Govanhill International Festival and Carnival

24/03/2026

Above: lyrics from a picket line song written 25 years ago during the occupation of Govanhill Baths.
“This pool is my pool…”

So let’s pool together.

We’re proud to be supported by the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games Festival Fund.

But here’s the reality in Govanhill.

For 25 years, we’ve been fighting to get our pool back.
A whole generation has grown up without it.

No local pool. No equal access. Still waiting.

This matters. But we also have to ask: what actually changes after all this?

Where are the places for us to gather, connect, socialise and swim?
25 years on, we’re still looking for somewhere to swim.

Pool Together brings that story into the Govanhill International Festival & Carnival
with local people at the centre, not the sidelines.

It all comes together at the parade on Saturday 1 August 2026
bringing hundreds into the streets, together.

12/03/2026

Reminder: 10 days left to apply for the festival programmes and grants!

The GIFC 2026 Open Call and Creative Neighbourhood Grants Application will close on Sunday, 22 March 2026.

We are celebrating 10 years of Scotland’s anti-racist festival and 25 years since the occupation of Govanhill Baths. Join us in putting solidarity into action as we honour these milestones and continue the long work of building a fairer, kinder and more connected Govanhill.

Creative Neighbourhood Grants 2026 are bursaries of up to £1000 for your GIFC 2026 event. We especially encourage project ideas that spark both joy and critical questions in response to the grant theme: create/disrupt.

Deadline: Sunday, 12pm, 22nd of March 2026

To apply, please visit the Govanhill Baths website. If you have any questions about submissions please email at [email protected]

Find out more: https://www.govanhillbaths.com/festival-3/

20/02/2026

Funding application now open: Creative Neighbourhood Grants 2026

Creative Neighbourhood grants offer micro-bursaries of up to £1000 to support the delivery of your GIFC events submitted through our Open Call. This funding is about supporting the creative life of our neighbourhood. It’s for the artists, organisers, thinkers, and makers who live, work, and have a meaningful connection to Govanhill and the surrounding area.

The grant is designed for the artists, organisers, thinkers, and makers who live, work, and have a connection to Govanhill and the surrounding area. This funding can cover a wide range of activities, including but not limited to:

Music, dance, and theatre performances
Art exhibitions and installations
Film screenings
Workshops, talks, and seminars
Community gatherings

To be considered for this funding, you must complete both the GIFC 2026 Festival Submission Form and the Creative Neighbourhoods application form. Please visit our website or click the link in bio to find out more details. We look forward to hearing from you!

Submit your grant application & festival submission now:
https://www.govanhillbaths.com/festival-3/

25/01/2026

OPEN CALL: Govanhill International Festival & Carnival 2026

GIFC 2026 Open Programme is a celebration led by artists, community members, organisers, activists, neighbours, social enterprises and local businesses and anyone who cares about Govanhill.

We welcome events that help people connect, create, challenge, learn, celebrate and build trust across differences.

To apply, please visit the GIFC 2026 webpage via the link in bio.

If you need any additional support or have questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out at [email protected]

Image Credit: Peter Clark, Laura Vroomen, Thomas Buchmann

24/01/2026

OPEN CALL: Govanhill International Festival & Carnival 2026

Govanhill International Festival & Carnival (GIFC) is a community-led, anti-racist civic celebration. It brings together diverse voices across cultures, languages and
generations to nurture a fairer and more connected neighbourhood.

This year’s theme is Solidarity: It’s our history, and it’s our practice, from occupying the Baths in 2001 to building a grassroots arts and wellbeing organisation.

Together, we will celebrate 10 years of Scotland’s anti-racist festival and 25 years since the occupation of Govanhill Baths.

Open Call Closing: 22 March 2026 (12 noon UK Time)
Notification of Acceptance: By end of April 2026
Festival Dates: 1 August – 16 August 2026
Carnival Parade: 1 August 2026

To find out more about the Festival and Open Programme Submission, please visit the GIFC 2026 webpage via the link in bio.

If you need any additional support or have questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out at [email protected]

Image Credit: Peter Clark, Rob Reid

23/01/2026

OPEN CALL: Govanhill International Festival & Carnival 2026

Last year, 8000+ audiences attended over 50 events in 23 venues across 10 days of the festival.

This year we are planning a bigger celebration.
Let your amazing works resonate with Govanhill’s diverse community!

We Welcome:
Performances, art exhibitions, film screenings, music, workshops, public gatherings, conversations, book launches, outdoor and pop-up events, and cultural celebrations of all kinds.

Who Can Participate?
Everyone! Artists, activists, community groups, neighbours, local businesses, young people, elders and first-time organisers.
We operate on open submission,
your participation is not judged on artistic merit.

We will ensure every event aligns with our core values of anti-racism and solidarity,
is safe, accessible and deliverable for our community. Events must take place in or around Govanhill.

Open Call Closing: 22 March 2026 (12 noon UK Time)
Notification of Acceptance: By end of April 2026
Festival Dates: 1 August – 16 August 2026
Carnival Parade: 1 August 2026

To Apply, please visit the GIFC 2026 webpage via https://www.govanhillbaths.com/festival-3/

If you need any additional support or have questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out at [email protected]

Image Credit: Sadia Sikander (Greater Govanhill), Peter Clark, Rob Reid

19/08/2025

Wonderful to see the crowds attending the annual anti-racist Govanhill International Festival and Carnival this year ✨

Close to 8000 people attended over 50 events in 23 venues and outdoor spaces across ten days in Glasgow’s Southside last week, all organised by Govanhill Baths Community Trust.

⭐️ Highlights from the 2025 event ⭐️

🎨 35 artists took part in the finale with Govanhill Street Music Festival set up five stages along Victoria Road, Westmoreland Street and the Cooperage.

👋 Maz and the Phantasms, Diljeet Kaur Bhachu, Aleena, Decades of Dub, The Girobabies and Randa Jarrar were just some of the highlights from line-ups arranged by Love Music Hate Racism Glasgow, Duende, SNACK magazine Scotland, and Cargo Signs.

📚 On Friday and Saturday, Govanhill Book Festival brought together Nicola Sturgeon, Chris McQueer - Writer, Peter Mohan, Shane Johnstone, Martin O’Connor, Dareen Tartour, Mohamed Mousa (Gaza Poets Society) and Randa Jarrar

🌎 81 languages are spoken in the Govanhill area and the festival shared Irish, Gaelic, Jewish, Roma, Palestinian, American, East and South-East Asian, Caribbean and Ethiopian cultural moments, all rooted in a sense of creativity, neighbourhood and activism.

⚡️ Running through the festival was a celebration of activists and activism, from Mary Barbour, Cathy McCormack, Glasgow’s Women on Strike, Glasgow’s Anti-Racist History, Welcome to the Fringe: Palestine, plus the hundreds of people who marched in the parade

Govanhill International Festival and Carnival will return for its tenth year in 2026, with the annual parade and carnival taking place on Saturday 1 August.

🌱 Discover more about the Festival and its roots at the link in the comments

📸 Govanhill International Festival and Carnival 2025 - photography by Rob Reid

11/08/2025

As the festival wraps up, we're looking back at some of the fantastic photos from the Carnival and Parade day!

We can't wait to do it all again next year, where we'll celebrate the 10th anniversary of GIFC!

https://www.glasgowtimes.co.uk/news/scottish-news/25361579.incredible-pictures-govanhill-international-festival-parade/?fbclid=IwY2xjawL9X-NleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHkT_tP0waYaBPSHX3lpDn4lEUMNHvLiRDJjiTAxTXNRNOeikvYJAfBifSkak_aem_0p5WWUv6BLmsb1lWX0T8GQ

Incredible pictures from Govanhill International Festival parade   GOVAN Southside Events Leisure Glasgow Scotland By Morgan Carmichael Facebook Reporter Share Pictures taken by Robert Perry, Newsquest (Image: Pictures taken by Robert Perry, Newsquest) This article is brought to yo...

06/08/2025

We’re delighted to be working in partnership with Sunny Govan Community Radio for this year’s festival. They’ll be out and about meeting people at events all this week, and we’ll be sharing preview interviews with Govanhill Baths Community Trust staff and festival events organisers over the next few days, or you can listen to the full show here - https://www.mixcloud.com/SunnyG103/govanhill-festival-2025-event-preview-interviews-29-july-2025/

06/08/2025

Ahead of their event celebrating community activist Cathy McCormack tonight, Ellie Harrison from Glasgow Community Energy joined Sunny Govan Community Radio to talk about Cathy’s inspirational work.

https://soundcloud.com/govanhill-baths-community-trust/wee-yellow-butterfly-glasgow-community-energy-interview-for-govanhill-international-festival

Cultivating Community Activism, Wednesday 6 August, 7pm, Queen’s Park Govanhill Parish Church.

https://www.outsavvy.com/event/28299/cultivating-community-activism-learning-from-cathy-mccormacks-the-wee-yellow-butterfly

06/08/2025

Join us to explore Hidden Histories: The Radical Jewish Tradition and its Legacy. Radical historian Dr. Donny Gluckstein, author of The Radical Jewish Tradition, joins Jade Eckhaus, co-chair of Stop the War Scotland to uncover a hidden history of Jewish anti-Zionism and resistance. This urgent conversation connects the fight against imperialism, racism and the far right today with a powerful legacy of Jewish radical struggle.

Donny Gluckstein: The Radical Jewish Tradition Revolutionaries, Resistance Fighters and Firebrands
Wednesday 6th August 2025 at 6:00 PM
The Rum Shack
657-659 Pollokshaws Road, Glasgow, G41 2AB
Free but Ticketed

Book your ticket now - https://www.outsavvy.com/event/28298/donny-gluckstein-the-radical-jewish-tradition-revolutionaries-resistance-fighters-and-firebrands