Room 13

Page 8

(Extracts from the minutes of Room13 meetings)

8th September

Lucy said that we should start to look at the London Exhibition and it was decided to get Aardvark to come and get the work and take it to London. it was also decided that we should be the centre for collecting and that Lochyside [the other primary school in Fort William with a Room 13] should get their stuff to us. Lucy said she would get Mr. Fairley to book sleeper tickets as it might need his Visa card.

We decided that Hayley or Nikki should go to the opening and that one person from Lochyside should go.

Lucy said that she wanted to go and bring the pictures back but thought she would find it difficult to get the time off, and instead Stephen should go.

We then discussed fund-raising. Advent Calendars, Christmas cards, postcards and mouse mats made in the shape of a mousehole.

September 22nd

A big discussion on what paintings had to go to London. It was sort of decided. If Nikki is going to be one of the main artists then we thought that she should go to London at the start of the show and speak to Channel 4 about the new film.

A big discussion on the ordering of materials and Hayley said she would look after getting this done.

Eileen and Ann said they would see about getting people to tidy the sink and Lucy said that Mr. Fairley had been complaining about food being left in the studio.

 

November 3rd

Nikki told us about the exhibition in London and her meeting with Jan Younghusband in Channel 4. She told us that the Ch 4 building was amazing and that the meeting went really quite well. The night before Mike [Mike Lerner from ZCZ films, the company behind the Ch4 film] had been introduced to Rod [from a big international company interested in Room 13] and they had talked about the South Africa studios and how all sorts of people could get involved, people like UNESCO and Nelson Mandela. Mike was sure that if we can get the film ordered by Ch 4 that he could get free tickets from British Airways. Nikki is going to discuss things with Rosie and Ami and then write a plan for Jan.

When I had arrived I had seen a new notice on the door forbidding food and drink in Room 13. I asked several people who had made this rule; one person said the management team, another said Lucy and Mr. Fairley, another just said it was obviously necessary because of the mess - as Stephen Mitchell said, "People come up with their lunch and then they stick their rubbish down the side of the seats and eventually there's packets all over the place." The rule seemed to be being well kept, without adult supervision.

I asked Anne Cameron, the secretary, about how the fund-raising suggestions had been progressing, and she said, "They haven't started doing anything yet because we're supposed to have a meeting every week, but it hasn't been happening because Mr. Fairley's away in India for a conference so we can't really do it for now. We're waiting for him to come back." But then, when I asked her how much they depended on Mr. Fairley she said, "Well, he isn't anything to do with the management team, but it's quite good having him around with us."

Stephen's explanation made this all clearer. "He's actually rather important because he talks about all the things we're going to be talking about and he explains, and then we start." When they start, Mr. Fairley leaves.

Michelle Love, an ex-director, told me how the meetings are arranged.

They meet up together because Lucy, one of the people, managing director or something like that, she tells Miss Cattanach or Mrs McClellan to put, "There's a management team on in the Science and Tech at one o'clock," and it says it round the school when they get the yellow folder, so everyone knows there's a management team because then the teacher reads it out.

When I interviewed Eilidh Innes Mr. Fairley came into the conversation fairly frequently. She did not want to be recorded, so her comments are not verbatim, but she told me, for instance, that Mr. Fairley takes her to the bank, and taught her what to do as Treasurer. If he really likes a painting, she said, he won't sell it. He helps with trips abroad - not, you notice, "he organises trips abroad," but nevertheless Eilidh thought that if he left there would not be so many trips abroad. He sometimes makes people pick up stuff when the management team hasn't succeeded. If they wanted to, the management team could sack him. He has nothing to do with the management team, he just makes sure everything is done, and does it himself if no one else is there to do it. He wants to make sure everyone knows how to manage things if he was to leave.