In 2010, Room 13 took on a commission to develop artwork for Fort William town underpass. Hundreds of people, from toddlers to pensioners, contributed to the project. Together, they created a unique piece of public art. This project showed that lots of people in the wider community want to take part in creative projects and join in with activities that help foster their creativity and well-being. This led to Room 13 Community Studio, being set up in 2012 with support from Highland LEADER 2007-2013 programme to expand on the opportunities Room 13 can offer to local people of all ages.

Room 13 Community Studio extends access to Room 13 for children and young people across Lochaber, and hosts out-of-hours activities, workshops and events for the wider community.

Today, Room 13 has its home in Caol Joint Campus, opened by Highland Council in September 2016. The development comprises two adjoining primary schools adjacent to a library, youth centre and community centre, which houses a dedicated Room 13 studio run by primary school pupils, and an additional community studio run by a team of youth volunteers aged 13+.

The new studio facilities accommodate a range of projects led by artists of all ages.  Projects running in the studio generally combine enterprise and open-ended creative learning.

Different groups and individuals interact with the studios in a variety of ways. This changes as time goes on but at the moment in Room 13 Studios, Caol:

• Pupils from Caol and St Columba’s RC Primary Schools work together to form a ‘Management Team’ that looks after the smaller studio, setting their own projects and organising themselves with the guidance of an Artist-in-Residence.
• Class groups from both schools make use of Room 13 to explore ideas, skills and artwork that links to their curriculum.
• A group of volunteers from S1 to S6 meet weekly to help keep the larger studio organised and develop their own creative ideas and group projects.
• A screen-printing group made up of young adults and LHS pupils who are working in the studio to create designs for products like T-shirts, bags and fine art prints.
• The Open Studio allows people of all ages to create artwork, explore new ideas and meet other people.  It’s also a good opportunity for anyone wanting to find out more about Room 13 to come and visit!