When Storm Dave rolled into Clydebank on Easter Sunday with snow, wind warnings and the kind of cold that makes your fingers forget they exist, the sensible move was to stay indoors.

More than 300 people did the opposite. They pulled on hats, zipped up coats, and headed for the Flourishing Faifley community garden — and, in doing so, turned a washout forecast into one of the warmest community days of the year.

"We did it, Faifley. We beat Storm Dave."

That was the verdict from a Flourishing Faifley spokesperson after the dust — or in this case, the slush — had settled on the group's annual Easter event on Sunday, April 5.

The numbers tell their own story: 304 visitors through the gates, 58 of them first-timers who had never set foot in the garden before, and 367 Easter eggs handed out to children who, by all accounts, didn't seem to notice the sideways sleet.

A decision made in defiance of the forecast

Across West Dunbartonshire, events were falling like dominoes. The much-anticipated Springfest at Loch Lomond was postponed. Renfrew's Easter egg hunt was pushed back to the Monday. Storm Dave, freshly named by the Met Office, was doing exactly what had been predicted — battering the west of Scotland with blustery winds and unseasonable snow.

But the Flourishing Faifley committee took a different view.

"With so many events cancelled, our incredible volunteers and committee were determined to keep things going," the group's spokesperson said. "For the kids, for the families, and for our community to enjoy some special Easter time together."

Arts, crafts and a constant supply of hot drinks

Inside the garden, the volunteers had laid on arts and crafts tables, a rotation of games for the children, and what the spokesperson described as a "constant supply" of hot drinks, cakes and sweet treats. The Easter egg handout ran from morning through to the event's slightly early wrap-up.

"We truly had every season in one day," the spokesperson said, "but that didn't stop you — our amazing community — from showing up, supporting us, and bringing so much warmth despite the cold."

"The smiles, laughter and kind words made every frozen finger and toe completely worth it."

Why it matters

Flourishing Faifley is a volunteer-run community garden project that has quietly become one of Faifley's most reliable gathering points. Its annual Easter event is free, open to everyone, and deliberately pitched at families who might otherwise find the school holidays a financial squeeze.

That 58 of Sunday's visitors were new arrivals is, in many ways, the more telling figure than the headline 300. A storm-bound Sunday in early April is not when most people go looking for a new community group. And yet here they were — faces the committee had never seen before, huddled over hot chocolate in a garden in Faifley because word had got round that the event was still on.

The spokesperson was at pains to thank every volunteer who turned out in the cold to make it happen.

"Although the poor weather cut the time spent in the garden shorter than usual for most of our visitors, we welcomed 304 people through our gates, including 58 new faces who had never visited the garden before.

"It was so lovely to see both new visitors and all our familiar faces coming out in force."

Storm Dave, for the record, has since moved on. Faifley, true to form, is still here.