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East Renfrewshire church has been making a splash in the local community with four baptisms at its Easter Sunday service
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/BarrheadStAndrews">St Andrew's Parish Church in Barrhead </a>also welcomed 17 new people from three continents into the church family as members
who was assisted by student minister William Gibson during the busy service
described it as a fantastic occasion for the celebration of new life
"We borrowed a portable baptistry from Perth North Church for the occasion
and I was privileged to be able to baptise three people by full immersion and one individual from the font," said Mr Mineard
Olivia Czarnik and siblings Corren and Elyza Frame
who has just completed an Alpha course with the church and wanted to be baptised as a sign of her new commitment
The new members had a truly international flavour
several Nigerian families and a couple from Hong Kong who have been attending the church over the past year
"As a church we have seen a number of new people joining over the past few years," Mr Mineard explained
"Some of the surge is due to our employment of a full-time youth and community worker in April 2024
"We have also seen a big increase in people coming from all kinds of different ethnic backgrounds and have made a big effort to welcome them
we have held dedicated African Sundays over the past few years."
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Aurs Road has been under renovation since January 2024 and was initially set to take 12 months to complete.
Aurs Road has been under renovation since January 2024 and was initially set to take 12 months to complete, but it will not be completed until the spring of next year.
It was described as an &#8220;ambitious&#8221; and &#8220;transformative&#8221; upgrade to the link between Barrhead and Newton Mearns, but now local businesses are calling for compensation after being hit with eight-mile diversions.
Initially, the road was scheduled to be closed for 12 months, but a revised completion date for summer 2025 was announced in October.
Now, locals will have to wait at least another year.
The project aims to upgrade the single-carriageway road by replacing a bridge and creating a new 2.5-mile walking and cycling loop around Balgray Reservoir.
The council has said that subsidence has led to the project needing to be &#8220;redesigned&#8221;.
Owen O&#8217;Donnell, leader of East Renfrewshire Council, told STV News: &#8220;It&#8217;s a very complicated project.
&#8220;We always knew that from the start, but there have been some unforeseen issues with the development.
&#8220;Subsidence has led to us needing to redesign the project. The focus now is getting the project completed as quickly as possible and for the road to be opened safely.
&#8220;We completely recognise the frustrations of residents and businesses in the area.
&#8220;This is something that we didn&#8217;t want to happen, but it&#8217;s something we have to do in order to make sure that when the road is opened, it is open safely and that we deliver the project that we have anticipated, which will be transformational for East Renfrewshire.
&#8220;It will open up transport routes between the East and West side of the authority and will also open up the dams to Darnley Country Park, which is a hidden gem that is actually quite inaccessible at the moment.&#8221;
The local authority said that while there is not a mechanism for compensation for delays in road projects, businesses can get in touch with their economic development team for support.
The works are being funded through the Glasgow Region City Deal, which includes money from the UK and Scottish Governments, as well as East Renfrewshire Council.
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