The pottery, which was created in 1992/93 when the FE College at Park Road moved onto the Bath Road site, is still used today by adult students at Frome College.
When the pottery was established in the 1990s, the technology department moved into its current home, new IT rooms and a new dark room were built and the Community Education Centre opened next to the Merlin Theatre.
Frome Community Education explains, “Of course, a “dark room” may mean nothing to some – this was in the days when photographs were taken using a film that needed developing, and the prints were made under the red glow of the safety light.
“Around 1,200 adults attended classes each week in subjects ranging from languages (French, German, Italian and Spanish) to IT (then, it was just beginning to be a necessity for everyone.) Biggest of all were the programmes in art (held in G4) and pottery, with 11 classes a week in each of these subjects. Lots of things have changed in the past 25 years, but the pottery classes are still going!
“Nine classes are run each week for students of all abilities. There are evening classes on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, with day classes on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays (both morning and afternoon.)
“The classes are now run by Frome Community Education and students enrol through the Cheese & Grain box office. With 100 students each week, the pottery is still buzzing, and the number of new students this year shows that the subject is not losing its appeal.
“There will be special workshops for complete beginners in July, and also extra classes for experienced potters. Please visit https://fromecommed.org.uk for Frome Community Education updates or The Cheese & Grain website. Join in!”
