Councillors back The Splash's campaign for a memorial garden at former hospital

Two senior Glasgow City councillors has thrown their weight behind The Splash’s campaign for a memorial garden at the former site of Yorkhill Sick Children’s Hospital and Queen Mother’s Maternity Hospital.

Councillor Eva Bollander and Angus Millar, who both represent the Yorkhill area, support our Heart of Yorkhill petition launched yesterday.

 Cllr Bollander said it was “very human way to reflect on important life events like births and deaths.”

She said: “The idea of a memorial garden was initially raised by the Yorkhill and Kelvingrove Community Council, quite a few years ago, when the Yorkhill Children’s Hospital was closing.

“I think it is very human to want to reflect on important life events like births and deaths.

“It would be very fitting to incorporate a memorial garden, a reflective space, maybe not only for the children that sadly passed away, but also in thanks for the many that has been safely born, and healed at Yorkhill Children’s Hospital, and the Queen Mother’s Maternity Hospital.”

Councillor Angus Millar added: “A memorial garden would be a fitting way to recognise how meaningful Yorkhill Hospital is to so many families, and I am happy to support calls for this to be incorporated into the coming redevelopment of the site.”

Sign the petition

We’re calling for a dedicated Memorial Garden at Yorkhill — a permanent space the developers can’t erase and the city will never forget.

A place that honours everything this site stood for:

🌱 A peaceful space to remember the children we lost
🌱 A tribute to the families who carried them in love
🌱 A thank you to the staff who gave their hearts to caring

   
This isn’t a request.
This is a demand.
This is the Heart of Yorkhill — and we refuse to let it be buried under bricks and profit.

The NHS prepares to sell off the land under the Property Transactions Handbook.

At the launch of the campaign, Councillor Philip Bratt told The Splash: “It should be a celebration of the lives saved, the help, the staff as well as a memorial.

“There have children attend good news and outcomes and staff with fond memories and can from all over the city and beyond.

“We want to obtain a piece of ground first. We want a groundswell of the public and organisations behind us so that they will listen.”

Campaigner Mandy Reid, secretary of the community council, who is behind the campaign, added:

“We need to act now. Once the land is sold, it’s gone forever.
There was a promise of a memorial years ago — we intend to make sure it’s kept.”
THE SPLASH SAYS: GLASGOW, THIS IS YOUR MOMENT

We’ve seen the early development plans:
🏢 Six-storey flats
🏠 Around 25 affordable homes and 25 mixed market for rent with Yorkhill Housing Association expressing an interest
🏥 A possible primary care facility and
🚫 NO student accommodation
📅 Site hitting the market in early 2026

But not one line, not one clause, not one sketch guarantees a memorial.

That’s why Heart of Yorkhill must be the loudest campaign this community has ever raised.

JOIN THE FIGHT — KEEP THE HEART OF YORKHILL BEATING

👉 Add your name
👉 Share the campaign
👉 Send us your Yorkhill memories and stories
👉 Tell us what the Memorial Garden MUST include
👉 Stand with the families, staff and children whose lives shaped this place