Digging into Data: Data Journalism for Community Reporters

Led by: Greater Govanhill CIC

Funding awarded: £9,650

Community fund recipient

Photo of the Greater Govanhill Magazine newsroom building, painted bright yellow

About the project

The Greater Govanhill CIC is a community media project founded in 2020 which aims to challenge stereotypes, break cultural barriers, and unite the community.

Glasgow’s Govanhill is one of the most ethnically diverse neighbourhoods in Scotland, but also experiences high levels of deprivation.

Through this project, the team provided training courses on data journalism skills, which were made available to people in Govanhill who have experience of marginalisation. The participants were equipped with the skills to dig into data around issues that they care about, and which also affect other people locally.

They were further empowered through community reporter skills to be able to tell these stories, with a particular focus on solutions journalism, discovering the positive outliers in datasets and investigating who’s done it better. Through the project, Greater Govanhill CIC hope to inspire others to make change and hold power to account.

Community fund

New for 2025-26, a portion of our Public Engagement Fund was ringfenced for a pilot community fund, supporting a community organisation to engage people in data research.

The Digging into Data project has been funded through our pilot community fund, and was supported with guidance from RDS data professionals in addition to funding.

Project impact

Fifteen members of the community participated in the training programme to become community reporters, contributing to issue 19 of the Greater Govanhill magazine, titled 'Digging into Data'.

Some of the topics explored by the community reporters include: creating inclusive environments in football; vaccine hesitancy and an increase in measles cases in Scotland; the changing face of Victoria Road; and lack of benefit support for young disabled people.

4,000 copies of the printed magazine were distributed for free in the local neighbourhood, with further reach including online publication and social media dissemination, community radio broadcast (Radio Buena Vida), and presentations at national and international events.

Read the magazine online

The project also enabled Greater Govanhill CIC to strengthen its relationships with data specialists, community journalism practitioners at a national level, and event networks including B Futures Festival, the Edinburgh Book Festival and the 10 Points Unconference.

The team aims to continue the integration of data journalism into future training programmes, and is considering pursuing further funding to sustain and expand its data-focused journalism training. They hope to expand the development of community-led reporting initiatives and support the ongoing dissemination of learning within the community journalism sector.

“I wasn’t sure if I was good enough writer or storyteller and if my article was going to be interesting. So seeing it there, hearing people’s comments and realising why it matters made me realise that my voice does matter as well as my experience”

Participant

“It was super helpful to remove the fear of data. I am definitely thinking very differently about data when considering writing!”

Participant

“I really liked the article about the community feeling cut off with the divide in Pollokshields due to the two fires. my gran had a house in that area growing up so i remember it's vibrance and wasn't aware it was cut off like this”

Participant