The Space

There's a gap between two houses on Penman Avenue, Burnhill - easy to walk past without noticing. Through that gap, past a short lane and a second gate, the High Backs opens up in front of you.

And it is bigger than you expect. Much bigger. A broad oval of green, the size of a football pitch, completely enclosed by the back gardens of the surrounding houses. Sky above. Quiet. The first thing most people say when they walk through is that it feels like a different place entirely - a little pocket of countryside in the middle of Burnhill, Rutherglen.

Here is what you'll find.

An open black metal gate sits between two houses and a lane curves up to an unseen destination. The road in front of the gate has a dropped kerb and writing on the road reads "Keep Clear".

A broad expanse of green grass enclosed by residential houses. Brightly coloured picnic tables are scattered across the lawn. A large colourful mural is painted on the side of a storage unit to the right, with a community building visible further along.

As you come through the gate

Immediately to your left is the coffee cabin - a modern, warm, self-contained space with a small kitchen, seating, and toilet facilities. This is the newest addition to the High Backs and the place where the kettle is most reliably on.

To your right as you enter is a storage unit painted with a spectacular mural - a wee boy and girl in tartan and pink against a Scottish Highland scene on one side, a vivid sunset over a loch on the other. "High Backs" painted in bold lettering. There is usually a football leaning against it.

The rubber matting laid along the left-hand side keeps things easy to get around when the grass is wet - which, this being Scotland, it sometimes is.

The main hall

Further along on the left is the main hall - a large, handsome dark grey cabin with French doors and a wide veranda with wooden railings. Inside is a big table, framed photos on the walls, and a warm, well-lit space where most of the indoor community groups in Burnhill happen. The kind of room that feels like it has had good conversations in it.

Attached to the main hall is a second indoor space - currently being developed as a dedicated room for the men's group. It's coming along.

A large dark grey timber cabin with French doors and a wooden veranda with railings. Flowering plants grow in raised beds along the front, and a yellow bench sits on the decking. The main hall of the High Backs community garden.

A children's play area with a colourful plastic playhouse, a wooden climbing frame with slide, and other play equipment set on grass within an enclosed section of the garden.

The play area

Behind the main hall is a dedicated play area for younger children - a safe, enclosed space with room to run around away from the main pitch. It's there whenever kids need it.

Out in the open

The green is the heart of it. Brightly painted round picnic tables - pink, blue and green - are scattered across the grass. The kind of furniture that has never once looked sad on a sunny day, and looks cheerful enough on a grey one. A moveable gazebo goes where it's needed, whenever the weather calls for it.

Football goals stand at the far end of a proper full stretch of green. The pitch is big enough that the High Backs got a ride-on lawnmower to keep it in shape - which gives you a sense of the scale.

A broad expanse of grass shows two pop up play tents in the foreground along with other outdoor toys. Football goals sit in the middle ground with a play area seen to the side. The outdoor space is surrounded immediately by houses and a tower block further behind.

A group of people sit around picnic tables on a wooden deck outside a dark grey cabin on a sunny day. The green of the High Backs stretches out behind them with a football goal visible in the distance.

The Training/Meeting cabin

Walk across the green and along the right-hand side of the space and you reach the training/meeting cabin - a smaller summer house with a corner sofa and a little office space, its own decking area attached. A quieter spot. From here the growing space comes properly into view at the back.

Along the right boundary of the space, between the entrance and the training/meeting cabin, solar panels have been installed - powering the High Backs sustainably and a small nod to the future the community is helping to build.

The growing space

At the back of the High Backs, directly opposite the entrance, is the growing space. Raised beds. Wooden planters in different sizes and colours. A fruit tree. A compost area. Open ground still being developed. It is the kind of outdoor space in Rutherglen where things are always at some stage of growing, being planned, or being tended.

Tucked into the front of the growing area is the frog pond - a proper wildlife pond you can't quite see from the entrance. Worth the walk to find it.

Known as the living roof, nearby, handbuilt from pallets with multiple levels and a sedum roof on top, is the bug hotel. A genuine labour of love and a habitat for all sorts of useful insects.

A hand made pallet construction with different layers containing soil. The living roof has a growing space with small plants appearing out the top.

A brightly painted round picnic table in shades of pink, blue and teal. On the table are painted pebbles, a small handwritten sign, and pots of pens — evidence of a creative activity session in progress.

What it feels like

There is just one entrance to the High Backs, it's the exit too. Once you are through the gates, you are in a cosy, self-contained space. It's pure magic. As Lizzy puts it, you come for an hour and find yourself still there four hours later. Time does something different here.

"There's a feeling a calmness, when you come to the High Backs. Time really does stand still. Naebody is rushing." - Lizzy McDonald, founder

The space is open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm, with growing sessions at weekends. If you're interested in a session, a cup of tea, a seat on a bench - or even just a wee nosy about - you are welcome. Get in touch if you’d like to book a space at a weekend growing session, or drop in to see us during the week.

Don’t stop at the front gate.

Tap or click the map to explore it in full screen

A colourful illustrated map of the High Backs community garden showing the layout of the space. Labelled features include the entrance on Penman Avenue, the Main Hall, Coffee Cabin, Men's Group Room, Play Area, Growing Area, Bug Hotel, Frog Pond, Training/Meeting Room, Solar Panels, Storage unit with mural, and movable goals and gazebo on the central green.