Glasgow's 'food desert' - where all people want is a supermarket

It's the first day of spring and The Braes Shopping Centre in Castlemilk is busy with shoppers and hungry teenagers on their school lunch break. Lorraine Monaghan emerges from Iceland with a trolley full of bags. I begin to ask her what she thinks of the local shops, but I don't even need to finish the question. Lorraine says she goes from shop to shop looking for fruit, vegetables and other groceries at prices she can afford. But that often means going to bigger shops outside the area. She says: "Sometimes I'll go to Asda when I'm feeling flush, and I get everything in there. But that means getting the bus, and it's half an hour away." The journey is meant to save money, but it also costs money – more than £6 on a fare for her granddaughter, who she needs to help her. A big local supermarket would make a big difference. Residents have been campaigning since 2016 to attract a major supermarket to Castlemilk - an area in the south of Glasgow developed after World War Two to rehouse people when run-down tenement buildings were cleared. It was one of the big four housing schemes built on the outskirts of the city. Four years ago, they were told it was about to happen. But it didn't. "

Apr 5, 2026 → Apr 5, 2026