It will be easier to get a cup of tea and a good, snack lunch in Govan when the Pearce Institute (PI) café re- opens this month, after extensive refurbishment.

Fiona Wilson a Paisley Buddy, has been appointed manager. ‘I used to come to Govan to play in Elderpark when my father, Danny Hallsworth was a driver with Paterson’s Buses. He’d drop my brother and me off at the Park on a Saturday where I loved to go on the pedal boats,’ said the 37-year-old, qualified, catering manager.

‘There is a friendly atmosphere here in the PI,’ she commented. ‘I liked the place even before I had the interview for the job.’

Dedicated to offering healthy breakfasts and lunchtime snacks, the café has been backed by the NHS which has funded the new kitchen equipment. Soup and sandwiches, baked potatoes, salad options, toasties and a range of hot and cold drinks will all be on the menu. ‘While we’ll keep prices affordable, we do have to cover our costs,’ said Fiona who described the café as a ‘not-for-profit’ place. It cannot provide meals cooked on the premises because of lack of commercial ventilation ducting. ‘That was going to be impossibly expensive to instal because of the location of the kitchen,’ said Fiona, who is a keen outdoor bowler in her spare time.

Tea was on offer during Doors Open weekend and local workplaces helped by sending people along for lunch to test the facilities and service in the run up to the official opening.

Apart from the new tables and chairs the cafe has comfy couches and GalGael crafted bookshelves with plenty of books for all ages. The history of the PI’s first 100 years will be on the shelves soon as the book of memories of the place is in preparation now.

Created by pupils from Govan High School and Bellahouston Academy the café has two light boxes as wall decoration. They contain some interesting comments so make a date to drop in to the PI Cafe for a cuppa at the end of October.

And if you have an interesting name for the new cafe, give it to PI manager Norie Mackie.