New Corrour Research Centre officially opens

The new research centre at Corrour has officially opened, providing University of St Andrews researchers and students with a dedicated base for fieldwork, teaching and collaboration in the Scottish Highlands.

University leaders, including Principal and Vice-Chancellor Professor Dame Sally Mapstone, attended the opening on Saturday 12 September to mark the completion of the facility, which forms part of the Corrour–University of St Andrews partnership.

Developed as a “log to lab” project, the 24-bed facility has been built using cross-laminated timber made from trees harvested on the Corrour estate. It is powered by the estate’s hydro scheme, supporting a low-carbon approach to construction and operation.

Professor Dame Sally Mapstone said: “The opening of the Corrour Research Centre is very significant for the University’s commitment to understanding and promoting sustainability, and to working with like-minded partners.

“This exceptional facility creates new opportunities for research, teaching and collaboration as our students, at all levels, and researchers engage directly with this remarkable landscape.”

Corrour partnership lead Charlie Davis said: “We look forward to welcoming researchers and students to the brand-new bespoke research centre at Corrour, with 24 beds, a field laboratory and conference facilities – built using our own timber. Nestled within Corrour’s dramatic landscape, it is a place to base field research, teaching, collaborate and learn while experiencing the Scottish Highlands first-hand.”

The centre is part of a 100-year partnership between Corrour and the University of St Andrews, established to deliver landscape-scale ecological restoration and create a living laboratory for research and teaching. Through the restoration of peatland and the creation of naturally regenerated native woodland, the carbon benefits of this long-term partnership are estimated to be 100,000 tonnes of CO2e for St Andrews. The collaboration brings academic expertise together with practical land management, creating opportunities for interdisciplinary research with real-world impact.

Corrour is a 57,000-acre upland estate near Fort William with a long history of pioneering, data-led land management. The partnership is developing a pipeline of research and teaching opportunities that connect academic expertise with practical application across the estate.

Research and teaching proposals are welcomed from across the University, spanning natural sciences, social sciences, arts and humanities, technology and policy. Opportunities range from undergraduate and postgraduate projects to larger faculty-led initiatives, with proposals reviewed by the Partnership Board.

Researchers interested in developing a project at Corrour can find further information through the University’s research support webpages. Proposals should be submitted at least three weeks ahead of a Partnership Board meeting.

The completed project provides a permanent base for the partnership’s growing programme of research, teaching and ecological restoration at Corrour.