I HAVE been intrigued by the correspondence on Glasgow's Govan churches (Letters, April 7 and 10).

The jewel in the crown, Govan Old, lingers on, almost closeted from view. Bound on the north by the River Clyde, hemmed in the west by residential housing and care homes, flanked in the south by the Pearce Institute and blocked in the east by the travellers' park.

A breakout is required. The most likely to yield would be the travellers' park. There is a plethora of brownfield sites in Govan where it could be resited with equal or superior accommodation.

I realised the potential of this building at Jimmy Reid's funeral, some time ago. There were 800 mourners in attendance. It had perfect acoustics, and the finest trestled roof I have seen.

A lottery grant, to erect a separate building to house the Govan Stones, would increase the Old's capacity to 1000. The possibilities for worship, TV broadcasting, concerts, tourism and community use would be immense.

Govan faces a fight for its future, particularly if we lose the shipyard. Let us start by protecting and promoting our oldest asset, Govan Old Church.

Jimmy Johnston,

38 Merryland Street, Govan, Glasgow.