform into a social enterprise hub.

The much-loved Milk Cafe on Victoria Road will cease trading as a cafe at the end of August to focus on building a full timetable of classes, workshops, pop-up dinners, and private events for the community.

Opened seven years ago, the ethos of Milk has always been to support refugee and migrant women to gain confidence, improve their English, and help build a strong community with each other in Govanhill.

Glasgow Times:

Now, owners Angela Ireland and Gabby Cluness are shifting their focus from serving customers to better serving their community as a social hub.

The team at Milk are seeking input from the community over the summer to find out what they would like from the dynamic space.

Glasgow Times:

Gabby Cluness

They currently offer a range of get-togethers from writing classes and open mic nights to conversation groups, computer skills, and peer support.

They have even hosted tarot nights and improv sessions.

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Angela told the Glasgow Times: “We wanted the space to be somewhere that friendships can be built, and communities can be made.

“We’re excited. We’re excited about moving on and doing something that’s a bit more focused.

“I know people say they are going to miss the cafe space, but it’s not leaving.

“There’s still going to be the coffee machine and cakes. All the classes and workshops that are going to be on, we’re going to keep them accessible and make them as community-focused as possible.

“It just feels like the best thing to do right now.”

Glasgow Times:

She added: “The catering is still very much going, and we still want to be as self-sustaining as possible instead of relying on grant funding.

“As long as we trade enough, it means we have the freedom to do things within the other space.”